Wednesday 16 November 2011

First Leg of the Journey

The flight to Paris was pretty problem free for our team. We had no issues with wheelchairs being damaged like when we traveled to Montreal. Air Canada took care of us nicely this time around, and the pilots even made an announcement wishing us good luck, which, for me, really struck home with the magnitude of our trip and responsibility to represent our country to the best of our abilities. My most memorable moment of the airport in Paris was all the guys with guns walking around, and I don't mean small handguns! As we traveled from the airport to Vaucresson, where we'd be staying for the initial training portion of our trip, I enjoyed looking out at the exquisite scenery. Similar to how it was in Montreal, I didn't understand anything on the signs and billboards, and there was a lot of graffiti. Mind you, the graffiti wasn't ugly, but in fact, a lot of it was quite artistic in nature.

Now that we had arrived, it was time to get down to business! We had a very busy week of training ahead to get us accustomed to the time change. We started by having a small training session the day we arrived as a way to keep us awake since we arrived early that day Paris time. It was quite apparent that everyone was exhausted, but the session served its purpose and got us through the day! Over the next few days, we had a number of sessions and scrimmages against Team USA. These scrimmages proved to be our greatest learning tool and wake up call for our team. Team USA was definitely a force to be reckoned with as they dominated the flow of the game in every scrimmage, but we were not discouraged! Every scrimmage we tried something new and improved greatly. The whole experience was, in my opinion, the best thing that could have happened to our young, inexperienced team.

On the last day of training, a mini-tournament was held for fun between Team Canada, Team USA, Team Australia, and the division 2 champions of the French league. This gave us an opportunity to see how good the Australian team was, which was very beneficial since they were in the same pool as us for the World Cup. As expected of any national team, the Australian team proved to be quite strong for being such a young team (even younger than us), and we ended up tying them 1-1. We were unsure of what to expect from the French team, but they proved to be a very strong team and ended up beating us. After the mini-tournament, despite everyone being exhausted, we decided to hold a fun game with a few of the French players joining Team Canada and playing against Team USA. With the infusion of the skilled French players, the game was quite exciting! It was very cool to see the players adapt to the slight language barrier since the French players only knew a little English.

With training aside, we did end up taking some time to do some sightseeing! As a team, we went to see the Eiffel Tower, but instead of explaining how amazing it was, I'll just post some pictures.





Friday 21 October 2011

As the Excitement Swells....

I am so very pleased with the build up of excitement around our first National Team!

Back when we started training, I feared that we wouldn't receive the coverage and support that a National Team should garner, but thanks to the hard work of our team and our supporters, my fears have been squelched. We are riding high on the clouds with the hopes and expectations of those who look to us for great things, and we'll try to not disappoint!

Despite the praise and reverence we've had cascade upon us as of late, this isn't so much about us being praised as it is about having the sport we love put into the spotlight across Canada. Our success will be measured not only by the trophy we hope to bring home, but also, through the growth of Powersoccer across Canada. Only time will tell if our hard work has helped Powersoccer to grow in Canada, but I am certain of one thing, it is just the beginning.

Team Canada with our great supports Rob Ellis and Calista Johnston-Parkin after they gave us our uniforms.

Team Canada with Rick Mercer!

Saturday 15 October 2011

The Honour of being Knighted

Last week, our Coach named who would be the captain and assistant/back-up captain for Team Canada. In the past, our team captains have never been much more than someone to participate in the coin toss, but as we approach the world stage, I believe that the captain will be play a pivotal role in maintaining the composure of the team by making the big saves or scoring the big goals that allow the flow of the game to turn into your favour. I was one of 3 of our members (myself, Jordan Marks, and Luke Galvani), who said they would be up to the challenge and responsibility of being the team's captain. All three of us have been putting our all into the team in numerous areas such as publicity, sponsors, play-making, and dedication to practicing, but we all couldn't be the captain.

Ultimately, our coach, Gordon Marks, named myself to be the Team Captain and Jordan Marks to be the Assistant Captain. It's a title that I've held in the past, but as I said earlier, this time it will be more than just because we need a team captain for the coin toss. I feel honoured to be able to say that I'm the captain of such an amazing group of athletes, and I'm glad to have Jordan there for support. It's truly inspirational how far we've come in the last year through our practice and extraordinary fundraising efforts. It has been a great learning experience for myself as I helped with finding sponsors and getting us as much publicity as possible.

Besides winning and supporting my teammates, I plan to continually update this blog with how we're doing and pictures. I'm not sure how much free time I'll have, or if I'll have the energy to do this, but I will do my best to post somethings for everyone to see how we're doing.

As for what I plan to bring back as a souvenir.... :)

Wednesday 17 August 2011

The Number To Rule All Numbers!!

Over the years of playing Powerchair Football, I have used a few numbers such as 69(my childish phase), and 87(my birth year), but for representing Canada, I wanted to put some thought into the number I would be wearing. My initial idea was to google famous sport athlete numbers, but I felt that mimicking the number of an already famous athlete would detract meaning from the significance of being on Canada's first National Team for Powerchair Football. I continued my train of thought to try and find numbers of importance in my life such as; my age, the year I graduated high school, my birthday, number of siblings, etc. All of these options seemed to fit my ideal of having a number that represented something, or someone, important to me, but I wasn't being original, so I decided to go back to the drawing board.

I was seeking originality(to some extent) and a connection that is important to me.... Well, after some thought, the answer became as clear as day. I decided to draw my number from a source that has given me strength and courage since I was a child, the Lord. To be specific, the prayer of putting on the Holy Armour of God found in Ephesians:

11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age,[c] against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— 19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
- Ephesians 6:11-20

This particular scripture holds great meaning in my life because of my Mom. As a child, we would always put on my armour before I went to bed, and to this day, I find strength through the practice of putting on the Armour of the Lord. Of course, the scripture is far more wordy than my Mom's version(I was a kid after all):

I put on the Helmet of Salvation,
the Breastplate of Righteousness,
the Shield of Faith,
the Sword of the Spirit,
the Belt of Truth,
and Feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the Gospel of Peace.


I am truly an ambassador, not only for God, but for my Country, for individuals with Arthrogryposis, for individuals with Muscular Dystrophy, and for everyone that has supported me throughout my life.

Now, I'm sure you're wondering how I used this scripture for picking my number, right? It was simple! I decided to use the starting verse, Ephesians 6:11, and I just add 6 to 11.... 17!!!

Monday 25 July 2011

The New Valiant Stead(wheels)!

As those who are close to me may know, my wheelchair broke down last summer, and I've been dealing with the long process of getting a new one. This process was extremely stressful because at first it looked like it could have ruined my chances to make our National Team. Luckily, I was given a loaner wheelchair by Motion Specialties, and I was still able to tryout for the team!!!

Finally, this last week I was able to use my brand new wheelchair. The wheelchair was hand built by a local manufacturer called Ranger Wheelchairs. Their work thus far has impressed us all, and they have been very open to making the necessary modifications for Powersoccer.



Wednesday 8 June 2011

The Journey to Paris Begins.

Since November 2010, athletes across Canada started training to become a part of the biggest milestone, the FIPFA World Cup, in the history of Powersoccer in Canada, which is the most prominent sport for individuals in electric wheelchairs world wide. The sport itself has been around since the 80s, but in the last 5-8 years it has made huge strides to grow and become internationally recognized.

Over the next month, I'll be posting about Powersoccer and Canada's journey to Paris.


Powerchair Football Video Clip by powerchairfootball