When Beijing was announced this month as the host city for the 2022 Winter Olympics, becoming the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Games, the news couldn鈥檛 have gone unnoticed among those who hope their career trajectory takes them there.
Among them are women鈥檚 hockey players Micah Hart from Saanichton and Olivia Knowles from Campbell River. They are with the Canadian development team and Under-18 team, respectively, for simultaneous three-game series against their U.S. counterparts taking place this week in Lake Placid, New York.
鈥淭he Olympic dream is always there and is the goal. But I will take it day by day, camp by camp, and whatever happens in my career, happens,鈥� said Hart.
So far, so good for the starry 18-year-old blue-liner, who was chosen to carry the sa国际传媒 flag during the opening ceremonies of the 2015 sa国际传媒 Winter Games in February, after captaining sa国际传媒 to the silver medal at the 2015 IIHF U-18 world championship in January at Buffalo.
Hart begins playing for Cornell this fall on U.S. collegiate athletic scholarship, and will study psychology with the goal of becoming a lawyer. It鈥檚 all been a whirlwind, but astute players like her use this dizzying juncture in their young lives to learn things.
鈥淚鈥檝e become more mature over the past year in accepting a lot of different roles as a player and building off each experience,鈥� said Hart, by phone from Lake Placid, after a summer of dryland training at PISE.
Hart, who could be in the Olympic mix as soon as Pyeongchang 2018, was drawn to the blue line in the Peninsula Minor Hockey Association because older brother Ben Hart played defence for the Peninsula Panthers of the Island Junior B League.
Family also influenced Knowles. Brother Jaret Knowles played hockey and cousins Mitchell Stapley and Brett Stapley were both selected in the WHL bantam draft by the Vancouver Giants and Calgary Hitmen, respectively, with Mitchell playing last season in the BCHL with the Cowichan Valley Capitals and Brett in Major Midget with the North Island Silvertips.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been amazing. So much has happened for me this year but I wouldn鈥檛 be anywhere without my family,鈥� said Knowles, whose career began with the Campbell River Tyees minor organization through bantam before enrolling in the elite Okanagan Hockey Academy, which Hart also attended.
Another Knowles cousin from Campbell River, Lisa Lloyd, also attends OHA.
Knowles recalled how she became a blue-liner: 鈥淚n the first day of Tyees atom practice, they said forwards go this way and defence that way. I didn鈥檛 know what I was, so I followed the group with the least amount of kids to have a better chance of making the team.鈥�
Although two years younger, Knowles played with Hart on a tour of Minnesota in 2009 and this year on Team sa国际传媒 at the sa国际传媒 Winter Games.
鈥淢icah is such an inspirational leader,鈥� said Knowles.
鈥淏eing with her at the sa国际传媒 Winter Games was one of the coolest experiences of my life. It was like a mini-Olympics.鈥�
Perhaps one day the Islanders will be together at the real one.
The reminders are all around them in Lake Placid of the 1980 Winter Olympics.
鈥淭hey have [the late U.S. coach Herb Brooks鈥橾 Miracle on Ice speech on a wall,鈥� noted Knowles.
The 16-year-old Knowles was among the youngest sa国际传媒 players in the sa国际传媒 Winter Games and is also one of the youngest on the Canadian U-18 team this week.
鈥淥livia is an unbelievable leader on the ice, despite her age,鈥� said Hart.
The top Canadian players from the U-18 and development team games this week against the U.S. will be invited to the sa国际传媒鈥檚 National Women鈥檚 Team Fall Festival from Sept. 13-20 in Calgary.
