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They are, in many ways, the underappreciated Games.
Yet, the World University Games, or Universiade as they are also known, provide a valuable gateway to the Olympics for some university and college athletes, while giving others their only chance to wear national team colours.
The 2017 World University Summer Games began on Saturday in Taipei, Taiwan, with several Island athletes competing among the Canadian team of 276 athletes.
鈥淭hese are very important Games for student-athletes because it gives them an opportunity to represent their country, and the Games are also the entry point for some to compete for sa国际传媒 in the Olympics,鈥� said Clint Hamilton, athletic director of the University of Victoria.
鈥淎t UVic, we value the University Games because of that.鈥�
Numerous Vikes athletes have competed in the University Games, most famously when UVic players Eli Pasquale, Gerald Kazanowski and Kelly Dukeshire led sa国际传媒 to the gold medal in basketball at Edmonton in 1983, after a massive upset over the U.S. team that included future NBA greats Charles Barkley and Karl Malone.
Heading the UVic contingent into the 2017 Taipei Games will be Vikes track and field performers Cole Peterson (1,500 metres), Tyler Smith (800 metres) and Sarah MacPherson (1,500 metres).
Peterson could be one to watch after pressing two Olympians recently in winning bronze in the 1,500 meters at the Canadian track and field championships in Ottawa.
鈥淐ole showed he belongs at the top with the best in sa国际传媒. We鈥檙e looking forward to seeing what he can do with an international field,鈥� said UVic assistant track coach Hilary Stellingwerf, a two-time Olympian.
Peterson is as impressive in the classroom as on the track. The masters degree student in computer engineering was named winner of the 2016-17 President鈥檚 Cup as the UVic athlete best combining academic and athletic achievement.
Joining the UVic trio on the Canadian track and field team for the University Games will be Frances Kelsey graduate Agnes Esser of Mill Bay, the Canadian women鈥檚 discus champion throwing for the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers of the NCAA Big Ten, and Tofino shot-putter Sullivan Parker of the Cal-Berkeley Bears of the Pac-12.
There will be enough Bears in Taipei to worry any campers. Other Island athletes at the Games from Cal-Berkeley are St. Michaels University School grad Jeremy Bagshaw and Claremont grad Sarah Darcel, both in swimming.
Bagshaw is an NCAA Pac-12 medallist and recent graduate in biology, but still qualifies for the University Games. He swam recently for sa国际传媒 at the 2017 FINA world championships in Budapest.
鈥淚 want to be more aggressive and not hold back in my swimming,鈥� said Bagshaw, the Canadian 400-metre freestyle champion, before he departed for Budapest and Taipei.
Bagshaw just failed to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics and he is hoping the World University Games will be a stepping stone to the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the first year of the quad to Tokyo and I want to get it going,鈥� he said.
Eric Hedlin from UVic is another swimmer who was on the Canadian senior team at the FINA world championships and is now in Taipei for the Universiade.
University Games diving gold-medallist Celina Toth of Victoria Boardworks, a UVic student, is also competing in Taipei. The Canadian men鈥檚 basketball team at the Games will be led by Mount Douglas Secondary grad Conor Morgan of Victoria, the wonderfully seamless sa国际传媒 West MVP and big man from the UBC Thunderbirds, who can attack from both inside and outside.
鈥淸The University Games] provides a natural high-performance international pathway,鈥� U Sports chief sport officer Lisette Johnson-Stapley said in a statement when the Canadian team was named.
鈥淎t the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, 56 former Universiade participants competed [for sa国际传媒], bringing home nine medals. One year later, we are looking forward to the next generation of Olympic stars making their mark in Taipei. The experience and memories they take away will be life-changing.鈥�
The World University Games run to Aug. 30.
