A generation ready to breakthrough and shine was put on display Monday as Golf sa国际传媒 unveiled its 17 athletes selected to represent sa国际传媒 on national amateur and development teams this year.
Among the group named were Victoria golfers Naomi Ko of Olympic View and Noland Thoroughgood of Royal Colwood.
鈥淭hese are our top amateurs from across the country ready to transition into pro golf,鈥� said Jeff Thompson, chief sport officer for Golf sa国际传媒.
Some are already there. Named to the Team sa国际传媒 mix was the Young Pros squad of Albin Choi, Jared du Toit, Stuart Macdonald, Taylor Pendrith, Brittany Marchand, Anne-Catherine Tanguay, Augusta James and Jennifer Ha.
鈥淲e鈥檝e never had more Canadians contending on leaderboards, both pro and amateur, around the world,鈥� said Thompson.
Golf sa国际传媒鈥檚 national training centre is based on Bear Mountain, along with national training centres for Tennis sa国际传媒 and Cycling sa国际传媒 mountain biking. It is part of a slew of national training centres based in Greater Victoria, including those for Rowing sa国际传媒, Rugby sa国际传媒, Triathlon sa国际传媒, Field Hockey sa国际传媒, Swimming sa国际传媒, Athletics sa国际传媒 and Surf sa国际传媒.
Canadian sport clearly believes centralization works.
鈥淥ur country has huge footprint, so we have to bring out the best athletes to be with the best athletes. We believe that produces results,鈥� said Thompson.
鈥淥ur mantra is to produce champions by design, not by chance.鈥�
Like the other national training centres, funding comes from a variety of sources, including Own the Podium and the Canadian Olympic Committe.
鈥淲hy do we spend so much money on so few players?鈥� said Thompson.
鈥淏ecause it produces champions, which in turn inspires a nation of young people to play our sport. We believe in the importance of producing champions. I call it the Brooke Henderson effect. So many more Canadian girls across the country are playing golf because of [LPGA player] Brooke.鈥�
Thoroughgood and Ko get to be part of this in their own backyard.
鈥淚t鈥檚 huge for me to show all the top young Canadian players the Island where I live,鈥� said Ko, an NCAA Div. 1 North Carolina State Wolfpack player, who had top-three finishes in 2017 in the women鈥檚 Canadian Amateur, sa国际传媒 Amateur and Porter Cup.
Thoroughgood gets to be part of the Canadian team without leaving the Island.
鈥淐entralizing is not as big a transition for me because I get to sleep in my own bed in my own home,鈥� he said.
鈥淭his is such a skilled group of players to be around and it really pushes my game to another level.鈥�
Named to the Team sa国际传媒 amateur squad are Ko, Maddie Szeryk, Jaclyn Lee, Grace St-Germain, Hugo Bernard, Josh Whalen, Joey Savoie and Chris Crisologo. Selected to the national development squad are Thoroughgood, Johnny Travale, Christopher Vandette, Peyton Callen, Thomas Critch, Celeste Dao, Monet Chun, Ellie Szeryk and Alyssa DiMarcantonio.
