A Campbell River hockey player with ties to Penticton has netted an invitation to a virtual Hockey Canada summer camp.
Olivia Knowles is among 50 players from across the country to be invited to the BFL CANADA National Women’s Development Team Summer Camp, which meets weekly until athletes return to university this fall.
The 21 year-old defenceman is a senior at University of Minnesota.
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According to her university sport profile, Knowles graduated in 2017 from Penticton Secondary School and played for the Okanagan Hockey Academy where she helped the team win the 2017 Canadian Sport School Hockey League (CSSHL) league championship. She’s also been a familiar face on Hockey Canada teams, including the silver-medal-winning 2016 and 2017 under-18 women’s national teams for the IIHF under-18 women’s world championships.
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“It is important to recognize the accomplishment of these athletes being identified in our program at the under-18 and development level; they are a big part of our future moving forward,” said Gina Kingsbury, director of women’s national teams with Hockey Canada. “The virtual sessions taking place allow us to connect and educate our athletes on their development. We are also trying to take advantage of this opportunity to connect our next-gen athletes with our current senior athletes, creating a strong tie between generations of our program.”
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According to a Hockey Canada press release, the virtual meetings will cover a variety of topics throughout the summer including at-home strength and conditioning plans, mental performance plans, nutrition, skating simulations, team-building activities, short-term international competition preparation and meetings with coaches.
The other athletes from B.C. who received invitations to the National Women’s Development Team Summer Camp are Knowles’ Gophers teammates Anne Cherkowski of Vernon and Amy Potomak of Aldergrove, as well as Kate Stuart of Chilliwack, Kendra Woodland of Kamloops, and Kate Reilly of Richmond.
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