Sunshine Coast Skating Club adult figure skater Tracy Parker has headed to Europe to compete in the 2018 ISU Adult International Competition, held in Oberstdorf, Germany May 13 to 19.
A total of 517 skaters from 34 countries will pack the small Bavarian village for a full week of exciting competition for adults aged 28 to 80. Parker, who is a notary public in Sechelt, will compete on May 16 in the Ladies Bronze III Free Skate event, alongside three other Canadian women, with a total of 40 entries in her category.
Parker said she was thrilled to receive an invitation to the Team Canada dinner where she will meet many of the other Canadian athletes and receive her Team Canada jacket.
This year the Skating Club and the other ice sports user groups all worked together and were successful in obtaining ice in April for the first time. Parker said she is “so grateful” for the dedication and hard work of the coaches and the volunteers in their bid for spring ice, as without it she would have had to travel out of town for training. Having the ice on the Coast allowed her to make the commitment to this event.
“We really are the ‘little club that could,’” Parker said. “This year our skaters have suddenly taken off. They are dominating at competition and they have developed a work ethic any adult would envy. I can only attribute this success to our great coaching staff, the parents who have the skaters there every day, and the extra ice time they’ve had this skating year, being the months of August and April.
“I feel that even more ice time is needed for them to be competitive in the sport of figure skating, and we have some real talent. We also have the privilege of an international figure skating judge, Susan Heffernan, who generously gives her time to provide real guidance and insight to our skaters,” Parker said.
– Submitted
