Talent searches for the next great singer, juggler or fire-breather are all the rage on reality television.
RBC Training Ground brought the concept to sports and saw its efforts turn to gold in Tokyo. The athletic talent hunt scours the nation attempting to uncover hidden gems or re-direct current athletes into other sports better fitting their body metrics.
The program recorded two stunning success stories in the Tokyo Olympics. Avalon Wasteneys of Campbell River, a former cross-country skier on Mount Washington, was re-directed to the University of Victoria for rowing and stroked Canada to the Olympic gold medal in the women’s eight. Kelsey Mitchell, a former University of Alberta Golden Bears soccer player, was re-directed to track cycling and won Olympic gold at Tokyo.
The RBC Training Ground tryouts, among 17 across the country, return to CARSA gym on the University of Victoria campus Saturday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Anyone interested in trying out is welcome. Registration is at RBCTrainingground.ca. Walk-ups will also be accepted on the day.
Prospects will get to show their core power, strength speed and endurance to Olympic team talent scouts from 12 national sports associations.
Triathlon Canada, Boxing Canada, Wrestling Canada and Sport Climbing Canada are the newest to join the program this year. They join officials who will again be on site from Rugby Canada, Rowing Canada, Canoe Kayak Canada, Cycling Canada, Luge Canada, Volleyball Canada, Freestyle Ski Canada and Speed Skating Canada.
Former UVic Vikes rugby star and Tokyo Olympian Pamphinette Buisa will be on hand to help the technical leads.
The program, inaugurated in 2016, hit its stride in the last quadrennials with a total of seven Canadian Olympic medallists from the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games and 2022 Beijing Winter Games either discovered by Training Ground or redirected to a more appropriate sport through the program.
The program has put more than 12,000 athletes through their paces across Canada since 2016, and more than 1,600 have been identified by national sport associations as having Olympic potential, many in sports they had never previously considered.
“RBC Training Ground is designed to help identify and support the next generation of Olympic talents,” program technical director Evan MacInnis said in a statement.
“They all rely on raw athleticism and determination to attract the attention of our sport partners.”
