The Yukon and Northwest Territories will be hosting their first ever NCCP CanoeKayak workshops in June 2014. These workshops are in preparation for the 2014 North American Indigenous Games (NAIG), and to start youth canoekayak programming in the territories.
Joanne Devlin-Morrison of Alberta will be heading to Inuvik, Northwest Territories early June to deliver an ELCC workshop to NAIG coaches in that region. Whitewater kayaking, and canoeing programing have been present in the Northwest Territories, led by Spider Jones. With the introduction of sprint kayaking to the NAIG, team Northwest Territories are training prospective coaches to help prepare their teams for the 2014 NAIG, and hopefully future competition.
The Yukon, led by Zak Mahmoudi as head coach last year, fielded their first ever Canada Games kayak team in Sherbrooke. Daniel Girouard, former Quebec paddler, and NCCP Level II Certified Coach is now leading the sprint CanoeKayak programming in the Yukon. CKC Learning facilitator Bill Trayling will be travelling up to Whitehorse, Yukon June 12 – 16 to deliver both a CanoeKids and ELCC workshop to prospective club, and NAIG coaches. CanoeKayak BC, with CanoeKids instructors Sam Parmiter and Julia Fremeaux will arrive on Monday the 16th with their Canoekids on the Road program. They will provide CanoeKids day camp programs to the local community, and help mentor the new Yukon coaching staff.
NCCP canoekayak training is also expanding in the far north in Quebec, as Allan Brown, head coach at Great Whale Canoe Club (Hudson’s Bay) was recently trained as a learning facilitator. Allan will hopefully help expand CanoeKayak programming in Inuit and Cree communities along Hudson’s Bay.
We hope to see these 2 territories the Canada Summer Games in 2017 in Manitoba, with some Competition Development certified coaches, as well as some new competitors from Quebec’s far north in future North American Indigenous Games.