The Mission Blazers floor hockey team is heading to Calgary next week for the 2024 Special Olympics Winter Games.
“It’s the first time that Mission has gone to nationals for floor hockey which is pretty exciting and something [we’re] pretty proud of,” head coach Brendan Turner said.
The squad earned the right to represent BC on the national stage after claiming gold at the 2023 Special Olympics BC Winter Games in Kamloops last February.
The opening ceremony kicks off the Games on Tuesday (Feb. 27) with the competition running through Saturday (March 2).
The tournament is a big opportunity for the team, with a gold medal potentially clinching a spot at the 2025 World Games in Italy.
Turner says the athletes have been working hard over the past year and taking their training seriously. The team has increased their practices to twice a week.
“A lot of our athletes have started going to the gym regularly. They’ve been tracking their exercise, tracking their meals, tracking their water intake — just the personal growth from a fitness and health standpoint has jumped a lot because they’re really taking their body seriously and understanding that being in good shape can help them be better at hockey,” Turner said.
In the 2023 provincial tournament, Mission went undefeated. The team defeated Kelowna 5-2, Delta 7-5, Kamloops 6-2 and Richmond 4-3. Turner touted the strong goaltending from Mitchell Howell and Justin King as reasons for their success.
Mission knocked off Richmond 4-3 to secure a gold medal. Trailing 2-1, Bryce Schafelberger scored twice to give Mission a 3-2 lead in the final game.
The Blazers’ gold medalists were Schafelberger, King, Howell, Matthew Burns, Doug Martin, Liam Barry, Tony Carter, Russel Reist, Paul Potma, Dan Catarig, Amanda Peebles, Thuc Nguyen, Thien Lam and Josh Potma.
The team has added two athletes from Abbotsford for their national tournament.
Mission will participate in competitions to determine seeding before playing two to three games per day until a champion is crowned.
“It’ll be a grind but that’s what they’ve been working for,” Turner said.
All games can be streamed live on YouTube at www.youtube.com/specialocanada.
READ MORE: Mission wins floor hockey gold at BC Special Olympics Winter Games