A local figure skater has been selected to represent the province at the 2010 Sask Skate Competition.
Nicki Nagy will be putting her best foot forward in the competition to be held in Saskatoon beginning Friday.
The 10-year-old, who skates with the Yorkton Figure Skating Club, is currently training for the event. Due to the Harvest Showdown in Yorkton, she has had to secure ice in Melville for practice time.
"Training for this event and also for the upcoming 2010 BMO Skate Canada Sectional Championships Nov. 12-14 is posing quite a challenge," says coach Susan Nagy.
Nagy was, however, able to obtain 'rush-ice' at the Melville Stadium from the City of Melville and is training in the city along with two other students of Nagy's, who will also be taking part in the events; Emery Millette of Regina and Koen Kuchar-Paulmark of Yorkton. Nicki, who was the top skater in the province at the Pre-Juvenile level, has moved up to Juvenile this season and coach Nagy says she's working hard.
"Now she has her sights set on the Juvenile title which has skaters 12-and-under," says Nagy, adding Nicki hasn't let her new training facility and schedule affect her training.
"All the kids are responding well and working really hard and I think the obstacles and challenges just make them tougher skaters."
Nicki also got the opportunity to participate in a seminar for the High Performance and Sask First teams with some fairly high profile skaters involved as guest coaches.
"The guest coaches at this seminar were Elizabeth Manley; 1988 silver medalist of the Olympic Games, Lyndon Johnston; two-time Olympian for Canada and Darlene Joeseph, national and international coach for Canada, as well as Bev Pancras; National Level Coach and Canada Games Coach 2011 and Karen Howard; national and world judge and also Sylvie Wandzura; High Performance Coach of Saskatchewan as well as national and world level coach and myself."
According to Nagy the camp was mandatory for all members of these teams to attend, and skaters had their fitness testing done as well.
"We worked in class sessions with the judge, had a Canada Games doping information session as well as on ice instruction from the amazing coaching team," Nagy explains. "It was really beneficial for me as a national level coach and for all the skaters."
