Speed skaters carve up the ice at first King event

November 19, 2013 · 0 Comments

By Jeff Doner
King Township’s first ever speed skating meet was a huge success, as skaters from all over Ontario descended upon the Trisan Centre in Schomberg for the event on Saturday.
The King Speed Skating Club and its members hosted the event and participated in a full day of races and fun events.
“We couldn’t be happier with the turnout and the way it ran,” said King Speed Skating Club president Rose Kimber. “The community support and the volunteer support was outstanding and we had help from the other speed skating clubs. We had a lot of kids there and were able to get the Special Olympics part, so it was a great day. A lot of people worked hard to make this happen.”
Kimber said the club welcomed volunteers from the King chapter of the Business Women’s Networking Association, the Township of King, York Regional Police and high school students.
King skater Yilin Liao, 6, skated in her first-ever competition and was all smiles after coming off the ice.
“It was good,” she said smiling. “My favourite part is going really fast and I really like it.”
Liao said she had a lot of fun cheering on her teammates throughout the day and said the competition wasn’t all about results.
“I don’t care if I come in last and maybe one day I’ll be first,” she said.
Kimberly Burjan is one of the King Speed Skating Clubs most advanced skaters and said it was great to be able to compete on home ice.
“It’s definitely fun,” she said. “It’s a lot more like comfortable, I would say, because everybody is here and you know the environment, so it’s not something new and you know the ice. It’s a lot of fun.”
Burjan has been skating for two years and although she wasn’t thrilled with her times she said she was looking to push her personal best.
“It’s been ok. I didn’t get a personal best, so it didn’t go perfectly, but that’s ok,” she said. “I’m excited because I want to get ahead of my time, so I feel motivated.”
With the success of the weekend, Kimber said the club is looking to make it an annual event.
“Absolutely, it was fantastic,” she said. “We also had some really great sponsors come forward us as well. We had a bunch of other sponsors step in and help out with the costs. Everybody was very pleased.
“I think we had a pretty good turnout for our first meet and I think everybody was very happy. It was a great turnout for our first year.”
For more information on the club or how to get involved, visit www.kingspeedskating.com.