October 15, 2005 – The $16 million upgrade to the Canmore Nordic Centre is on schedule and should be completed in time for Canmore to host the World Cup of cross-country skiing in December. And if the weather cooperates, there will be snowmaking at the centre by Nov. 1, according to a chief organizer.

“They’re right on track,” Robert Hogg, event co-chair and chief of competition said on Monday. “To the best of my knowledge, most of (the water lines) are all there. All the piping from the top down is in. The government reports show that they’re on track.”

The World Cup is the final big event of the year marked to celebrate Alberta’s centennial. Organizers boast that TV coverage around the world will reach an audience of over 70 million people
.
On Tuesday, workers with Flagworks of Calgary were taking down the old flagpoles that line the road to the Bill Warren Training Centre and they were getting ready to put up 60 brand new aluminum poles to display the flags of the nations.

“They haven’t done the final grade yet, but I believe that in the next week or so it’s going in.”

Kawser Ahmed, the site and environmental engineer with Alberta Infrastructure and Transport, said the work is on time.

“We are regrading the stadium to meet the existing World Cup standards,” Ahmed said. “It was originally built in 1985 and it used to be 40 metres, now it is 66 metres wide.”

A large team building which will house 24 team rooms near the biathlon range is well under way and it will also be finished in time for the World Cup, he said.

Local athletes will have home field advantage if they can get on snow and ski on the new World Cup courses a month before the big event.

“I think it will be great,” Hogg said. “They’ve all got a shot at it. That’s what having an event like this at home is all about. Everyone gets a crack at it.”

The first races of the winter season are set for Dec. 3 and 4 with the Canada Cup and Alberta Cup cross-country ski races. The cross-country World Cup 2005 is scheduled for Dec. 15 to 18. The senior national team is prepared to compete, according to the head coach.

“We just finished a high altitude training camp in Mammoth, California,” coach Dave Wood said from Mammoth on Tuesday. “It’s been going very well. The summer has been good for training and preparation. Right now the whole group is in good shape.”

Most of the senior team will compete at the Noram races in Vernon on Nov. 26 and 27.

“Our plan is to head north for the tail end of October,” Wood said. “The chances of snow in the south, around Canmore, are slim by then, so we always have a plan to go somewhere. We’d like to train at home if we can.”

Canmore’s Sara Renner is in top shape this year and says she ready for the World Cup.

“I’ve been looking forward to racing in Canada my whole career,” Renner said from her home on Tuesday. “I’m so excited. It’s a great opportunity to build excitement for the sport.”

The senior team will head to Dusseldorf, Germany on Oct. 22 and 23 to race in the first World Cup sprint and team sprints of the season.

“The season is basically upon us,” Renner said. “Those World Cups are right around the corner. I want to do really well at the World Cup at home and fight for a podium. It’s also an Olympic year and when I reach the start line, I’ll do the best I can do.”

Some of the younger members of Canmore’s skiing community are excited about participating in the World Cup celebrations.

“We’ll be involved in volunteering and we’re organizing the kids for a ski-in during the opening ceremonies,” said Val Thompson, Canmore Nordic Ski club volunteer coach. “It’s great for Canmore. We’ll have people from all over the world coming here.”

Coach Jean-Pierre Bohard has been putting his 13 to 17-year-old club members through dryland training this summer to prepare for their season on snow.

“We try to do lots of fun stuff all summer including hiking, biking and roller blading. We even did a triathlon and we went rafting and climbing,” Bohard said. “We used trails on both sides of the valley.

We also did a camp in Kananaskis Country. I’m sure the kids will be quite impressed with how big the organization of the World Cup is and how serious the skiers are. The kids will be very curious.”

A new night loop at the Nordic Centre will also allow people to ski for about seven kilometres on illuminated trails.

“It will make it safer and a longer and more interesting course for everyone to use,” Thompson said.

As far as having snow at the centre by Nov. 1, locals are cautiously optimistic.

“It’s ambitious,” Thompson said. “We’ll see what Mother Nature has planned for us.”