Olympic talent scouts arrive in the Forest City for annual 'RBC Training Ground'
The Canadian Olympic Committee hosted a free talent search in London, Ont. Saturday.
Canadian track and field Olympian Brandon McBride was on hand to cheer on young athletes at the annual RBC Training Ground event inside Western University’s Recreation Centre.
“The RBC Training ground event is an athlete identification program. Essentially, it’s to help identify the young and upcoming talent and basically bridge the gap from where they are currently to where they want to be,” explained McBride.
'RBC Training Ground' is open to any athlete between the ages of 14 and 25, regardless of their sport background.
Parents were on hand as their children took part in a number of drills for just over an hour.
“He gets to try a few different sports that he doesn’t normally participate in, and hopefully build some more confidence in athletics,” said Jordan Dindia, whose 17-year-old son participated in Saturday’s training.
Talent scouts from 11 different Olympic sports were on hand.
- Bobsled Canada Skeleton
- Canoe Kayak Canada
- Climbing Canada
- Cycling Canada
- Freestyle Canada
- Luge Canada
- Rowing Canada
- Rugby Canada
- Speed Skating Canada
- Volleyball Canada
- Wrestling Canada
“We’re looking at potential future cyclists, we’re looking at their beep tests, their vertical jumps, a whole bunch of other stuff to see if they’d be a potential future Olympian,” said Ryan MacDonald, Canadian Athlete and Cycling Representative from National Cycling Institute Milton.
Two new National Sport Organizations will also be added to the mix this year, Football (Flag) Canada and Squash Canada, both of which will be making Olympic debuts at the LA 2028 Summer Olympics.
Cruz Dindia participated in the training test, “I was feeling pretty gassed already after the vertical jump, but I tried my best. I did pretty good in all of the events, above average in everything.”
“I wish this was around when I was in high school and whatnot, I had to be essentially one of the best in the country just to shake hands with some of these individuals, some of the national team coaches,” added McBride.
The program has already found and funded 13 Olympians and seven Canadian Olympic medalists.
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