The BC Winter Games torch cauldron will be lit tonight at Kal Tire Place. (File photo/BC Games)

By Pete McIntyre (Vernon Matters)

'SPRING' WINTER GAMES

Let the Games begin! Over 1,300 participants in Vernon for BC Winter Games

Mar 23, 2023 | 11:30 AM

VERNON — After months of planning, and a one-year postponement due to COVID-19 and other factors, Greater Vernon is finally ready to host the BC Winter Games.

The four-day event will feature 900 athletes and another 400 coaches and officials taking part in 15 sports at various venues around Vernon, Coldstream, Silver Star, Sovereign Lake and one activity in Kelowna (badminton).

About 1,500 volunteers are helping to put on the massive event including dozens from the central Island area.

The opening ceremony will be held Thursday, March 23 at Kal Tire Place, with competition on Friday, Saturday and part of Sunday.

The first athletes started arriving Wednesday night after travelling with their team members on buses and planes.

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“There are athletes coming from all over the province. It is very, very exciting to see them come together,” Cindy Masters, Games vice-president, said.

Their families will travel to Vernon separately.

Masters said the big moment of the opening ceremonies will be the athlete’s march.

“That is really what we’re all coming together for. We’re coming together to celebrate these athletes and watching them come in with their zones. it is so exciting to watch.”

The ceremony will also include a DJ, dancing, drumming and keynote speaker Mike Shaw. Jamie Tawil of Global Okanagan will be the MC and B.C.’s Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport, Lana Popham, is expected to represent the provincial government.

The athletes will stay at local schools and have their meals provided, while the coaches, officials and parents will stay at local hotels and motels, leading the Games’ local economic spinoff of $1.2 million.

Even though it’s late March, Masters says there is still lots of good snow conditions at Silver Star and the Sovereign Lake Nordic Club.

The closing celebration will be a video link posted on bcgames.org around 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, March 26.

BC Games facts:

• Greater Vernon hosted the BC Winter Games in 1992 and 2012, as well as the 1982 BC Summer Games.
• Competitors represent eight geographic zones: Kootenays (Zone 1), Thompson-Okanagan (Zone 2), Fraser Valley (Zone 3), Fraser River (Zone 4), Vancouver-Coastal (Zone 5), Vancouver Island-Central Coast (Zone 6), North West (Zone 7) and Cariboo-North East (Zone 8).
• The 895 athletes, 300 coaches and 140 officials attending the Games hail from 122 communities across the province and represent 84 constituencies in BC. Competing in 15 different sports, most athletes will be attending their first multi-sport Games.
• To date, 40 communities have hosted BC Winter and/or BC Summer Games.
• Greater Vernon 2022 BC Winter Games participants will compete in alpine skiing, archery, artistic gymnastics, badminton, biathlon, cross country skiing (including para), curling, figure skating, freestyle skiing, judo, karate, rhythmic gymnastics, ringette, snowboarding, and wheelchair basketball.

Participant list

To find out who is registered for the Greater Vernon 2022 BC Winter Games, visit the online Participant List, which is searchable by city, sport, and name:

https://bcgames.org/games/participant-lists-and-results/

To search participants by community:
Step 1: Choose Greater Vernon 2022 BC Winter Games
Step 2: Choose List of all participants
Step 3: Choose All from the Sport dropdown list (bottom of the list)
Choose the community from the dropdown list
Step 4: Click Submit