More than 200 young female athletes laced up to skate with three-time Olympic gold medalist Meghan Agosta for the 12th annual Scotiabank Girls HockeyFest on Nov. 28.
The festival, held at the Canadian Tire Centre, featured a stadium tour, pictures with the Clarkson Cup – emblematic of Canadian women’s hockey supremacy – , and training sessions run by Agosta with the help of the Carleton University and University of Ottawa’s varsity women’s hockey teams.
“It’s inspiring to see young female hockey players demonstrate teamwork, passion and have the chance to learn from Canadian role models, helping them to pursue their goals both on and off the ice,” says Ottawa-area Scotiabank executive Alfonso Movilla.
Scotiabank supports more than 5,000 community hockey teams across Canada through a corporate sponsorship program.
Scotiabank Girls HockeyFest began in Ottawa 12 years ago and has expanded across Canada to include Calgary, Brandon, Winnipeg, and Toronto.
“Female hockey is one of the fastest-growing sports in the world,” says the Hockey Canada website. “It has been been growing exponentially since 1990, the year of the first official women’s world championship.”
“Since that monumental year, the number of girls in Canada [who play hockey] has increased from 11, 341 to over 85,500,” according to a 2012 article by the National Hockey League.
McNabb Arena in Centretown hosts Ottawa Girls Hockey Association practices and games throughout the winter.
The Canadian Tire Centre event featured a presentation by Agosta – who represented Canada and won gold at the Torino 2006 Olympics, at Vancouver Olympics in 2010and at Sochi Olympics in 2014 – to inspire the female players and encourage parental support.
“Ever since I was 6 years old, its always my dream to represent Canada. I’m so fortunate to have accomplished what I’ve accomplished,” says Agosta. “If it wasn’t for my parents, I wouldn’t be who I am or where I am today.”
Agosta remembers her parents taking her to hockey school with Olympian mentors, like Cassie Campbell and Lori Dupuis, and how it had a big impact on her dreams.
“Those were the girls that really inspired me to represent my country. To be here today and be that person for your daughters is definitely an honour,” said Agosta to the parents of the crowd. “If I can make a difference, then my job is done.”
She also had a message for Olympic hopefuls to “set a goal, dream big, remember that the sky is the limit and that anything is possible.”
Her words appeared to have a big impact on the girls who attended – players aged 7 to 12 – who participated in the activities with big smiles.
“I thought it was inspirational because hearing somebody talk about their dream happen, can make you think that your dream can happen too,” said Amelia, who plays for the Carleton Place Cyclones.
“We try to choose an Olympian that is really relevant, especially for the young girls to have someone to look up to,” says Kelsey Wolff, Scotiabank team representative for Girls HockeyFest.
She added that the event is important because, “hockey is in the heart of all the communities that we live in, that we play in, and that we work in, and by growing the game in the community is a great way to build teamwork.”
Hockey dad Scott Martin agrees. His family drove from Kingston to be part of the event, and feels like the inspirational message of teamwork brings girls together.
“The team environment is great for kids,” he said. “The friendships you make in the dressing room and on the ice – the playing is secondary, it’s about all the fun you have.”
Agosta says that teamwork is a big part of why she loves hockey. It has also inspired her other dream, to become a police officer. She now works full-time with the Vancouver Police Department.
“I think that’s part of why I wanted to get into policing too, it’s part of a team.”