Northern Ontario athlete a step closer to her Olympic dream
Kristen Siermachesky can now let out a secret she has been keeping for the past three weeks. The 23-year-old rower from New Liskeard is one of only 30 athletes to be awarded funding and an accelerated path to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
It was announced on TSN this week when competitors were showcased at the RBC Training Ground National Competition. Siermachesky said it was an incredible experience to have Olympians cheering her on at the event.
“It’s like, no, we should be cheering you on, but really that’s what they’re looking for in this competition, to create these relationships,” she said.
“Five little competitions that you do, it’s about creating those relationships and connections with those Olympians along the way."
More than 1,500 athletes competed and Siermachesky recorded the top score among all females in endurance and the second-best result in strength.
The goal of the RBC Training Ground Program is to find the next generation of Canadian Olympians by testing them and pairing them with a sport that matches their scores.
“So you can go from a sport you thought you were good at to one that you’re excellent at," said Sam Effah, an RBC Olympian.
“I think to have that opportunity provided by a bank just to help that transition happen and push you to your Olympics goal and essentially connect with national sports organizations is amazing.”
Siermachesky lives and trains for her rowing in Vancouver and still has to make the senior national team.
“Right now I am lucky enough to be training around them all the time so I see their environment,” she said.
“I know a lot of the girls now. I’m slowly starting to create those connections and learn from them."
Siermachesky recently competed in the National Rowing Championships and next, she will be working towards making it to the Pan American Games and, she hopes, the Paris Olympics.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.