Ottawa Sports Pages notebook: Community rallies around injured skier, plus news from 10 more sports, universities & new local sports facilities

Community rallies behind alpine skier Lily Kunstadt following severe injury in Switzerland

By Dan Plouffe

The local sports community has rallied around rising 13-year-old alpine skier Lily Kunstadt, who was seriously injured on Aug. 31 in a non-racing accident at a hill in Switzerland while training for the upcoming season.

Lily had no feeling from the waist down and reduced vision in her left eye after a malfunctioning t-bar lift launched her airborne before she landed on her back, shoulder and head. The Mont-Tremblant ski club athlete returned to Canada this week after spending three weeks in intensive care following a seven-hour surgery to repair four broken vertebrae at a hospital in Lausanne.

“We’re living a parent’s worst nightmare,” Lily’s father, Eric, told The Low Down to Hull & Back newspaper.

The Kunstadt family is well-known on the local sports scene as the owners of Kunstadt Sports, which sells bike, tennis, ski and snowboard equipment at its four area stores. Lily had finished her most recent ski season with a pair of silver medal wins at a U14 international ski race in Tärnaby, Sweden.

The Mont-Tremblant ski club organized an online fundraiser for the Kunstadt family, which surpassed its $350,000 goal Friday morning with contributions coming from supporters locally, nationally and internationally.

Numerous other local organizations also shared the call for help, including the Ottawa Internationals Soccer Club, where Lily played on a U14 team.

On top of her ski exploits, Lily was also a U16 provincial field hockey player from the Chelsea Phénix and a sprint kayaker with the Cascades Club.

“We are sending love and strength to the family, friends and larger ski community,”
the club wrote on an e-card message board for Lily. “Club de ski Mont Tremblant will always have your back. We are so proud of the athlete you are, on and off the snow. You are so strong and determined — we will be there to support your journey. Keep fighting and stay strong.”

Kanata Knights to honour deceased former player Quentin Dorsainvil

The Kanata Knights football club will be holding a moment of silence before all of its teams’ games this weekend in memory and honour of former player Quentin Dorsainvil, who was shot and killed on Sunday night in Ottawa.

The talented 17-year-old defensive lineman had transferred from Holy Trinity Catholic High School to join a program in Miami in hopes of catching the eye of NCAA college football recruiters.

Quentin Dorsainvil was killed after attending a concert downtown, while his older brother was also shot but survived.

“To see a life taken so tragically in the middle of his journey is so difficult,” Knights president Tina Stevens told the Ottawa Citizen‘s Ken Warren. “Gun violence is in our backyard. We have to find a way to protect our kids. We keep seeing more and more of this.”

The Knights will also be collecting a voluntary gate fee of $5 per person at its games to support Dorsainvil’s family.

Garneau high school holds sports dome’s official opening

It’s been open and bustling for awhile, but the French Catholic school board officially inaugurated the sports dome at Garneau high school on Thursday afternoon with a ceremony featuring school board and local elected officials.

The indoor facility, which features both turf and rubberized flooring, welcomes sports such as football, badminton, baseball, pickleball, basketball, volleyball, tennis, soccer, running and yoga.

Garneau will make use of the dome throughout the school day, while community groups have access on evenings and weekends. Ottawa TFC Soccer Club, which began by offering a sports-études soccer program in collaboration with Garneau, has been chosen to manage community bookings.

“This project represents a significant step forward in our efforts to promote sports excellence and enhance community well-being,” Ottawa TFC general manager Pavel Cancura said in the school board’s media release.

The Aqua Life Swim Academy to reopen pool at former Orleans Y

Orleans is set to welcome another new sports centre down the hill from Garneau as The Aqua Life Swim Academy gets ready to reopen the pool at the former National Capital Y facility in the Orleans Town Centre.

With a recently-signed lease agreement, The Aqua Life will begin offering a variety of swim programs for all ages, from infants to adults, in October. The organization, which operates facilities in six other cities across Eastern Canada, will hold a grand opening event on Sept. 28. It is open to the public and will feature free swims, tours and giveaways.

“The pool was an integral part of the community for years, and we’re thrilled and honoured to bring it back to life,” The Aqua Life Swim Academy CEO and co-owner Dimitrie Comanescu said in a media release. “This event is about more than just reopening a facility — it’s about reconnecting with the community and welcoming everyone to discover what The Aqua Life has to offer.”

The pool reopening marks another step in restoring community access to the former Y centre, which shut down in January 2022. Also based at the facility at 265 Centrum Blvd. are Altitude Gym and Capital Courts Training Centre.

Yan Huckendubler joins Field Hockey Canada Hall of Fame

Yan Huckendubler was recently honoured for his induction into the Field Hockey Canada Hall of Fame as a builder.

Huckendubler, who’s been involved in field hockey from the local club level up to the sport’s top international stages, was recognized as “a visionary who has made a unique mark on the sport behind the scenes,” in a Field Hockey Canada tribute this week.

He started a website for Field Hockey Canada in the Internet’s earliest days and has captured photos of many historic Canadian field hockey moments, including seven Pan American Games, six Commonwealth Games and six Olympic Games.

Huckendubler said that the Paris 2024 Games, where he took photos of Olympic competition despite Canada not qualifying for the tournament, marked a step towards retirement in his career that spanned 40 years of involvement in Canada, plus 20 years of playing at the club level in his native Paris.

Mike Woods finishes in pack chasing podium, 8th overall, in Montreal

Ottawa cyclist Mike Woods placed eighth in a field of 169 UCI World Tour riders at the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal last Sunday at Parc Mont-Royal.

The 37-year-old three-time Olympian finished in a large pack of 13 athletes who sprinted to the finish for third place and were all awarded the same time of five hours, 28 minutes and 55 seconds for the 209.1 km course – 40 seconds behind winner and Tour de France champion Tarej Pogocar.

“This race is always one of my biggest objectives of the season and it’s basically my home race as home is not far away,” Woods said via his Israel-Premier Tech team. “I am proud of eighth place. I was strong, I tried multiple times. Maybe the only reason I have a sting of disappointment is because there was so much support from the crowds, so much love, so I really wanted to honour that. I felt it throughout the course, everyone was cheering my name and giving me amazing support.”

2 Ottawa players make playoff round at FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup

Canada exited the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup in its first elimination match with a 2-1 defeat to Spain at the Aug. 31-Sept. 22 tournament in Colombia.

Ottawa’s Annabelle Chuwku entered the scoreless round of 16 match in the 57th minute and was involved in Canada’s scoring sequence within six minutes, but Spain responded with two later goals to take the win 2-1.

Canada made it through to the playoff round with a 1-1-1 record, having tied France 3-3, beaten Fiji 9-0 and lost 2-0 to Brazil.

Earlier in the tournament, Chukwu broke Christine Sinclair’s Canadian youth scoring record of 27 international goals in her 34th match from the U15 through U20 levels.

Chukwu’s fellow Ottawa South United Soccer Club product Sofia Cortes-Browne was a reserve goalkeeper at the event.

Ottawa tennis players score national titles

Ottawa’s Joshua Noah Adamson won the U16 boys’ doubles title at Tennis Canada’s 2024 Fischer Outdoor National Championships in Toronto.

Playing alongside Dani Szabo, the #3 seeds took down both the top and #2-ranked teams earlier in the draw before winning the championship match 3-6, 6-3, 10-8.

At the 2024 Steve Stevens Masters Tennis Championships, also held in Toronto, renowned local architect Barry Padolsky was the winner of the over-85 men’s singles category.

Tennis Canada does not list athletes’ hometowns in results.

Ottawa players compete for volleyball national teams and programs

Ottawa’s Maxime Gratton earned a silver medal with the Canadian men’s volleyball team at the NORCECA Men’s Final 6, held from Aug. 20-25 in Gatineau.

Canada won every one of its first four matches in straight sets to book its spot in the championship game, beating Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Cuba and the U.S. before losing 3-1 to Mexico to finish the round robin. Canada lost the final 19-25, 25-17, 20-25, 22-25 to repeat champion USA.

Gratton, a Maverick Volleyball Club product who plays for McMaster University, scored 13 points in Canada’s match against Mexico and one point in the championship game. Canada’s roster did not include members of the 2024 Olympic team that finished 10th in Paris.

Three Ottawa players have selected to participate in Volleyball Canada’s National Excellence Program for Grade 11 and 12 students.

Lea Pendergast has been invited to participate in the women’s full-time daily training program that runs from September to December at the Richmond Olympic Oval in B.C., while Connor Spencer and Carson Francis will be based in Gatineau with the men’s program.

Ottawa Sooners drop to 3-2 in Ontario junior football

After earning three blowout victories to start the year, the Ottawa Sooners have now lost two games in a row in their Ontario junior football season.

The 5-0 St. Clair Saints continued to steamroll their opposition with a decisive 47-14 win over Ottawa last Saturday. Rashaad Johnson and Dejahne Erskine scored touchdowns for Ottawa.

The Sooners are on the road again this week in Hamilton before hosting St. Clair for their final home game of the regular season on Sept. 28.

3 local teams have perfect records in U Sports play

The Carleton Ravens men’s soccer team’s perfect 6-0 record will receive its toughest test yet this season with home games against the second- and third-place teams in the OUA East standings on Friday evening (vs Toronto) and Sunday afternoon (vs Toronto Metropolitan).

Carleton, which is ranked #1 in the country, has earned shutouts in its past four games while outscoring Queen’s, RMC, Ontario Tech and Trent by a combined 18-0 score.

The 4-0 University of Ottawa Gee-Gees are the lone remaining unbeaten team in the RSEQ women’s rugby league, most recently pounding the Carleton Ravens 65-5 on Wednesday evening.

Ranked third in the country, the Gee-Gees took down the teams with the next-best records in their two previous matches – 47-17 over Concordia and 31-26 over Laval. They host winless Bishop’s on Saturday.

The Gee-Gees women’s soccer team completes the local list of varsity university teams with perfect records, and they also stand as the only women’s soccer side in Ontario with nothing but wins.

The Gee-Gees’ latest victory was a 2-1 win over Nipissing last Sunday, while their biggest triumph to date was a 1-0 triumph at home on Sept. 8 over Queen’s. They are ranked second in Canada.

And the Gee-Gees’ women’s hockey program is set to welcome its inaugural hall of fame class, with two-time All-Canadian and national silver medallist Kim Brent (Kerr), four-time national championships tournament coach Shelley Coolidge and long-time equipment manager Bob Bowes all set to be honoured on Nov. 23 as part of the program’s 25th anniversary season celebrations.

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