The folks of Gatineau really made a splash during that city’s fill-in stint as host of the Canada Cup FINA Diving Grand Prix in May, so much so that Diving Plongeon Canada has agreed to keep that international competition at the Gatineau sports centre for another four years.
Next year’s event will take place on May 1-4.
“The hard work by staff in the municipal administration, the sports centre and the local diving club, as well as by volunteers, helped make the 2013 Canada Cup an outstanding event. Even the participants were full of praise,” Penny Joyce, chief operating officer of Diving Plongeon Canada, said in a media release announcing the extended agreement. “As a result, the decision to hold the event in Gatineau was a natural one, and we look forward to making it even bigger and better over the next four years.”
The 2013 Canada Cup attracted 97 athletes from 16 countries. Canadian athletes claimed five medals, including golds by Quebecers Jennifer Abel and Meaghan Benfeito in women’s three-metre springboard and 10-metre platform, respectively.
The Canada Cup was previously held at the 1976 Olympic pool in Montreal, but that facility has been undergoing a two-year renovation that began last year. Gatineau made a successful bid for the right to play host for what was essentially a one-year trial run, and that has turned into the four-year extension.
In the new agreement, the city commits to contributing $80,000 in goods and services plus $20,000 in partnership with Tourisme Outaouais for an estimated total of $100,000.
Shayok bound for Marquette
Ottawa’s Marial Shayok has announced via Twitter his intention to accept a basketball scholarship at Marquette University.
His older brother, Shayok Shayok, recently announced a transfer to the University of Missouri-Kansas City after spending two years on the basketball team at Bradley University in Illinois. Their sister, Yar Shayok, played for the University of Detroit-Mercy before graduating last spring.
Marial Shayok began high school at St. Patrick’s in Ottawa, but has spent the past couple of years at Blair Academy in New Jersey. He’s scheduled to graduate next spring.
Recently, Gatineau’s Kevin Zabo, a former teammate of Marial Shayok on the national cadet men’s basketball team, had announced his commitment to San Diego State University. He’s currently at Brewster Academy in New Hampshire.
Twin sisters Khaleann and Audrey-Ann Caron-Gaudreau of Gatineau, both now at IMG Academy in Florida, announced in September that they were bound for the Vanderbilt University basketball team.
IMG Academy is also where Ottawa’s Michael O’Connor is playing quarterback for the school’s football team. He decided to accept a scholarship offer from Penn State University.
