Bev Priestman says she ‘didn't feel safe' in Canada as ban for drone spying scandal ends: ‘We had to get out of that country'
Priestman's one-year ban ended this week and was named coach of the Wellington Phoenix FC women's team in New Zealand on Tuesday. She said relocating to Wellington — where her wife, Emma Humphries, is the club's academy director — helped her get out of the spotlight of the scandal.
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National Post
2 hours ago
- National Post
Sarah Nurse ready to make waves with new PWHL team in Vancouver
VANCOUVER — When Sarah Nurse first stepped onto the Aquabus dock at Vancouver's Granville Island, she was a little apprehensive. Article content The Hamilton hockey player was unaccustomed to being just a few feet away from ocean waters, with no rails or safety barriers in sight. Article content Article content But it didn't take long for the best-known player on the roster of Vancouver's new Professional Women's Hockey League team to find her footing. Article content Within half an hour, Canada's most valuable player in the 2022 Olympic women's hockey tournament in Beijing had her hands on the vessel's wheel — steering the rainbow-hued commuter ferry through the busy waters of False Creek during a Friday sightseeing tour ahead of a holiday weekend. Article content Nurse has never been shy about navigating uncharted waters. Article content In 2023, she became the first female player ever to grace the cover of EA Sports' NHL video game. Article content Then, as one of five members of the executive board of the Professional Women's Hockey Players' Association, she helped draft the PWHL's first collective bargaining agreement and bring the league to life. Article content Now, after just two years, the PWHL has expanded to eight teams and stretched its footprint west with new franchises in Vancouver and Seattle. Article content After she was left unprotected by the Toronto Sceptres in June's expansion draft, Nurse made the decision to become a part of another new thing and signed a one-year contract as a free agent. Article content Article content 'The opportunity for me to be able to help start an expansion franchise in a market that really has never had women's hockey before was really cool for me,' Nurse said. 'I haven't spent a lot of time in the city, but I've always admired it from afar. I don't know why I said this, but I was like, 'If I don't live in Toronto, I think Vancouver would be the place that I lived in.' So, unintentionally manifested this, I guess.' Article content The roster-building process for the PWHL's expansion squads was designed to preserve the league's strong parity. Article content When the dust settled, Vancouver's roster included Nurse's Olympic teammates Emerance Maschmeyer and Claire Thompson, former Toronto teammates Izzy Daniel and North Vancouver's Hannah Miller, and Finnish hockey legend Michelle Karvinen. Article content Brian Idalski, whose long history in the women's game includes coaching Miller, Karvinen and Vancouver forward Michela Cava in the Russian women's league, will be behind the bench.
Edmonton Journal
5 hours ago
- Edmonton Journal
'Incredible to play in that atmosphere': Edmonton's Fancy Bermudez to represent Canada at Women's World Cup of Rugby
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. "To be able to go to my first Olympics at 22, and to go to my first World Cup at 23... it's way beyond my greatest wish. I don't even know if it's really hit me yet" Edmonton's Fancy Bermudez helped Canada win an historic silver medal at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, and will now represent Canada in the 2025 Women's World Cup of Rugby for the first time. Photo by DARRYL DYCK / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILE PHOTO Growing up in Edmonton, Fancy Bermudez started playing rugby when she was in junior high. They'd play in front of scattered crowds, mainly friends and family. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by David Staples, Keith Gerein and others, Oilers news from Cult of Hockey, Ask EJ Anything features, the Noon News Roundup and Under the Dome newsletters. Unlimited online access to Edmonton Journal and 15 news sites with one account. Edmonton Journal ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by David Staples, Keith Gerein and others, Oilers news from Cult of Hockey, Ask EJ Anything features, the Noon News Roundup and Under the Dome newsletters. Unlimited online access to Edmonton Journal and 15 news sites with one account. Edmonton Journal ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Now, the 23-year-old is a member of the Canadian women's national team. She helped Canada win a historic silver medal at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, and later this month she will take part in her first Women's World Cup in England. She's come a long way since she started playing rugby for the Nor'Westers Athletic Association. Essential Oilers news, insight, opinion and analysis. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again 'It's really special. It was my biggest dream since I was kid to go to the Olympics. To achieve that, it was so surreal for me. To now have this summer, my very first World Cup opportunity, it seems like an intense two summers, but it's been all I could ever ask for,' said Bermudez in a phone interview with Postmedia earlier this week. 'To be able to go to my first Olympics at 22, and to go to my first World Cup at 23… it's way beyond my greatest wish. I don't even know if it's really hit me yet.' Bermudez grew up watching the fellow Team Canada captain and Edmontonian Jen Kish and the likes of Bianca Farella and Ghislaine Landry, who won bronze at the Rio 2016 Olympics in Brazil. At 16, she moved away from Edmonton and to Victoria to train with the women's national team. She went from idolizing her rugby heroes to training with them every day. 'That was a dream come true, and it only pushed me to want to reach new heights,' said Bermudez. When Bermudez joined the Nor'Westers club team, she had never played rugby before, but it wasn't long before those in the club could see she had the talent to be a standout player. She quickly excelled and became an integral part of the program. 'You could tell right away she was a very talented athlete, who picked up the game very quickly, and she's excelled beyond what we could've ever imagined, said Kelly Pawlik, president of the Nor'Westers Athletic Association. 'Fancy's commitment to improving was undeniable. She wanted to learn, she wanted to be better. She's a very gifted athlete, and that contributed to her growth, but she got some great coaching, which has gone a long way towards her development. 'It's so awesome to see where she's taking her sport. She's only 23, she's got a lot of headway, and we're really excited to see where she goes from here. Hopefully, another Olympics.' This advertisement has not loaded yet. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Bermudez and Team Canada played the United States in a tune-up in Ottawa on Friday night before they leave for Europe to get ready for the Women's World Cup, Aug. 22- 27. Canada goes into the tournament ranked No. 2 in the world and will look to win a medal for the first time since winning silver in 2014. The sport of rugby has women's professional leagues in countries like England, Australia and New Zealand, and they're growing much like the WNBA and PWHL are in North America. Bermudez has represented Canada all over the world and played professionally in Europe this past year, but when she steps onto the pitch for Canada's first match on Aug. 23 against Fiji, she knows her and her teammates have a chance at making more history like they did at the Olympics. 'Organizers are looking to break and smash attendance records at this year's Women's World Cup… It's going to be incredible to play in that atmosphere,' said Bermudez. 'When I was growing up, women's rugby really wasn't the thing. For that to not be the case anymore, I'm excited for it. It'll be like 'wow, we've really made it'' Pawlik said prior to the pandemic, women's rugby was considered the fastest-growing sport in Canada, and they're working hard to grow their numbers back to where they were. He said having the 2021 Women's World Cup televised on TSN gave the sport a stronger platform and gave more girls the opportunity to watch the sport. 'We're seeing some of the best growth in our junior programs that we've ever seen, and a big chunk of it is girls joining the program and being able to experience rugby in a proper setting and learn the game,' said Pavlik. 'Right around the time when Fancy started, there was a real commitment to building rugby from the grassroots across the country with our junior programs. We now have athletes that are starting to play our sport at five years old. Fifteen years ago, that was unheard of. The earliest most people started was in high school.' Pavlik said the Nor'Westers currently have over 300 athletes in their junior programs, and it wasn't that long ago that number was roughly 30. 'These kids at our club, they're able to say 'hey, she's from my same club', and that's big for these kids. The kids talk a lot about her at practices. These girls look up to her and they talk about her and say, they want to be like Fancy,' said Pavlik. Bermudez doesn't get home often with her busy national team duties, but when she does, she always makes time to give back to the next generation of kids coming up through the junior programs, because she knows what the sport of rugby has given her. 'I think rugby is a sport where if you have goals and dreams to play at a high level, you can achieve it. It's within reach,' said Bermudez. 'If there's a goal to do it, take a risk. If that means moving across the country, or across the world, do it, because it will be so worth it. Playing with (Team Canada) has been the most proud I've ever been. The feeling you have when you put on the red Canadian jersey is unmatched. It's worth the risk. It's worth the training, it's worth all the effort.' Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don't miss the news you need to know — add and to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters. You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post, and 13 other Canadian news sites. The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun
CBC
5 hours ago
- CBC
Summer McIntosh looking forward after disappointing finish in 800m freestyle final at worlds
The Canadian sensation chatted with CBC Sports' Devin Heroux following the women's 800m freestyle final. McIntosh (8:07.29) finished 3rd.
