THUNDER BAY – There isn’t snow on the ground yet, but the dry-land training, but that is not stopping the National Development Centre (NDC) Thunder Bay cross country ski team. The team opened their “push” towards the competitive season with their third annual team kick-off event at one of the organization’s main sponsors – PUSH Fitness Centre. The event showcased the talented athletes and acknowledged the support of the team’s community sponsors.
The day was highlighted by an exciting roller-ski team sprint relay race featuring NDC athletes. Each team represented NDC’s platinum and gold level sponsors who are Fresh Air Experience (platinum), RBC Royal Bank, CRC Communications, and the event host, PUSH Fitness Centre.
After an exciting 2011/2012 season where the team saw Jack Carlyle and Alannah MacLean qualify for the Junior National Team, Andrea Lee win her first Noram Race and become National University Champion, the team is looking to continue to assert themselves as the lead development centre in Canada.
At the helm of this talented team are two new coaches; Head Coach Mark Doble hailing from Barrie, Ontario and Assistant Coach/Wax Technician Victor Wiltmann from Parry Sound, Ontario who will be striving to help the athletes represent the Thunder Bay community on the world stage . Overall, team fitness is at an all time high with athletes focusing on and preparing to qualify for the World Junior and Under 23 Championship team and to also qualify for the Canadian World Cup races taking place in Quebec and Canmore in early December. The coming season promises to be an exciting one for the team and for the Thunder Bay Ski community since it will play host to two major events. From January 3rd to the 6th, selection races will take place at Lappe Nordic Ski Centre for the 2013 Junior and Under 23 World Championships slated for late January in Liberec, CZE and for the 2013 FIS World Nordic Ski Championships being held in Val di Fiemme, ITA from February 20th-March 3rd. These January selection events will be a great opportunity to cheer on the team as they compete on home turf against some of the top skiers in the country.
This year will be a very busy one as the team will compete in numerous events across North America to vie for spots on World teams. The season winds up with the Canadian National Championships in Whistler, BC from March 23rd-30th.
NDC welcomes 4 new faces to the team:
- Julian Freitag and Evan Palmer-Charette from Thunder Bay, ON
- Bob Thompson from Woodstock, ON
- Scott Hill from Toronto, ON
These new faces all bring talent and enthusiasm to an already strong team and will set the foundation for NDC to succeed this season and into the future. The team now consists of 13 athletes and 3 staff members, the largest team in multiple years. Below is a complete roster for the 2012/2013 season.
| Name | Club | Hometown | Year on NDC | Category |
| Erin Tribe | Team Hardwood | Barrie | 4th | Senior Woman |
| Dudley Coulter | Big Thunder Nordic | Marathon | 3rd | Senior Man (U23) |
| Jimmy Gunka | Big Thunder Nordic | Thunder Bay | 3rd | Senior Man (U23) |
| Andrea Lee | Strathcona Nordic | Black Creek, BC | 3rd | Senior Woman (U23) |
| Andy Shields | Waterloo Region Nordic | Waterloo | 3rd | Senior Man (U23) |
| Jack Carlyle | Soo Finnish Nordic | Sault Ste. Marie | 2nd | Junior Man |
| Jordan Cascagnette | Team Hardwood | Penetanguishene | 2nd | Senior Man (U23) |
| Alannah Maclean | Walden Fitness Club | Sudbury | 2nd | Junior Woman |
| Nick Monette | Team Hardwood | Oakville | 2nd | Junior Man |
| Scott Hill | Team Hardwood | Toronto | 1st | Junior Man |
| Bob Thompson | Team Hardwood | Woodstock | 1st | Senior Man (U23) |
| Julian Freitag | Big Thunder | Thunder Bay | 1st | Junior Man |
| Evan Palmer-Charette | Lappe Nordic | Thunder Bay | 1st | Junior Man |