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Ladysmith hosts Mini World Cup
P. 13
SServing Se r Ladysmith, Chemainus and area
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
David Forrest Memorial Tournament coming P. 19
Mini World Cup a huge success Niomi Pearson THE CHRONICLE
NIOMI PEARSON/CHRONICLE
A thousand young soccer players from across Vancouver Island and their families gathered at Ladysmith Secondary School for the opening ceremonies and parade celebrating the Mini World Cup Saturday. Ninety-seven teams played 198 games of soccer during the two-day event. For more photos of the Mini World Cup, please see Page 13.
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Ladysmith’s first shot at hosting the Mini World Cup was a resounding success last weekend, drawing in approximately 3,000 young soccer players and family members to the town for a weekend of positive sportsmanship, team spirit and good-old-fashioned exercise. “It could not have gone any better,” said Mike Rankin, Mid-Isle Soccer Club vice-president. “The feedback we got was overwhelmingly positive.” The Mini World Cup is an annual Vancouver Island soccer tournament for U8 to U11 players from the Island primarily, but it can also include teams from the Lower Mainland and the rest of the province. Over the weekend, 97 teams played 198 games of soccer on six local fields, which were divided up into 21 playing fields. Each team was assigned to a different country and categorized by age and continent. The festive atmosphere could be felt through town, as families rode the trolley to and from the fields, jumped around the bouncy castles at Ladysmith Secondary School, had their faces painted and ate mini donuts. “Every time I passed that trolley, it was full of people; it was fantastic,” Rankin said. Special Mini World Cup events included a spaghetti dinner and pancake breakfast hosted by the Ladysmith Eagles, as well as a dive-in cinema event at the local pool Saturday evening. Transfer Beach was opened up to World Cup families needing camping accommodations for Saturday night and drew in approximately
700-800 people. “The fact that Parks and Rec did that was phenomenal,” Rankin said, adding that for many visitors, it was their first time coming to Ladysmith. “They got to spend a couple of days and find out about the facilities that we have and the parks we have, and they had a blast.” The only incident during the weekend was that a pair of soccer nets at Ladysmith Intermediate School were destroyed overnight by a couple of unknown vandals. Anyone who might have any information is asked to contact the Ladysmith RCMP. The Mini World Cup was manned by approximately 40 volunteers wearing the Mid-Isle Blue Army jerseys, not including the 30 referees who also helped out, Rankin said. “Everybody jumped on board — they came out of the woodwork and they just performed,” he said. Many of the referees included local Mid-Isle soccer players aged 15 and younger, who just took their certification courses about a month ago. “This tournament was the first time they have refereed before, and they were phenomenal,” Rankin said. “We had no complaints from coaches, and it’s a passionate game.” The 2012 Mini World Cup was the culmination of months of planning by the Mid-Isle Soccer Club. Organizers say the addition of Forrest Field was a crucial part of Mid-Isle’s bid to host this year’s cup. In the afterglow of the weekend, there is already talk of playing host again in the future. “With the response that we got, I wouldn’t be surprised if people See Thousands Page 3
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