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Red Deer Advocate WEEKEND EDITION SATURDAY, FEB. 7, 2015
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Must. Go. Fast CENTRAL ALBERTA’S LATEST SPEEDSKATING STAR OVERCOMES DISAPPOINTMENT TO EARN A SPOT ON THE NATIONAL JUNIOR TEAM Central Alberta’s latest bright light in speedskating is heading off to the junior world championships with a chip on her shoulder. Maddison Pearman surprised even herself when she qualified for the junior world championships two years ago. Then she was just happy to go. Last year, she expected to make the Canadian team but was crushed when she was left off the final roster. This year has been a season of redemption for the Ponoka teen. And now she is now gearing up to show the world what she can do in her final shot at a podium at the junior age level in Warsaw, Poland. The competition runs from Feb. 20 to 22, although the team will JOSH be heading over early for the ALDRICH Junior World Cup Final Feb. 14 to 15 on the same track. “It was a relief (to get the call),” said the five-foot-eight Pearman, 19. “It was good to come back and prove to the committee that they should have chose me the year before but I’m good enough this year and they can’t keep me off the team.” The Central Alberta region has a long history of producing some of the top speedskaters in the world. For many years, the Wotherspoon family, led by four-time sprint and four-time distance world champion Jeremy, carried the torch for local speedskaters. Jeremy retired after a failed comeback bid for the 20014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, while his sister and fellow Olympian Danielle Wotherspoon-Gregg retired following the Games. They often were the inspiration and motivation for Pearman, along with other Alberta skaters like the Gregg family, particularly Jess and Jeff. Now for a young group of skaters filling out the Central Alberta Lions Speedskating club, who were not around when the Wotherspoons were in Red Deer, Pearman has become that beacon for the next group. “It’s a rich history for us because even our little kids know who Jeremy is and they met Danielle last year,” said her mother and club president Shawna Pearman. “They know who they are so they may have that goal in their mind, but they might not have that impact that Maddison might have.” Pearman makes no bones about her aspirations. After watching so many others make their way to world championship and Olympic glory, the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea, represent a dream that is realistic in her eyes. She has also had the opportunity to watch her idol and Olympic champion Christine Nesbitt train and has even got to wear one of her suits for a race. “She’s real focused when she’s training and she’s a powerful skater and I see myself in her,” she said.
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Top court strikes down ban on assisted suicide The Supreme Court of Canada shifted to goalposts Friday on one of the most fundamental of human laws. Story on PAGE A4
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