Local Representation on the National and International Stage

Local Representation on the National and International Stage

Lethbridge, Alberta: From August 6th to 21st, 2022, Niagara Region will host the 2022 Canada Summer Games, where more than 5,000 young athletes and their coaches will gather to compete for the podium in Canada’s largest multi-sport event. Originally, the Games were scheduled to take place in 2021 before they were postponed to the summer of 2022 due to continued public health concerns relating to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

There are many athletes and coaches from Lethbridge and the surrounding communities that will be part of Team Alberta at the games, including:

• Jacob Sargent - Volleyball
• Angelina Ellis-Toddington - Wrestling
• Payton Shields - Wrestling
• Caitlyn Bailes - Athletics (Hammer throw)
• Mackenzie Kennedy - Athletics (Triple Jump)
• Xavier Crosby - Athletics (Discus)
• Jaime Thomas - Athletics, coach
• Andreas Troschke - Athletics (Hammer throw)
• Kenzie Kutsch – Rugby 7s
• Wendy Nelson - Swimming (Special Olympics), coach
• Courtenay Farrington - Road cycling, manager
• Heidi Shaw - Rugby 7s, manager
• Graeme Moffat - Rugby 7s, coach
• Naomi Leam – Swimming, Special Olympics
• Mathias Gelber (Pincher Creek) - Triathlon
• David Hansen (Magrath) – Basketball
• Grace Hansen (Magrath) - Basketball
• Delaney Gibb (Raymond) - Basketball, flag bearer
• Abby Graves (Raymond) - Basketball
• Treydon Barton (Raymond) – Basketball
• Kenya Richards (Sylvan Lake) – Rugby 7s
• Lauchlan Irish (representing Team BC) – Athletics (Triple, long, high jump)
• Naomi Klassen (representing Team Saskatchewan) – Athletics (Hammer throw)

The 2022 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Birmingham 2022, is an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth to be held in Birmingham, England from July 28 to August 8, 2022.

There will be 6 athletes with a Lethbridge connection at this year's Games, including:

• Jillian Weir - Hammer Throw
• Liz Gleadle - Javelin
• Sarah Orban - Cycling
• Christa Deguchi - Judo
• Kelly Deguchi - Judo
• Keyara Wardley - Rugby 7s

Susan Eymann Lethbridge Sport Council executive director said, “The number and variety of sports being represented by our athletes, coaches and managers is a testament to the quality of sport programming being offered in Lethbridge.”

Media Contacts:

Tanya Whipple
Communication Manager,
Lethbridge Sport Council
[email protected]
403-330-5597

Susan Eymann
Executive Director,
Lethbridge Sport Council
[email protected]
403-320-5412

Bios of the athletes competing at the 2022 Commonwealth Games

Liz Gleadle - Athletics, Javelin

Liz Gleadle has trained with Larry Steinke at the University of Lethbridge since 2009. She was recipient of the Lethbridge Sport Council Achievement Award Senior Female Athlete in 2012 and 2014. Liz Gleadle surprised many in her Olympic debut at London 2012 when she became the first Canadian woman to qualify for an Olympic javelin final since 1968. She was also Canada’s first female Olympian in javelin since 1988. Gleadle won her 11th national title in 2022 before having her best ever result with a 9th place finish at her fourth Athletics World Championships.

Jillian Weir - Athletics, Hammer Throw

Stepping into the great hammer throwing legacy left behind by Olympians Jim and Heather Steacy, Jillian competed at her first Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020. Weir came to Lethbridge to train under Lawrence Steinke in 2019 after working with him at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia. Jillian is a dual citizen of the USA and Canada and is the daughter of three-time English Olympian Robert Weir. Jillian has maternal Indigenous lineage and is a member of the Mohawks Bay of the Quinte. Ranked 29th, Jillian placed a very impressive 5th in hammer throw at the 2022 World Athletic Championships.

Keyara Wardley – Rugby 7s

Growing up in nearby Vulcan Alberta, Keyara played on a Deep South Lethbridge ARC team in high school and competed in the same league as Lethbridge's high school teams. Keyara won silver and bronze at the 2017 Youth Commonwealth Games and 2018 Youth Olympic Games respectively. At age 21 she was one of the youngest and most promising athletes on the Canadian team at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Wardley scored two tries in two games before suffering a hip injury against Fiji that took her out of the tournament.

Sarah Orban - Cycling

Sarah moved to Lethbridge in 2013 and played post-secondary soccer for the Kodiaks and Pronghorns as well as competing for the Pronghorn Athletics as a sprinter. In 2017 she won the RBC Training Ground which gave her exposure to five Olympic sports ultimately choosing track cycling. In 2020 Sarah represented Canada at the World Championships in Berlin. At the 2021 World Championships in Roubaix she finished 5th in the team sprint and has medalled at 4 UCI Nations Cups over the past two seasons.

Christa Deguchi - Judo

A member of the Lethbridge Kyodokan Judo Club, Canadian judoka Christa Deguchi is the 2019 57kg World Champion. Christa is Canada’s first-ever judo world champion. She won Grand Slam gold in Antalya in 2021 and gold at Grand Prix in Zagreb in 2022.

Kelly Deguchi - Judo

A member of the Lethbridge Kyodokan Judo Club, Kelly won the Canadian Open in Edmonton in 2019 both in the junior and senior class, and bronze at both the 2021 and 2022 Pan American Championships in Guadalajara and Lima respectively.

Bios of the participants of the 2022 Canada Summer Games

Jacob Sargent – Volleyball

Jacob played for Chinook High School and the Lethbridge Volleyball Club before making the 2021 Canadian Youth National team. He was the 2021 Lethbridge Sport Council Achievement Awards Junior Male Athlete recipient.

Angelina Ellis-Toddington - Wrestling

Angelina competed for Chinook High School, the Lethbridge Amateur Wrestling Club, and most recently for the University of Calgary Dinos. She was the 2019 Lethbridge Sport Council Achievement Awards Junior Female Athlete recipient. Angelina won bronze at the 2022 U20 Pan American Championships in Mexico.

Payton Shields - Wrestling

Payton Shields is a two-time Canadian National silver medalist representing LCI and the Lethbridge Amateur Wrestling Association. She is in grade ten and will be the youngest wrestler on Team Alberta. She had to beat a contingency of University aged competitors to earn a spot on Team Alberta.

Caitlyn Bailes - Athletics (Hammer throw)

Caitlyn, coached by Larry Steinke, competes for the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns and Chinook Track and Field Club. Caitlyn is a 2-time USport National Championships qualifier.

Mackenzie Kennedy - Athletics (Triple Jump)

Mackenzie, coached by Larry Steinke, competes for the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns and Chinook Track and Field Club. This is Mackenzie’s first time representing Team Alberta.

Xavier Crosby - Athletics (Discus)

Xavier, coached by Larry Steinke, competes for the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns and Chinook Track and Field Club. He is a 2x Usport National Championships qualifier, This is his first time representing Team Alberta.

Jaime Thomas - Athletics, coach

Jaime is a jumps-event coach for the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns and Chinook Track and Field Club. He has coached multiple national champions and Team Canada athletes.

Andreas Troschke - Athletics (Hammer throw)

Andreas is coached by Larry Steinke and competes for the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns and Chinook Track and Field Club. In 2021, Andreas was the Lethbridge Sport Council Achievement Award Senior Male Athlete recipient.

Kenzie Kutsch – Rugby 7s

Kenzie is a multi-sport athlete previously competing in cross-country running, volleyball and basketball. She was a member of the Raymond Comets Rugby 2022 Provincial championship team.

Kenya Richards – Rugby 7s

From Sylvan Lake, Kenya is an incoming recruit for the University of Lethbridge Pronghorn Women’s Rugby team.

Naomi Klassen – Athletics (Hammer throw)

A member of the University of Lethbridge Pronghorn Athletics team, Naomi is representing Team Saskatchewan.

Lauchlan Irish – Athletics (Ling Jump, Triple Jump, High Jump)

A member of the University of Lethbridge Pronghorn Athletics team, Lauchlan is representing Team British Columbia.

Wendy Nelson - Swimming (Special Olympics), coach

Wendy has been a Special Olympics Swim Coach for many years attending several multi-sport games during that time.

Courtenay Farrington - Road cycling, manager

Courtenay, born and raised in Lethbridge, now a track cycling coach in Calgary, transitioned from bobsledding to cycling in 2017 after being identified by the RBC Training Ground Program. Her athletic career highlight includes bronze at the 2018 Canadian Track Nationals - Team Sprint.

Heidi Shaw - Rugby 7s, manager

Heidi is the Strength and Conditioning coach for the rugby team in her overall role of the Manager of the University of Lethbridge High-Performance Centre.

Graeme Moffat - Rugby 7s, coach

Graeme is the University of Lethbridge Pronghorn Women’s Rugby coach. Prior to taking this role he served as the executive director of Rugby Alberta.

Naomi Leam - Swimming, Special Olympics

Naomi trains with the Lethbridge Amateur Swim Club and Special Olympics Lethbridge. She has competed in several multi-sport events including the 2017 Canada Summer Games and 2019 Western Canada Summer Games.

Mathias Gelber (Pincher Creek) - Triathlon

Mathias started triathlon when he was 12, racing in the Lethbridge Kids of Steel triathlon, which qualified him for the Alberta Summer Games. He now trains and competes for the University of Toronto on a track and field scholarship. Mathias qualified for the Canada Summer Games by finishing top three in both the Calgary and Lethbridge Kids of Steel this summer.

David Hansen (Magrath) – Basketball

David represented Zone 1 at the 2018 Alberta Summer Games competing in basketball and was selected by Alberta Basketball to attend the 2020 17U Boys Team Alberta Final Selection team.

Grace Hansen (Magrath) - Basketball

In 2018 Grace Hansen represented Zone 1 at the Alberta Summer Games in Grande Prairie, competing in Basketball. Grace was named first team all-star for the Magrath Pandas.

Delaney Gibb (Raymond) - Basketball, Team Alberta flag bearer

Delaney was selected to be the flag bearer for Team Alberta and is the point guard for the Women’s Basketball team. She recently led the Canadian National Women’s Basketball team to a silver finish at the 2022 FIBA Americas event.

Abby Graves (Raymond) - Basketball

Abby is a multi-sport athlete that played both basketball and volleyball for the Raymond Comets. Abby has been recruited to play for the University of Lethbridge Pronghorn Women’s Basketball team for the upcoming season.

Treydon Barton (Raymond) – Basketball

Treyton, from the Raymond Comets, competed at the 2018 Alberta Summer Games in basketball for Zone 1 and has been recruited to play for the Lethbridge