In his second Skater in Residence blog, Scott Russell tells us why…
“We like Mike”
Skate Canada’s High Performance Director Michael Slipchuk
Wins the Canadian Sport Award for Leadership
When it comes to sport and depth of talent spanning the many seasons, Canada continues to punch well above its weight.
The territory is huge, the climate can be harsh, and the population is relatively small. Still, in summer and winter, in a diversity of athletic endeavour, this country produces myriad champions on and off the fields of play.
Canadians are major international players who not only claim titles and medals but also continue to lead the way towards an acceptance of sport which is more inclusive, accessible, safe, and fair.
This year’s recipients of the Canadian Sport Awards, (listed below), and sponsored by the advocacy group AthletesCAN, are proof positive that the country can boast an unrivalled roster of achievers across the board.
They comprise an eclectic group of winners at the highest level from the snow sports, beach volleyball, wheelchair basketball, tennis, track and field, soccer, and bobsleigh. But there are also influencers who break down barriers for indigenous Canadians, corporate citizens who provide opportunities for ambitious Olympians and socially conscious athletes who raise an awareness of the necessity for sport to be conducted with integrity.
There are also leaders who work behind the scenes to produce champions in sports which have long been considered treasured elements of the Canadian folklore.
The example is the winner of the 2019 “Leadership in Sport” award, former national champion figure skater Michael Slipchuk, who has served as Skate Canada’s High Performance Director since 2007. In his dozen years at the helm of ice competition, Slipchuk has presided over what might be called the “Golden Age” of Canadian figure skating.
Currently, all of the reigning, senior, national champions have emerged from the province of Ontario, and Slipchuk has embraced an environment which has witnessed skating legends of the past turning their attention to producing the next wave of outstanding performers.
During Slipchuk’s tenure, Canadian figure skaters have won 25 medals at the senior world championships and recorded nine podium results at the Olympics. Included are ten world titles and three Olympic championships. The topper, Slipchuk believes, is a gold medal in figure skating’s team event at the Pyeongchang Winter Games in 2018 which is reflective of an over-arching Canadian approach to the sporting experience.
“It should be seen as a privilege to compete for your country,” he reckons.
“I think the passion is there for skating in this country. It will always be there. Our champions are great people and humble people. The fans of skating continue to relate to that. Being a strong team is what it’s all about and we wanted to build a team environment first and foremost.”
In the past 12 years, Slipchuk, the Canadian champion in 1992, and an Olympian at Albertville, France the same season, has witnessed a Canadian world champion ascending the podium in each of figure skating’s five disciplines including synchronized skating. No other country can boast that accomplishment including the sports’ acknowledged superpower…Russia.
“They were the best skating group in the world,” Slipchuk beams. “During those years we had an older team. We had peaks and valleys but they were all in it together as a team. The team gold in Pyeongchang will always be very special to me.”
As an early proponent of figure skating’s revamped judging system and as an international, technical, specialist, Slipchuk has also modernized the Canadian figure skating landscape by fostering a more complete approach to a demanding and skilled sport.
Under his watchful eye, there is more comprehensive support available to elite skaters who need the benefits of sport psychologists, nutritionists, strength and conditioning experts, and physical therapists.
“With Own the Podium there was an onus on us to create a sports science community,” Slipchuk explains. “We’ve worked hard to build a network of sports science which our athletes can access. In the time before it was up to each athlete and coach to work it out. Now we’ve created a network they can all tap into.”
As it is with all leaders in sport, sustaining success is a tricky thing to do. With the retirement from international competition of superstar champions like Tessa Virtue, Scott Moir, Kaetlyn Osmond, Meagan Duhamel, Eric Radford and Patrick Chan, Canadian figure skating faces an inevitable makeover.
“We’re in a big rebuilding phase,” Slipchuk acknowledges. “It’s going to be very tough because the level of international skating rises all the time. You can come up so fast now. It’s a daunting prospect but it’s also very exciting.”
Still, the commitment to excellence remains. As someone who seeks to maximize performance, Michael Slipchuk isn’t ready to rest on his laurels.
He’s in for the long haul.
“I recognized pretty early on that figure skating is my life,” he says.
“This is what I know the most about and most importantly, this is what I love.”
Like all those being celebrated at this year’s Canadian Sport Awards, Michael Slipchuk is a leader who shares a common character trait. He has an overriding passion for the games we play as a nation and, more importantly, how we play them.
Canadian Sport Award Winners 2019
Summer Sport Performance
Female Athlete of the Year
Bianca Andreescu – Tennis
Male Athlete of the Year
Aaron Brown – Athletics
Team of the Year
Beach Volleyball – Sarah Pavan and Melissa Humana-Paredes
Winter Sport Performance
Female Athlete of the Year
Marielle Thompson – Ski Cross
Male Athlete of the Year
Mikael Kingsbury – Freestyle Skiing Moguls
Team of the Year
Bobsleigh – (4 –Man, J. Kripps, C. Stones, B. Coakwell, R. Sommer)
Influencers
Bruce Kidd Athlete Leadership Award
Stephanie Dixon – Paralympics
AthletesCAN Social Responsibility Award
Evan Dunfee – Athletics
Leadership in Sport Award
Michael Slipchuk – Skate Canada
True Sport Award
Christine Sinclair – Soccer
Inclusion Award – Obliterating Barriers in Sport
Michael Linklater – 3 on 3 Basketball
#AthleteVoice Award – Representative of the Year
Beckie Scott – WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency)
People’s Choice Award – Performance of the Year
Bianca Andreescu – Tennis
Corporate Excellence – National Initiative Support
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