Skating club has great season

Justin Seward
Times Reporter

 

The Strathmore Skating Club has been overwhelmed with the community support they’ve received this season, seeing full capacity in all categories.
Coach Jennifer Wickson said they’ve measured success this season not by medals but by the skaters achieving their goals.
“They’ve all moved up,” said Wickson. “It’s more of the growth in the skater over the season that we look for and some of the kids have just taken off and excelled. As long as they’re improving and having a good time that’s what makes the difference to us.”
First-year skating club member Emma Bittorf made great strides with her own skating abilities, and it paid off after she won the bronze medal at the StarSkate Championships in the Special Olympics Level 2 category at the end of February in Edmonton.
“Every time she’s out here, she smiles non-stop,” said Wickson. “She accomplishes anything and is just over the moon. We don’t do anything different for the Special Olympics. She just skates with the rest of the kids and she does really well.”
Bittorf said the experience at her second competition was exciting because she got to skate to ‘Baby’ by Justin Bieber, for which she received the medal.
Meanwhile, the skaters will be able to showcase their skills they’ve been working on all year to family and friends during the year-end Fire on Ice show in Strathmore.
“I think it builds their confidence,” said Wickson. “It’s always a good experience to get the kids out there on their own in front of a crowd. It’s a fun night for the kids. They get to wear their dresses and do their solos to the music playing and get to be in the spotlight for a few minutes.”
Fire On Ice will take place at the Strathmore Family Centre at 6 p.m. on March 18.