More than 3,000 athletes were in action in Okotoks and Diamond Valley from July 20 to 23 at the 2023 Alberta Summer Games – and over 60 of them were from Cochrane.
According to the 2023 Alberta Summer Games’ athlete database, at least 62 athletes competing in this year’s games called Cochrane their hometown. The five-dozen-plus locals competed across a variety of sports, including everything from BMX racing to soccer, basketball, football, track-and-field, swimming, rugby, baseball, beach volleyball, and more.
The vast majority of Cochranites were representing Zone 2 (Big Country) – a geographic area that extends as far west as Banff, as far east as Brooks, as far north as Olds, and as far south as Nanton, but does not include Calgary.
Once the dust had settled on the three-day, multi-sport event, Zone 2 finished third in the overall medal standings behind Zone 3 (Calgary) and Zone 6 (Edmonton), boasting 35 gold, 47 silver, and 38 bronze medals.
Cochrane athletes contributed to several of those podium positions. Local medalists included the Coward siblings, Cadence and Talia, who each earned an assortment of medals in canoe-kayak; Cadence won two gold, a silver, and a bronze, while Talia earned three bronzes and two silvers.
From the white-water rapids of the Sheep River to the green grass pitches of Okotoks, Zone 2 girls’ soccer team upset the odds by winning gold in their tournament. Charlie Lord was the only Cochranite on the team, though a few others represented the nearby acreage communities of Springbank and Bearspaw.
While most Cochrane athletes competed for Zone 2, that wasn’t the case in every sport, as some team events operated on a draft system. Cory Curtis of Cochrane won gold in the boys’ baseball tournament, but did so for the Zone 3 team.
According to Cochrane BMX, 12 of their athletes were in action at the games in the sport of BMX racing, collectively bringing home four medals. The local medalists on two wheels included Dominick Gosselin-berg and Alexis Cremers.
Local athletes also fared well in the pool. Cochrane Comets swimmer Hudson Blough secured three gold medals in his events; Emily Pegg won two of her races in addition to a bronze; Oliver Johnson earned a bronze and silver in two of his events; and Hudson Lee achieved two silver medals.
Triathlete Ryan Pegg earned two podium placements in his multi-discipline events, including silvers in both the combined co-ed relay and the 12-13 male individual race.
On the running track, sprinter Tyler Vidler achieved a pair of medals in Okotoks, including first place in the U16 male medley relay for Zone 2 and bronze in the U16 boys’ 4x100-m relay. Harrison Kellock also had a successful weekend on the track, securing a silver and two bronzes in the U18 boys’ sprint events.
In girls’ rugby, three Cochrane-based players competed to a silver medal for Zone 2 in the female team tournament – Livi Poulin, Avari Horvath, and Mataya Hoskin.
For a full list of Cochrane’s competing athletes and how they placed, visit albertagames.rampinteractive.com/public/results.aspx
