Canada's Top Ten Sporting Events
Although widely regarded as a hotbed for winter sports, Canada hosts a wide array of top-notch sporting events regardless of the time of year. Spanning sports as diverse as ice-hockey and equestrian show jumping, to golf and Formula One racing, no sport is ill-represented in this country of 33 million inhabitants. The following WorldWeb.com Travel Guide highlights ten highly celebrated sporting events that curious spectators can discover while in Canada.
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Equestrian Show Jumping 1 |
THE SPRUCE MEADOWS 'MASTERS' TOURNAMENT
Featuring the second largest prize purse in the world, this equestrian show jumping tournament is held every September at the Spruce Meadows facility in Calgary. With over 2 million dollars available in prize money, the tournament draws world-class competitors from countries such as England, Germany, and Brazil, and welcomes approximately 50,000 attendees over the course of the event.
With the assistance of national and international media coverage that the ‘Masters’ garners, Spruce Meadows is recognized as one of the world's top equestrian complexes. Owned and operated by Calgary’s Southern family since 1976, the facility spans 145 ha (360 acres) and features a stable capable of maintaining 1,000 horses, a video-production studio and ample space for conventions and trade-shows.
CANADIAN GRAND PRIX
Held every year in Montreal, the Canadian Grand Prix is a Formula One World Championship race that draws hundreds of thousands of spectators and is one of the city’s most anticipated events. Since joining the Formula One racing schedule in 1967, popular drivers such as Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Raikkonen and Canada’s own Jacques Villeneuve have all been challenged by the hair-pin turns and narrow alleys that constitute the 4.4-km (2.7-mi) Circuit Gilles Villeneuve race course. It is this combination of exhilarating course design and a superior field of cars and drivers that has led to milestones such as the race drawing the world’s third largest television viewing audience for a live sporting event in 2005.
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| The Brier 2 |
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THE BRIER
As Canadian as maple syrup and Stompin’ Tom Connors, the Brier is the Canadian Curling Association event that determines the top men’s curling team in the nation. 12 teams, representing the top teams in each province and territory —with Ontario receiving two entrants— compete over the course of nine days to determine not only the winner of this event, but also Canada’s representative in the Curling World Championships. The tournament regularly draws over 60,000 spectators, with the championship match viewed by millions of Canadians across the country on television.
THE GREY CUP
The single most-watched sporting event in Canada, the Canadian Football League’s (CFL) championship game regularly draws over 4 million viewers to its broadcast and over 100,000 visitors to the game and the events that precede it. Regardless of the host city, Grey Cup week is an event in and of itself. Every day features a variety of events such as musical performances, autograph sessions, luncheons and parties hosted by the host city and the respective clubs competing for the Grey Cup.
One of the reasons for this event's enduring legacy, is the Grey Cup itself. Crafted in 1909 and meant to be awarded to the top rugby team in the nation every year, the growing popularity of Canadian rules football ultimately led to it becoming the CFL’s top prize in 1954. Since then, every member of the winning team has had their name engraved on it, adding to the Cup’s historical significance.
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Calf Roping at the Rodeo 3 |
THE CALGARY STAMPEDE
A sporting event unlike any other, the Calgary Stampede is a ten-day rodeo and chuckwagon racing competition that entices the world’s top professional cowboys to compete for over 1 million dollars in cash prizes. The rodeo portion of the Stampede features competitions such as barrel racing, calf roping and the always popular bull-riding, while the chuckwagon races thrill those in attendance with its chaotic and exhilarating nightly heats. In between competitions, spectators are entertained by musical performances that exemplify the Calgary Stampede’s western ideals and are also educated on the nuances of chuckwagon racing and the various rodeo events.
THE CANADIAN OPEN
Long considered the unofficial fifth major on the PGA Tour, the Canadian Open has since lost some of its prestige, but is nonetheless Canada’s premiere golf tournament. Currently scheduled for the week following the British Open, this tournament was first held in 1904, with John H. Oke winning $60 dollars as its inaugural champion. As a testament to the growth of the tournament and the sport as a whole, the 2008 iteration of the Open saw American Chez Reavie take home the top prize of $900,000 dollars.
Over the course of the Canadian Open’s history, the tournament has done a commendable job of showcasing the nation’s wealth of championship caliber golf courses. No course has hosted the tournament more than the Glen Abbey Golf Course. Designed by hall of fame golfer Jack Nicklaus and opened in 1976, this course has seen the tournament played on its greens over 20 times. The Canadian Open has also been played on courses such as the Royal Montreal Golf Club in Ile Bizard, Quebec, the Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club in Vancouver, British Columbia and Angus Glen in Markham, Ontario.
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| A Hockey Game at the Pengrowth Saddledome 4 |
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THE MEMORIAL CUP
The ultimate tournament to determine Canadian junior hockey’s top team, the Memorial Cup is held by a different host city every year in May. This nine-day event features the top teams from Canada’s three major junior leagues – the Western Hockey League, the Ontario Hockey League, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League – and the host city’s own major junior team, all of which compete in a round robin competition that culminates in a championship playoff. The winner of this playoff receives the Memorial Cup and the title of Canada’s best major junior hockey outfit.
A training ground for up and coming professional players and coaches, several NHL superstars have competed in the Memorial Cup. Past participants in the tournament have included hockey greats such as Sidney Crosby, Marian Hossa, and Jarome Iginla, as well as coaches like Patrick Roy and Ted Nolan.
IRONMAN CANADA TRIATHLON
An Ironman World Triathlon Championship qualifying event, the Ironman Canada Triathlon occurs every August in Penticton, British Columbia. First held in 1983 with 23 competitors taking the course, the event now fields approximately 2000 athletes, all of which attempt to complete the rigorous course containing a 3.8-km (2.4-mi) swim, a 180-km (112-mi) bike ride and a 42.2-km (26.2-mi) run. Although winners of this event do qualify for the world championship race in Hawaii, the Ironman Triathlon has long been regarded as a race in which simply completing the arduous trek is a reward in itself.
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A Tennis Match at the Rogers Cup 5 |
THE CANADA MASTERS (THE ROGERS CUP)
With prize money in excess of 3.5 million dollars, the Canada Masters —currently known as the Rogers Cup— is a top level ATP and WTA tour event that features the world’s top tennis pros competing on Canadian soil. The tournament is held in both Toronto and Montreal, with each city hosting the men's and women's tournaments on alternate years.
The men’s portion of the Canada Masters has been in existence since 1881, making it the third oldest, active tournament on the ATP tour with only grand-slam tournaments Wimbledon and the U.S. Open ahead of it. Due to mandatory entry into the tournament, the field for this ATP tour stop always features the majority of the world’s top players, and as a result, past winners of the tournament have included present and future hall of famers such as Andre Agassi, John McEnroe and Roger Federer.
The women’s portion of the Canada Masters began in 1892. Unlike the ATP, the WTA does not make entry into this tournament mandatory, however it has drawn past talents like Martina Navratilova, Martina Hingis, and Justine Henin, and the average paid attendance to these matches are comparable to its male counterpart.
THE VANCOUVER 2010 OLYMPIC GAMES
In July of 2003, the city of Vancouver was bestowed one of the sporting community’s most prestigious honours; they won the bid to host the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. Since that victorious day the city has been hard at work preparing for this incredible two-week event. The largest city to host an Olympic games, Vancouver will welcome thousands of athletes competing for a coveted podium finish in any one of the 83 events scheduled to take place. Highly anticipated competitions that will be part of this Olympic games include the men and women’s ice hockey tournament, bobsled racing and alpine skiing. This iteration of the winter games will also be the first in which professional hockey players will be competing in a market with a NHL hockey team franchise.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF:
- © Copyright 2007 Ronald C. Yochum, Jr.
- Yrithinnd; 2005 Brier; Edmonton, AB, CAN
- Mike Copeman; c/o
US Army; Calf Roping; Las Vegas, NV, USA
- Michelle Hofer; Hockey Game; Calgary, AB, CAN
- Adrienne Lee; Rogers Cup; Montreal, QC, CAN
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