15 Team Canada coaches looking for Olympians in Windsor-Essex

Canada's Brandon McBride competes in the men's 800m semifinal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz) (Ryan Remiorz/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

For the first time in its 10-year history, RBC Training Ground will be scouting talent locally in April. A total of 15 Team Canada coaches are searching for Olympians in Windsor-Essex.

“I’m very optimistic that the youth of Windsor are going to see the value in an opportunity like this one,” said Windsorite Brandon McBride, former Olympian and RBC Training Ground Ambassador.

“I’m expecting the gym to be packed full.”

McBride competed in the 800-metre track event for Team Canada at the 2016 games in Rio and the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo.

“It is extremely hard to be an Olympian, but I think it’s even harder to become an Olympian,” said McBride.

“It took me basically becoming one of the best youth athletes in the world, just to get in front of a Canadian Olympic coach or a National Sport Organization (NSO).”

On April 26, coaches from 15 NSOs will be in Windsor looking for new recruits.

“Just picture the NFL combine,” McBride explained, adding athletes will go through four standard tests: Strength, speed, power and endurance.

Athletes between the ages of 14 to 25 will be placed in “flights” to go through each stage of testing.

They will all be ranked and the top athletes at the Windsor event will qualify for the National qualifiers.

It is free to sign up for the Windsor event, happening on April 26 at the Dennis Fairall Fieldhouse at the Toldo Lancer Centre on the University of Windsor campus.

“Windsor has, for our population size, an enormous amount of talent. It’s just a matter of getting these talented youth opportunities,” said McBride.

RBC Training Ground has tested more than 16,000 Canadian athletes, with more than 3,000 identified for an NSO (including sports they had never considered), according to a news release.

21 RBC Training Ground alumni have competed in three Olympic Games; 12 of which have won medals.