Prince George Ringette Association

Facts & Figures

THE CANADIAN TEAM WINTER SPORT FOR FEMALE ATHLETES

  • RINGETTE – PHILOSOPHY: Ringette is a mass participation team sport, which encourages the physical, mental, social and moral development of individual participants within the highest standards of safety, sportsmanship, personal excellence, and enjoyment.

  • INTERNATIONAL RINGETTE FEDERATION: Ringette achieved international status with the formation of the International Ringette Federation in 1986. Founding member countries: Canada, Finland, Sweden, United States and France. Touring teams have also introduced the game in the Netherlands, Switzerland, Soviet Union, West Germany, New Zealand, Australia and Japan.

  • WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS: World Championships have been held beginning in 1990. The National Team Program is an ongoing Ringette Canada initiative centered on the athletes. The primary focus is on promotion of the sport at National and International levels. The 2002 World Ringette Championship was in Edmonton and Team Canada won Gold against Finland. CBC TV broadcasted the game live across Canada. The 2004 world ringette championship was in Stockholm, Sweden from November 23-24. Finland has regained the world title after defeating Canada 9-3. The 2007 World Championship were held in Ottawa and Finland defeated Canada 4-3 in overtime in the Gold Medal Game. The game was broadcasted coast-to-through the cable operators across Canada.

  • CANADIAN RINGETTE CHAMPIONSHIPS: In April of 2000, Prince George Ringette Association, the CRC Host Committee, and the city of Prince George hosted the 22nd Annual Canadian Ringette Championships. Tim Hortons came on board as the “Title Sponsor” of the CRC 2000. TSN provided a one-hour special coverage of the Nationals, which was televised four times on their network.

  • CANADA WINTER GAMES: Ringette has been included in the Canada Winter Games since 1991. The last Winter Games were in February 2007 in Whitehorse, Yukon. The next Canada Winter Games are in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 2011.

  • WESTERN CANADIAN RINGETTE CHAMPIONSHIPS: The WCRC is a three-day tournament showcasing the best Ringette teams from the four Western Provinces, competing in the Tween AA, Junior A and Belle A divisions. Some of the recent Host cities for the event have been Delta, BC in 2004, Regina, SK - 2005 and Winnipeg, MB in 2006. Medicine Hat hosted the 2007 WCRC and Prince George players had the opportunity to represent Team BC in their divisions. As a team, the “Northern Belle A” fell just short of a medal. But, on an individual basis, three players had their games fully-charged and were picked as all-stars at the Western Canadian Ringette Championships. In the Tween AA Division, Team BC (club based in Okanagan) had Prince George’s Megan Spooner as its goaltender and rode her ring-stopping exploits to a bronze medal. Megan was named as the all-star goaltender in her division. The Prince George Ringette Association will host the 2008 Western Canadian Ringette Championships from March 26-29.

  • BC PROVINCIAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: British Columbia Ringette Association established the first Provincial Championships in 1976. Prince George Ringette Association participated for the first time in the BC Provincial Championships in March 1982, with a Junior/Belle team (13-14 years old). Prince George Ringette Association hosted for the first time the "B” Provincial Championships in 1988, also hosted the “B” & “C” provincials in 1997, and most recently the 2003 “B” Provincials.

  • PRINCE GEORGE RINGETTE ASSOCIATION: Ringette was first introduced in Prince George in the fall of 1980 and the first team was created with the participation of 22 players. Now, the Association boosts over 120 registered players every season with a team in most divisions: Bunnies (7 and under), Novice (8-9), Petite (10-11), Tween (12-13), Junior (14-15), belle (16-19), Open (19 and over) and Masters (over 30). The teams compete in the Northern League Association and travel throughout BC and Alberta to participate in Invitational Tournaments. The Association hosts the annual “Joy Hoffman Memorial Tournament” every year during the second weekend of November as part of the Northern League commitment. Over the years, Prince George teams have won Provincial Championships in “A”, “B” and “C” Divisions and other invitational tournaments. The local media is very supportive of the Association.