Local athletes team up to inspire and motivate female athletes

Female athletes between the ages of 9 to 15 from the Ottawa region are about to get a boost of inspiration from local Olympian Perianne Jones and elite athlete Tory Tuttle as they host a Fast and Female event on June 12 at the Rideau Canoe Club.

Jones, a Fast and Female ambassador since 2005 and a member of the Nakkertok Ski Club, just wrapped up her most successful World Cup cross-country racing season. The 26-year old from Almonte, Ontario, finished her season with a sixth place in the team sprint at the World Championships held in Norway, and a 12^th place in the individual sprint at the World Cup Final in Stockholm, SWE.

For the June 12 Fast and Female FitFest presented by Best Buy, Jones will be joined by Tuttle, an Ottawa resident and female kayaker from Carleton Place, Ontario. Over the course of her career, Tuttle took part in Junior World Championships, the Pan American Games, and Senior World Championships before recently retiring.

Both athletes come from small-town Ottawa Valley roots – Tuttle was born and raised in Carleton Place, while Jones got her start not far away in Almonte.

 During her 17 years in Almonte, Jones was a competitive cross country and track runner as well as skier, and despite success in both, opted to pursue her dream in cross country skiing. Ultimately it paid off, as just over a year ago, she became one of the select few Olympians to have competed on home soil in Vancouver.

 Tuttle began her career paddling at the Carleton Place Canoe Club, just a short walk from her home in Carleton Place. Tuttle, a few years Jones’ senior, rose through the paddling ranks, moving from Carleton Place, to representing the Rideau Canoe Club, at some of the highest levels of paddling in the world, including World Championships. She is currently providing coaching support to young athletes at Rideau Canoe Club.

Together, Jones and Tuttle will host a group of about 100 young female athletes from the sport community for a day of inspiration and empowerment featuring fitness stations both on and off the water, a healthy lunch, an inspirational presentation and a fun dance session. The day will start at 9 a.m. and will wrap up at 4 p.m. with an autograph session.

“I am really looking forward to joining forces with the paddling community and hosting this multisport event with Tory,” said Jones. “Skiing and paddling compliment each other nicely, and this event will be a great way to get even more girls excited about sport and maybe even meet some new training partners!”

As a non-profit and national program started in 2005 by cross-country skiing Olympic gold medalist Chandra Crawford, Fast and Female is intensely focused on delivering effective programming to keep girls in sport. It is said that girls are six times more likely to drop out of sport than boys.

 “I’m thrilled that Fast and Female will be reaching girls from Ottawa’s highly active and dynamic sports community!” said Crawford who is still a member of Canada’s cross-country ski team along with Jones. “With the key support of quality ambassadors like Peri and Tory as well as the support of valuable sponsors and volunteers, Fast and Female is in a strong position to impact local girls on their athletic journey and ultimately change their lives. Girls have so much to gain from being athletic and chasing their dreams,” she concluded. 

 As a complement to the youth programming, parents of female athletes are also invited to join the event for a series of presentations. While the girls will be taking part in the fitness stations, parents and coaches will be attending three short presentations on Sport Psychology with Penny Werthner, on Nutrition with Sheila Kealey and Lucy Wainwright and on Parenting the Female Athlete with Sue Holloway. Holloway is the first woman and first Canadian to have competed in both Summer and Winter Games in the same year having taken part in the 1976 Winter Olympics in cross-country skiing and 1976 Summer Olympics in canoe sprint.

 The registration fee for the youth activities is $25 per participant and includes a Fast and Female t-shirt, a Buff, a lunch and access to all morning activities. Parents can also secure a seat by purchasing a ticket for $25 which also includes the seminars and a lunch. All registrations are compiled online at: www.fastandfemale.com. Please note that financial assistance is available for participants in need. Please contact info@fastandfemale.com to inquire.

 Registration for the highly anticipated event is now officially open. The deadline to register online is June 10, 2011. On-site registrations will be at a rate of $30 per participant.

 This activity is made possible thanks to valuable local partners such as the Rideau Canoe Club, the Nakkertok Ski Club, and Cross-Country Ontario. Fast and Female’s national sponsors – including Best Buy, Buff Multifunctional Headwear, Clarins and Cold-FX – are also providing key resources to make this event possible. For a complete list of Fast and Female national program supporters and sponsors, please visit: http://www.fastandfemale.com/default.asp?lang=&mode=webpage&id=89. 

ABOUT FAST AND FEMALE

Fast and Female is a not-for-profit society started in 2005 by Chandra Crawford, the 2006 Olympic gold medalist in cross-country skiing. The organization’s mission is to ensure that girls remain supported, motivated, inspired, empowered to stick to sports and the healthy lifestyle. Fast and Female fulfills its mission of "Empowerment Through Sport" by hosting fun-filled, non-competitive initiatives all across North-America aimed at exposing young female athletes to inspiring female Olympians and elite level athletes. The young girls who attend Fast and Female events today will lead it in the future, may it be as athletes, coaches, volunteers, parents, and community leaders. For more information about Fast and Female, visit www.fastandfemale.com.