It’s Hughes vs. Hawerchuk for local sports supremacy By: Taylor Allen Posted: 2:25 PM CDT Friday, Jun. 12, 2020

Murphy helps Goldeyes battle back to beat Explorers

Max Murphy didn’t hesitate when asked to describe his season so far.

“It’s been terrible,” the veteran Winnipeg Goldeyes outfielder told the Free Press.

Murphy is admittedly critical of himself, the product of a high standard he’s set during a pro baseball career that began in 2014 and has included the past six years with the Fish, where he’s established new franchise records for home runs and RBIs.

So you can imagine the relief felt on Sunday when he looked a lot more like the Murphy of old in leading his team to a 6-2 comeback victory over the Sioux City Explorers to close out a six-game homestand at Blue Cross Park in front of a season-high crowd of 6,825.

Could renewed interest in strategically critical rare earth elements finally make sub-sector profitable?

Rare earth elements are among the most critical of mined resources for modern economies.

They’re essential in manufacturing specialized magnets used in a host of technologies from wind turbines and electric vehicles to hard drives, smartphones, television screens, and fibre optics. Most notably, however, rare earth minerals are increasingly vital to the defence industry.

These 17 elements — closely related chemically and usually found all together in mineral deposits — have indeed been growing in geopolitical importance as the United States, Canada and other Western nations recognize their dependence on production from China.

It is the world’s largest producer and processor of rare earths, including the most in-demand elements neodymium and praseodymium used to manufacture very light and powerful magnets for an array of technologies, including the most advanced weapons of modern warfare.

Hometown hero hits CEBL championship clinching shot

Chapter 1 of Winnipeg Sea Bears basketball was capped by hometown hero Chad Posthumus.

It was May 27, 2023, and the late, great centre out of River East Collegiate had a put-back basket off a Teddy Allen miss to give the Sea Bears a 90-85 victory over the Vancouver Bandits in Winnipeg’s inaugural game, in front of what was then a record crowd of 7,303.

So, on Saturday, it was rather poetic that Simon Hildebrandt — another Winnipegger and a player Posthumus used to mentor — was the one to put an exclamation mark on the franchise’s latest and greatest chapter.

Hildebrandt drilled a wide-open three in Target Score Time to crown the Sea Bears as the 2026 CEBL champions.

It’s Hughes vs. Hawerchuk for local sports supremacy

After four rounds, 30 matchups and nearly 15,000 votes, it's time for the Final Showdown.

We began May 21 with 32 athletes but there's just two left standing: speedskater/cyclist Clara Hughes and Winnipeg Jets legend Dale Hawerchuk. And if you had told me at the beginning they'd be the last two left, I would not have been surprised.

The argument for Hughes — the only athlete in the world to win multiple medals at both Summer and Winter Games — is a strong one. With six overall medals, she's tied with fellow Winnipegger Cindy Klassen for the title of Canada's all-time most-decorated Olympian.

Hughes dominated Sports Showdown from the start, defeating cyclist Tanya Dubnicoff by 350 votes in the opening round. She went on to have another convincing victory in her following matchup, defeating soccer star Desiree Scott in the Super 16.

Manitoba family finalist for cattle producers environmental award

A family in western Manitoba is one of seven finalists for a national environmental award honouring beef cattle producers.

Connor and Kyla English, alongside Connor’s parents, Brian and Leanne English, are nominated for the Canadian Cattle Association’s Environmental Stewardship Award. The 30-year-old award is presented to beef farmers and ranchers who explore innovative ways to protect, preserve and enhance their operations and the environment simultaneously.

This year’s recipient will be announced on Wednesday during a banquet at the Canadian Beef Industry Conference in Winnipeg.

The English family’s roots near Bradwardine — about 265 kilometres west of Winnipeg — date back to 1898. Today, Connor, Kyla, Brian and Leanne manage a herd of about 320 breeding cows on nearly 445 hectares (1,100 acres) of owned and rented pasture and forage land.

Men’s recovery home dedicated to ‘homeless hero’ Faron Hall’s memory

Faron Hall never got the chance to begin recovery. Once heralded as Winnipeg’s “homeless hero” after twice plunging into the Red River to save strangers from drowning, Hall told St. Boniface Street Links executive director Marion Willis shortly before his death in 2014 that he wanted help for his alcoholism.