Good morning!
Onyshko bound for Olympics: Folks in Brandon are likely flipping out this morning with news that world-class gymnast Isabela Onyshko has qualified to compete at the Summer Olympic Games later this summer in Rio de Janeiro. Onyshko, 18, cracked the Canadian squad after competitions Tuesday and Wednesday in Ottawa. She’s the first Manitoban to be named to the Olympic team since 1984 when Bonnie Wittmeier of Winnipeg was on the squad. The sporting event in Brazil is slate for Aug. 5-21. READ MORE
Your forecast: This is the kind of long weekend weather we’ve been waiting for. Environment Canada is calling for sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-20s throughout the weekend, although we could see some showers late in the day Sunday. To start, we’re in for a cloudy, windy day today, although the sky clears by the afternoon. The high today is 20 C. On the holiday Friday, slap on the sunscreen, get outside and enjoy a warm one as the mercury climbs to 25 C. Expect Saturday to be a near carbon copy, with a daytime high of 26 C. Sunday features a mix of sun a cloud, with a 40 per cent chance of showers and a high of 26 C.
In case you missed it
BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS files
City wants bridge in West K: An updated plan for the western extension of Chief Peguis Trail includes a bridge over Main Street. On Wednesday, a city transportation planning engineer called the proposed bridge a key change to the extension from Main to Brookside Boulevard, adding the Chief Peguis artery will become an active trade corridor that will, ultimately, stretch from Lagimodiere Boulevard to Brookside an then into CentrePort Canada. The project is at least three to five years from becoming reality. READ MORE
Three Manitobans into Order of Canada: Retired Manitoba senator Sharon Carstairs, former Wawanesa Insurance CEO Gregory Hanson and University of Manitoba nutrition scientist Michael Eakin join 82 other new members of the Order of Canada. They will be officially inducted later this year or in early 2017 during an official ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa. READ MORE
Obama takes centre stage: In what was almost certainly his last visit to Canada as U.S. president, Barack Obama held court for nearly an hour before a joint session of the House of Commons and the Senate on Wednesday, basking in applause and heaping praise on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, with whom he’s become fast friends. But even as he lauded Canada for such values as integrity, human rights and fair play, he also urged it to pay its full share to NATO. READ MORE
Up next
Canada Day at The Forks: Show your national pride down at The Forks on Friday, July 1 – Canada Day. Here’s a list of some of the great things happening as we celebrate the country’s 149th birthday: activities all day long, including musicians, buskers, crafts and entertainment everywhere; local talent on two stages (under The Forks Canopy from 12 p.m. – 10:30 p.m. and the Festival Stage from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m.); fireworks display at 11 p.m.; the Canadian Museum for Human Rights is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is offering a variety of hands-on, family-friendly activities all day, celebrating Canadians’ rights and freedoms. Admission is only $5 all day; Founding Nations hosts the annual powwow events at The Forks to showcase the beauty and styles of the dances from the aboriginal communities in Manitoba. It’s at 1:30 p.m. at the Oodena Celebration Circle.
Around the water cooler
Deepak JoshiTREVOR HAGAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS files
Big payout: Former acting CAO of the City of Winnipeg Deepak Joshi was awarded $567,339 for his work in 2015 — all two months of it. Joshi had taken over the position from former CAO Phil Sheegl in 2013, but Mayor Brian Bowman, suspended Joshi in January 2015 on the grounds that he had lost confidence in him. The mayor would not answer questions about why the payment to the former city employee had been so generous. READ MORE
Crazy day in NHL: It seemed like every hour that passed Wednesday afternoon, NHL general managers were making headline-grabbing deals. First came word the Edmonton Oilers had shipped talented winger Taylor Hall to New Jersey for defenseman Adam Larsson. Then, word came that the Columbus Blue Jackets had signed blueliner Seth Jones to a new six-year contract, worth $5.4 million each season. The Tampa Bay Lightning then put an end to the Steven Stamkos sweepstakes, signing the sniper to a new eight-year, $68-million deal. Finally, the Montreal Canadiens and Nashville Predators pulled off the biggest shocker of the day, swapping their best defensemen. The Habs sent P.K. Subban to Music City for Shea Webber. READ MORE
Trending now
#RuinShakespeare: The Bard would not fare well under base attempts at turns of phrase: “Brexity is the soul of Brit,” “This above all: to thine own Twitter feed be true,” or “Out, out damn spot with Oxiclean, the tough stain remover.”
Order of Canada: Gov.-Gen. David Johnston has released the names of new members of the the Order of Canada, on the eve of Canada Day. Among the recipients is former Manitoba Senator Sharon Carstairs. READ MORE
On this date
On June 30, 1985: The Winnipeg Free Press reported that a booklet promoting Manitoba events to tourists had just been published — but it included events starting June 1, nearly a month before the booklet was available. A Manitoba teen with a rare bone abnormality was flown to California for treatment, in the hopes that doctors at Stanford University could help him. The province hoped the attraction of moose hunting licences at its Hecla Island resort would draw wealthy foreign hunters to stay there. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers were expected to be the top team in the west in the coming CFL season.
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