Tweed a historic figure in Winnipeg’s women’s soccer scene

With Winnipeg’s Northern Super League club debuting next year, helmed by footy greats Desiree Scott and Rob Gale, the history of the beautiful game in the Keystone province has been put in the spotlight.

Or, rather, Tony’s legacy has been.

Anthony Tweed always had a love for the game. Born in Cambridge, England, it came naturally. Tweed even attended the 1966 FIFA World Cup where England beat West Germany 4-2 in extra time to claim the first and only title for the country that invented the world’s most popular sport.

“Like all Englishmen, I just loved the game,” Tweed said.

Love of the rink blossomed differently for mother-daughter figure skaters

It’s said that home is where the heart is, and for Dana and Marrin McKee that has always been the rink.

The mother-daughter duo of figure skating coaches always find comfort lacing up in chilly arenas.

Dana McKee’s origin story was very similar to her daughter’s, having a strong motherly push onto the ice. Much like learning to swim or drive a car, Dana’s mother believed that skating was an important life skill that needed to be honed.

Growing up in Morris, McKee spent the majority of her youth in the CanSkate program — a developmental learn-to-skate stage teaching the basics of standing upright.

Recognizing the value of phys-ed for kids

The message from Premier Wab Kinew and Education Minister Tracy Schmidt last week about the importance of exercise for young people was timely and important — but it is not new.

Wasp attack warnings as swarms surge in B.C. amid warm weather and abundant food

VANCOUVER - When the wasp swarm attacked a climber on a trail north of Vancouver this week, her reaction was so severe she needed helicopter evacuation.

But Maria Masiar, search manager with Lions Bay Search and Rescue, said the wasps weren't done, attacking rescuers, and then another group of hikers who were sent scrambling by the same stinging swarm when they came across the scene.

Pest control expert Mat Neale said he had seen a "dramatic increase" of wasp calls in British Columbia, as warm weather and abundant food contributed to a late summer surge in numbers of the stinging insects.

Backcountry and rescue groups have been warning against the unusual number of wasps on popular trails.

Province announces phys-ed curriculum overhaul

Manitoba is overhauling phys-ed class and requiring all high school students to regularly work up a sweat on school grounds to graduate.

Premier Wab Kinew announced on Thursday that a new curriculum is being piloted across the kindergarten to Grade 12 system this fall.

Changes to phys-ed and health education — which apply to all grades, but Grade 11 and 12 students, in particular — will ensure these mandatory subjects are delivered entirely in-person, starting in the 2028-29 school year.

The policy is called “Every Body, Every Day.”

Mobility tests can tell doctors a lot about how you’re aging, but there are many other factors

Hand grip strength. Balance tests. Standing up from a seated position on the floor. These physical challenges are often touted as measurements of healthy aging and even predictors of longevity.

They can provide valuable indications of your stamina and strength. They can estimate the risk of falls, which increase older adults ' risk of death. And they're useful to doctors who work to address aging or people with injuries.

But they're no crystal ball.

“A poor or declining result is a reason for a health professional to investigate why function is changing, rather than gauging how long someone will live,” said Auriel Willette, an expert on brain aging at Rutgers University.

‘You vote with your bike’: cyclists celebrate freedoms, call for increased safety

Patty Wiens got dressed up in her sparkly, hot pink cowboy boots to pedal and talk politics with more than 100 other people on Sunday.

The founder of Winnipeg’s Fancy Women Bike Ride called on attendees of the 2026 event to ask candidates in the upcoming civic election — a half-dozen of whom were in attendance — about their active transportation platforms.

“We’re here today, in an election year, to remind you that you vote with your bike,” Wiens told a crowd of nearly 120 cyclists gathered on the legislature grounds for the group ride.

“When (city council) candidates come to your door and ask what’s important to you, you’re going to say, ‘I want to ride my bike safely in the city. What are you going to do about it?’”

Revered Broadway rail anchors Winnipeg’s resilient skateboarding scene

The Woodsworth Building at the corner of Broadway and Kennedy Street is an accidental, unofficial mecca of Winnipeg skateboarding.

The scoop on lawn bowling

If you’ve ever wondered what bowls — better known as lawn bowling — is all about, the Free Press has the scoop on it.

First off, to get you in the right headspace it’s important to not compare bowls to alley bowling. Although there is a ball that is rolled, there are no pins at the end to knock down. Bowls is better compared to curling and bocce ball.

The game is played on a turf known as a rink. The rink can be made of grass — a bowling green — or carpet.

Both types of rinks have advantages and disadvantages, with players usually having a preference. With grass turf, bowlers need more force while rolling the ball to make it through the thicker terrain, while carpet is a smooth surface and requires a lighter touch.

Take a hike... or a bike ride on these Winnipeg trail options

We’re halfway through the 10-week summer holiday and if your family is anything like mine, it’s very likely you’ll be in full-blown survival mode at this point.

You’ve already visited all the popular ice-cream spots in the city (and if you haven’t then you’ll find a list of our faves here) , you’ve ticked every box in our Road Trip Bingo Card and answered every single question in the our How Well Do You Know Your Province Quiz (Part 1 and Part 2) … and there are still 29 days to go before school starts on Sept. 8.

If you’re running low on ideas, don’t worry — we’ve got you covered, with not one, not two, but three cycling/walking routes to help you squeeze a bit more fun from what’s left of the holidays. Grab your helmets, lace up your sneakers, pack water bottles and get outside to explore different neighbourhoods in the city.

NOTE: Check the Winnipeg Trails website before you leaving to make sure paths are open and in working order, especially if we’ve had a bout of nasty weather.

Rushing to Rushing River

Every summer, Manitobans go rushing to Rushing River. I told Margie, “And that explains the name!”

Although 240 kilometres from Winnipeg, Ontario’s small Rushing River Provincial Park reports 51,000 annual visits by ’Tobans, about two-thirds of total entries. On some days, I’ve only seen Manitoba vehicles in the campground.

Yup, my new pastime is vacationing to survey licence plates.

This boreal beaut awaits down Ontario Highway 71, shortly after the Trans-Canada Highway’s clever sign explaining “Large vehicles need more room” — and after the intersection where Margie yelled, “Stop! A turtle is crossing!”

Plot an effective ‘retirement plan’ for your body

Every few months, someone tries to sell us the next big anti-aging breakthrough. A supplement. A peptide. A detox. A device that looks like it belongs in a spaceship and costs more than your first car did.

I get the appeal. Nobody wants to age poorly and we’re wired to wish for a shortcut. And if you’re a parent over 40, you don’t need a study to tell you energy, sleep, stress and your waistline all feel a little harder to keep in check than they did at 20.

But when you look at what actually helps people age well, the answers aren’t flashy. They’re annoyingly simple. Lift weights. Walk more. Sleep enough. Eat enough protein. Don’t over-eat or carry too much extra body fat. Manage stress. Build good relationships. Stay optimistic enough to keep pushing.

Not exactly headline-worthy clickbait type stuff. But probably the closest thing we have to an anti-aging plan that works.

Ceremony heralds growth of active transportation network in city’s north

North Winnipeg’s active transportation network is set to grow, with construction planned for a nearly two-kilometre extension of the Northwest Hydro Corridor Multi-Use Path later this summer.

A few community members, Mayor Scott Gillingham and other representatives from the city and province and Trails Manitoba gathered Tuesday at Daylan Marshall Gate Park for a groundbreaking ceremony marking the start of Phase 2 of the project, which will extend the existing multi-use pathway north and south.

The original Northwest Hydro Corridor opened in 2023 and runs nearly three kilometres along the hydro right-of-way from Leila Avenue to Church Avenue, just west of McPhillips Street.

Phase 2 will extend the corridor north from Leila Avenue to the greenspace behind Daylan Marshall Gate and south from Church Avenue to Selkirk Avenue. Once completed, the pathway will stretch approximately 4.2 kilometres in length.

Young Quebec sailor, 17, aims to challenge gender stereotypes in sailing

MONTREAL - At 17, Jasmine Pernot is set to become the youngest skipper and one of only three women leading crews in Quebec's new offshore sailing race, hoping to show other young women they belong at the helm.

Jasmine Pernot will lead a crew of seven in the inaugural St-Laurent 400, a 400-nautical-mile race that begins in Tadoussac, at the mouth of the Saguenay River on Quebec's North Shore, on Aug. 6 and finishes in the Magdalen Islands in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

"Everyone has been looking forward to this race because it's a format we haven't had yet in Quebec," Pernot said Thursday before a training session at the Deux-Montagnes sailing club, northwest of Montreal.

Unlike shorter races where crews return to shore at the end of the day, competitors will spend more than 24 consecutive hours at sea.

Sea Bears Dance Crew takes athleticism to the next level

Many grow up believing dance can only be a hobby and never a career. The Sea Bears Dance Crew defies the notion by showing there can be a professional side of dance in Winnipeg.

Tasha Farmer and Kersey Sarao lead a team of 18 dancers from different backgrounds and styles. Together, they create a high-energy game-day experience — one that encourages everyone in the arena to get up and boogie.

Farmer started dancing at a young age, experimenting in all that was offered.

“I trained in ballet, lyrical, hip hop, musical theatre — every single style you can think of,” she said.

Manitoba documentary focuses lens on environmental defenders, beauty of prairies

Everything We Need Is Here is the latest sumptuously shot Manitoba film rooted in the Prairie landscape.

Though totally unrelated in subject matter, the documentary recalls the 2024 Daughters of the Sun with its saturated and slow-mo sweeps across boreal forests and limestone tinted lakes.

But while Daughters has much murmured narration and arthouse flair, Everything is a plucky film, a can-do sort of doc about the land and its grassroots defenders.

Their voices resonate strong and clear across storylines that weave together the joys of foraging and local environmental protests.

Table tennis nationals return to Winnipeg

You’ve played in your basement and watched it from afar during the Olympics but you may never have gotten the opportunity to see the pros do it.

That’s right, the 2026 Canadian Table Tennis Championships will be landing in our very own city for the first time in a decade. From July 17-23, the Manitoba Table Tennis Association (MTTA) will be hosting Canada’s best players at the Duckworth Centre.

And Carlos Cuadra, executive director of MTTA, is encouraging Winnipeggers to come and enjoy the event.

“We were hungry. We definitely wanted to do it,” Cuadra explained. “We want to show Canada that we are capable of doing such events. And who knows, maybe try international events, too.”

Stretching the limits of our flexibility

Most people think you’re either born bendy or you’re not. Some kids fold up like lawn chairs. The rest of us reach for our shins and call it a win.

Yes, like everything physical, there are genetic advantages, but your mobility is more in your control than you realize.

A recent Huberman Lab podcast episode on stretching laid it out. Flexibility isn’t only about your muscles. It’s about your nervous system.

Picture your body as an overprotective bouncer. When you hit the edge of a stretch, it’s not always your muscle saying, “this is as far as I go.” Sometimes it’s your nervous system saying, “I don’t trust you out here, pal.”

Play for all: story time inspires students to fight for accessible playgrounds

Concerned about injustice on their school jungle gym, St. Vital students spent months researching upgrades to make playgrounds more accessible for children in Manitoba.

Darwin School is dismissed for the summer, but one of its teachers plans to resume an advocacy project after the break.

“It’s not fair,” 12-year-old Selena Wei said about the fact one of her classmates — along with other children who use wheelchairs — can’t fully experience the pea-gravel playground at 175 Darwin St. and others like it.

“A playground is a really big part of a child’s life. It’s where they experience most of their outside time and where they’re the most social,” Selena said.

The scoop on cricket

Need the scoop on cricket, but you’re not sure who to ask? Free Press mascot Scoop has you covered. Let’s break down the rules, plays and wickets of the second largest sport in the world.

Brotherly bond boosts local Amazing Race competitors

Sacha has a feeling and Sébastien has a plan — together they’ll work it out.

The Bird River offers prime kayaking conditions in late spring

A two-hour drive northeast of Winnipeg, the lower Bird River is a popular draw for whitewater enthusiasts.

The water moves fast and the hazards — rapids, rocks and technical drops — are challenging.

This is not a beginner-friendly run. Paddlers need to keep their wits about them as they roll through Class 1 to 4 rapids.

The Bird River, flowing through the traditional territory of the Sagkeeng First Nation, stretches from the Ontario border, through Nopiming Provincial Park, before reaching the Winnipeg River, east of Lac du Bonnet.

Le pari water-polo de Jayden Del Campo

Le water-polo est arrivé naturellement dans la vie de Jayden Del Campo. Issu d’une famille de sportifs, son père et son grand-père pratiquaient aussi ce sport, une passion qui s’est transmise dans la lignée familiale.

“Mon grand-père a joué dans l’équipe nationale de Cuba et mon père jouait aussi. J’avais comme quatre ans quand mes parents m’ont poussé dans l’eau pour que je commence à jouer.”

Bien que les débuts aient été difficiles — il n’aimait pas être dans l’eau et nager avec un ballon était un vrai défi il a fini par tomber en amour avec ce sport. C’est un chemin qu’il a suivi jusqu’au bout, en devenant entraîneur au Club Vortex, et en acceptant une bourse d’admission à l’Université McKendree aux États-Unis, où il a rejoint l’équipe de water-polo.

Pourtant, malgré une certaine popularité au sud de la frontière et en Europe, la communauté de water-polo reste très petite au Canada. “C’est une communauté qui est vraiment petite au Manitoba. Un de mes buts, c’est de faire grandir ce sport. Pas seulement au Manitoba, mais partout au pays.”

Divers Tiaglei, Rumpit jumping their way through 50 states in 50 days

Two months ago, Winnipeg high-diver Alex Tiaglei received a call that he could’ve easily confused for a belated April Fool’s joke.

On the other end was his American-born friend Braden Rumpit, whom Tiaglei had dove against at several competitions around the world.

Rumpit gave it to him straight: he planned to do a cliff dive in all 50 United States in 50 days, and he wanted Tiaglei to do it with him.

“I mean, at first I thought he was kind of crazy,” said Tiaglei. “But then I started thinking about it, and the pieces were definitely falling together pretty well.”