Larocque ready to take on the world
Delayed women's world hockey championship slated for August
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 03/06/2021 (1737 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
A women’s world hockey championship in August? Jocelyne Larocque isn’t complaining.
A two-time Olympian and a longtime member of Canada national team, the 33-year-old blue-liner from Ste. Anne was celebrating when Hockey Canada announced Wednesday the 10-nation tournament will take place Aug. 20-31 at Calgary’s WinSport Arena.
The new dates are the lastest fix for the worlds, previously scheduled for Halifax and Truro, N.S., in May. Nova Scotia premier Iain Rankin cancelled the event at the 11th hour when faced with rising COVID-19 cases in the province.
“The timing is not ideal but I really think that COVID has kind of taught us and showed us that there isn’t really a normal and that you should really be like expecting things to be like they were,” said Larocque by phone from Brampton, Ont., Thursday. “I’m just happy that there are worlds.
“So is the timing ideal? No. I think Gina (Kingsbury), our general manager, kind of worded it like we’re taking the exam on the first day. But we’re all just excited that it’s not cancelled.”
Larocque was one of 28 players, including two other Manitobans, named to Canada’s centralization roster for the 2022 Beijing Olympics. A minimum of three and perhaps five of those players will be excluded from the worlds roster.
“Unfortunately, there’ll be about five players that will just be training on their own, away from the world championship teams throughout that time and then we would all come together for the Olympic tryouts Sept. 1,” said Larocque.
The entire centralization roster, including blue-liner Ashton Bell of Deloraine and goaltender Kristen Campbell of Brandon will convene in Calgary on July 23 to begin training.
“Nobody would want to be left off that roster but I know for myself, if I am (left off), it’s not ideal,” said Larocque. “Come September, I don’t want to say it will be like a new slate, but we’ll all be together, training and playing games and practising.”
Another encouraging development was the recent staging of the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association’s Secret Cup in Calgary. Larocque and her Toronto-based Sonnet team advanced to the final of the three-team tournament before dropping a 4-2 decision to Montreal’s Bauer Sunday.
“It was fantastic,” said Larocque. “It was really well run. I was in Calgary for 11 days and the first three were in quarantine and then it was pretty much playing games every day. It was a three-team tournament and then the top two teams went to the final game.”
A return to competition was a welcome relief.
“To be honest I hadn’t been on the ice since Halifax, so I had a five-week break,” said Larocque. “My hips and my body were feeling it a bit but I just had so much adrenaline and it was so much fun.”
mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @sawa14