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SportsOakville Beaver SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 432) Fax 905-337-5571 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com FRIDAY, AUGUST 13, 201030 Three-time Olympian brings girls hockey school to town By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR As a young girl growing up in Winnipeg, Sami Jo Small didnt have a lot of options when it came to playing hockey. She was the lone girl in the boys minor hockey system, forcing her to prove herself each day through hard work and determination. A couple decades later, with three Olympic medals and five world championships under her belt, Small is doing her part in making sure girls these days dont have to go through the same thing. Smalls female hockey school, which shes run for the past dozen years, made its first stop in Oakville this week with a camp at Joshuas Creek Arenas. Small will also be in town next week to run a goaltending school. When I first started, there was- nt much for girls hockey, Small said yesterday (Thursday) after put- ting a group of girls through some skating drills. In 1998, we had just come back from the Olympic Games and most girls were playing boys hockey. I just wanted them to be exposed to other girls playing and to enjoy the camaraderie of that, because I never really had that growing up. A lot has changed over that time, Small noted. Now its acceptable for girls to play. Fathers will put their daugh- ters in girls hockey and you see a lot more females coaching and ref- ereeing. Its become a part of the fabric of Canadian society, she said. A lot of that is testament to the Olympic team that has done so well in the past and has provided heroes and mentorship to young girls. Small has been a big part of that. The goaltender won Olympic gold in 2002 and 2006, added a silver in 1998, and is a two-time world championship MVP. A couple other members of the womens Olympic team Cherie Piper and Jennifer Botterill, both of whom won gold at the Vancouver Games earlier this year have also helped with this weeks camp. Jennifer and Cherie are great (players), but theyre also just good quality people, said Small. These girls are exposed to that at a young age, and hopefully (Piper and Botterills positive spirit) and pas- sion for the game will be trans- ferred to these young girls. Paralympian sledge hockey play- er Billy Bridges, Smalls fiance, has also helped out with this weeks hockey school. Players had an opportunity to try sledge hockey yesterday (Thursday) afternoon. Space still remains for Smalls goaltending school next week. For more information, visit Smalls website at www.samijosmall.ca. SMALL SCHOOL: Olympic womens hockey gold medalists Cherie Piper (left) and Sami Jo Small put players through a drill at Smalls girls hockey school yesterday (Thursday) at Joshuas Creek Arenas. MICHAEL IVANIN / OAKVILLE BEAVER Now its acceptable for girls to play... Its become a part of the fabric of Canadian society. n Sami Jo Small