Greater Victoria residents have joined forces to start a ringette association in Greater Victoria after more than a decade without one.
Laura Tighe started playing ringette when she was five and while she’s taken part in other sports throughout her life, ringette has been a mainstay. After her family moved to Victoria, she was involved with the previous ringette association before it was disbanded. Now, Tighe has a four-year-old daughter and she found herself getting emotional at the thought of her child never getting to play ringette because it was such a big part of her life. Eventually, she decided to start a new association.
Ringette is often compared to hockey because it’s played on the ice and it was invented in Canada, said Tighe, but there is no body contact, the rules are different and teamwork is encouraged more.
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“Ringette is really all about fun, friendship and team play,” said Tighe.
Tighe expects the association will mostly be made up of young girls as the sport is 90 per cent female.
“It’s empowering for young girls to have something that’s theirs,” she said.
However, she noted that all are welcome to join in the fun. No experience is required and folks ages four and up are encouraged to join.
While the association mostly targets kids, Tighe said several adults have reached out about wanting to play. She’s offered to get them some ice time and some will volunteer with the association.
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Those interested in trying out the sport can attend a free introduction event at the G.R. Pearkes Recreation Centre in Saanich on Saturday, Aug. 24 from 1:45 to 3:15 p.m. No experience is required and the event will be low key. All equipment including helmets, sticks and skates will be provided and all you need to bring is a pair of gloves, said Tighe. Folks can register and find more information on the event website.
For now, the association will scrimmage with the teams from Comox Valley who have offered to lend a hand. Official gear will not be required until the teams start playing sanctioned games during the 2020-21 season, said Tighe. She is excited to begin rebuilding the ringette community in Greater Victoria and is looking forward to creating teams next year.
The team will play at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre this season from Sept. 29 to March 8, 2020.
For more information, visit the Victoria Ringette Facebook page, victoriaringette.weebly.com/teams.html or contact the association at victoriaringette@gmail.com.
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