Hartling recognized
for coaching excellence
Biathlon Yukon coach Judy Hartling received the Carl Zeiss Female Coach of the Year Award at Biathlon Canada’s AGM in Ottawa recently.
The annual Carl Zeiss award is presented to a male and female coach that present, through example, a positive image of coaching; demonstrates concern for the all-round development of the athlete; instills guidelines that reflect responsible conduct beyond the playing field; demonstrates respect for officials, opponents and parents; espouses a philosophy of fair play; demonstrates the ability to improve the athletic performance of a team or individual; and applies relevant training theory and coaching techniques.
The parents and executive of Biathlon Yukon nominated Hartling for this award because she demonstrated all of these qualities.
Hartling is a positive role model for all the biathletes and a mentor to the assistant coaches within the club, said the group’s nomination letter.
As the head coach, Hartling not only supports the athletes to achieve their best as an athlete, she also encourages each athlete to share their skill and expertise of the sport with people who are new to the sport of biathlon.
Hartling demonstrates a genuine concern for the overall development of each of the Biathlon Yukon athletes as both a person and an athlete.
She has adopted the philosophy put forward by Biathlon Yukon to “provide each athlete with the opportunity to become the best they can.”
To this end, Hartling encourages each athlete to keep a balance in their lives.
Hartling encourages each athlete to participate in other sports for both fun and cross training.
She demands that athletes show respect for themselves as a person, as an athlete and as a member of a team.
While working towards building a cohesive team, Hartling also respects the individual interests, strengths and personalities of each member
Through Hartling’s role as coach, she interacts with athletes, parents, officials and race organizers both within the Yukon and at competitions outside of Yukon.
She always demonstrates a high level of respect for each person, regardless of their role.
When faced with questions or concerns, Hartling addresses these concerns in a courteous manner.
She expects that each of the athletes she coaches will show the same level of respect for other athletes on their team, for athletes on other teams and for all officials regardless of whether the race is local or at a national level.
Guidelines for fair play are reviewed with athletes throughout the year and Hartling is not afraid to deal with inappropriate conduct when required and does so in a manner that is fair and respectful to both the individual athlete and team.
With Hartling’s consistent coaching efforts, the 2007/’08 winter biathlon season was one of the most successful on record for the Biathlon Yukon Junior team.
Several individual athletes achieved podium results at the 2008 Arctic Winter Games in Yellowknife and a Calforex Cup race in Hinton, Alberta.
In addition, many of the athletes achieved personal bests.
At the 2008 Canadian Biathlon Championships held in Whistler, BC, Hartling coached a team of junior athletes who individually and as a team achieved results that far exceeded her expectations.
It is felt that Hartling’s consistently high level of coaching contributed to the significant improvement and success of all the athletes.
The athletes, parents and executive of Biathlon Yukon would like to extend their congratulations to Hartling as a most deserving recipient of the Carl Zeiss Female Coach of the Year Award.
Vicki McCollum
Whitehorse
Fabulous festival
I would like to thank the organizers of the Native Arts Festival for putting together such a wonderful event.
It was a very spectacular display of native art and the performers were exceptional. I went to practically all of the evening performances.
I really enjoyed watching the First Peoples Performers, especially the little boy who was part of the group.
The elders’ storytelling was also wonderful.
I loved Doris McLean’s stories about tourists; I laughed so hard I was crying.
I am looking forward to attending next year’s festival and taking in some of the artists’ workshops.
Hopefully, more people will attend this wonderful event. A native festival is not just for native people.
I am somewhat disappointed that the local newspapers did not seem to have any coverage of a true Yukon cultural event and, instead, chose to cover a baseball tournament.
Sherrie Walker
Whitehorse
Missing our second chance
Most of you learned that the special robot landed on Mars and discovered that the soil is similar to that of our planet.
Well, to tell you the truth, back then Mars was Earth 1 and was destroyed by wars.
Today our planet is Earth 2 and is going to be like Mars if we humans don’t stop the bullshit that has been going on on our own planet!
Gerard T.
Whitehorse
Muddy and grateful
A great big thanks to all those involved with organizing and running the mud bogs.
I especially want to thank my sponsors – NAPA, Clean Choices, Southern Lakes Towing, Tony’s Pizza and Kennedy Custom 4-wheel Drive.
Watch for the Crazy Hare Toyota next year!
Wayne Hare
Whitehorse
