Vanier student wins gold at zones: headed to provincials

G.P. Vanier high school student Amy Hachey competed in provincials last weekend as a result of winning gold at zones. She insists that hard work and practice helps to make her badminton game stronger.

Emily Plihal
Express staff

A vibrant, vivacious teenager from G.P. Vanier high school competed in provincial competition last weekend, after a stellar performance at zones mid-April.

Grade 10 student Amy Hachey was proud to win a gold medal at zone competition in badminton on the weekend of April 25.

The competition was held in Spirit River, where Hachey managed to beat seven opponents to lead to her victory.

“I play in singles junior girls category,” says Hachey. “The zones were really fun to play in, and I’m really anxious to play at the provincial level.”

Hachey has been quite successful in her young career as a badminton athlete. In junior high, she managed to win silver in both grade 7 and 8 in divisionals.

She also managed to win gold in zones last year as a grade 9 student.

Hachey explains provincial competition is not available for junior high athletes, so the new experience will be extraordinarily exciting for her.

“My coach this year was Geovanni Solorzno,” she says. “He is the high school Pure Math teacher at Vanier.”

Hachey says an important part of playing badminton is having fun. She says the sport is a great way to meet new people and have fun with others the same age.

“I play badminton to have fun, stay healthy and be active,” says the ambitious 15-year-old. “It is a great sport to play.”

Hachey says she hopes to continue playing badminton throughout her high school years.

“I owe a great deal of thanks to Mr. T (teacher Dan Turcotte)for all the guidance he gave me throughout junior high,” says Hachey. “He’s even let me join in on the junior high practices this year on Thursdays. The extra practice has gone a long way to helping me get ready for provincials.”

The young athlete says the most important thing other students should know is that no matter what part of your life you’re talking about, practice always makes perfect. She says it is really important to develop skills to make every aspect of your sport abilities sharper.

“My friend Joel Aubin has really helped me to get ready for badminton provincials,” she says. “He’s been staying late after school to help train me to compete against athletes from across Alberta.”

Copyright © 1999-2009 Smoky River Express. All Rights Reserved.
No part may be reproduced without written permission.

View our Privacy Statement.
Send website suggestions to the Webmaster