Team Sask Flag Bearer Announced for the 2019 Canada Winter Games Opening Ceremony

RED DEER, AB (February 14, 2019): Team Sask is pleased to announce that Biathlete Logan Pletz of Regina was selected as Team Saskatchewan’s Opening Ceremony flag bearer for the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer, Alberta.

As flag bearer, Pletz will lead a team of 215 athletes and 96 coaches, managers and support staff into the Opening Ceremony which will be held at the ENMAX Centrium on Friday, February 15, 2019. The event will be broadcast live on TSN/RDS.

Pletz is the 2018 National Champion in the Youth Men’s 12.5 km Individual Race, and in January 2019, was named to the U19 Canadian National Youth Team, his first time representing Canada in international competition. Pletz earned a gold medal in the 7.5 km sprint race and a silver in the 12.5 km pursuit in a qualifying competition to earn a coveted berth on Team Canada at the IBU Youth World Biathlon Championships, which took place in January and February 2019 in Osrblie, Slovakia. Pletz placed 19th in the 7.5 km sprint race.

Pletz began his biathlon career at the age of eleven and progressed rapidly, winning multiple medals at the 2010 Saskatchewan Winter Games in Prince Albert. This early success kick-started his progress to the elite level, and Pletz spent the summer of 2018 training at the Whistler Nordic Development Centre, where he made significant strides towards qualifying for the 2019 IBU Youth World Biathlon Championships.

Pletz, 18, attends Luther High School in Regina and trains under coach Duane Banman with the Qu’Appelle Valley Nordic Club, based in Lumsden, as well as with Level 10 Fitness in Regina. In the summer, Logan also provides coaching for youth biathletes training with the Qu’Appelle Valley Nordic Club.

Biathlon combines high intensity cross country skiing interspersed with bouts of precision target shooting. Biathlon competition at the 2019 Canada Winter Games will take place from February 17 - 21.

Athletes who compete at the Canada Games represent the country’s next generation of national, international and Olympic champions. Team Sask alumni and Olympic medalists Mark McMorris, Catriona Le May Doan, and Emily Clark can all count their previous Canada Winter Games experiences as a stepping stone to the highest levels of sport.

Throughout the Games, an ongoing Team Sask medal count will be found on the Team Sask website at teamsask.ca, and live results and sport schedules will be found at https://cg2019.gems.pro. Daily content can be found on Team Sask social media: Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

The official 2019 Canada Winter Games website is located at canadagames.ca/2019.

QUOTES:

“We are proud to have an athlete of Logan’s calibre lead Team Sask into the Opening Ceremony. The dedication and passion he demonstrates for his sport, as well his ability to set and reach extremely high goals -- representing Team Canada -- sets a fantastic example for his Saskatchewan teammates, as well as those who aspire to be a part of Team Sask. On behalf of all of us with Team Sask, congratulations, Logan!”

Mark Bracken, Team Sask Chef de Mission

““It is a true honour to be chosen to carry the flag and I will do my best to represent Team Saskatchewan.”

Logan Pletz, 2019 Canada Winter Games Team Sask Flag Bearer

 

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Media contact:
Karen Lawson
Games Services & Communications Lead
Saskatchewan Games Council
c: (306) 529-3120
e: klawson@saskgames.ca