Schwan Super Rink to host three major ice-sport events in the coming two weeks
NEWS RELEASE
April 9, 2007
Contacts:
Barclay Kruse, National Sports Center Chief Communications Officer
763.785.5634 office
763.458.6615 cell
Jane Schaber, NSC Figure Skating Director
763.717.3891
Jackie Olson, Stick-It to Cancer Tournament Director
763.792.7340
Schwan Super Rink to host three major ice-sport events in the coming two weeks:
- New Figure Skating Center open house Friday, April 13, 3-5pm.
- ISI National Synchronized Skating Championships, Saturday-Sunday, April 14-15.
- Stick-It to Cancer benefit hockey tournament, April 20-22.
BLAINE, Minn. (April 9, 2007) – The Schwan Super Rink at the National Sports Center will host three major ice-sport events between April 13 and April 22:
Figure Skating Center Open House:
Opening the schedule will be an open house at the new National Sports Center (NSC) Figure Skating Training Center at the newly expanded Schwan Super Rink. The open house is scheduled from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Friday, April 13. NSC Figure Skating staff and coaches will be available to answer questions and lead tours. Refreshments will be served. The public is invited to attend.
The skating center is a 6,200 square foot dry land training facility that includes a 4,000 square foot training room, staff offices, and a figure skating apparel store. The training room features a wood dance floor, mirrored wall, ballet bar, windows for spectator viewing, and a music and video system. The skating center has direct access to the facility’s ice sheets for on-ice training.
The new figure skating center is part of a 128,000-square-foot four-hockey rink addition that expanded the Schwan Super Rink from four to eight sheets of ice, and brought the size of the facility to 300,000 square feet. The original Schwan Super Rink, which opened in 1998, featured four Olympic-size rinks. In addition to the skating surfaces, the arena offers the Herb Brooks Center hockey training facility, the Hat Trick Café, Super Shop pro shop and 32 locker rooms.
The figure skating center will be the home base for the Schwan Super Rink’s skating school and the Northern Blades National Sports Center Figure Skating Club, the resident club at the Schwan Super Rink. With 1,500 participants, the skating school is one of the largest in Minnesota.
“This new facility will help us provide better skating instruction at all levels,” said NSC Skating School Director Jane Schaber. “Dryland training is critical to development and learning new skills for all figure skaters, and this will help us advance toward of goal of becoming a pre-eminent skating facility for skaters of all levels.”
Previous to the opening of the skating center, figure skaters did their dryland training in conference rooms elsewhere at the NSC, and were forced to work around the schedules of conflicting events.
“Everyone is very excited to finally have a space of our own,” said Schaber.
The skating center was funded by a $600,000 loan from Anchor Bank. The loan was endorsed by the Anoka County Board to qualify for tax-exempt status. The loan will be repaid by revenues from rentals and events at the Schwan Super Rink. No public money was spent on the figure skating center.
ISI National Synchronized Skating Championships
The Schwan Super Rink is hosting the ISI National Synchronized Skating Championships, April 13-15, and there will be practice sessions taking place on the ice during the Figure Skating Center open house.
Competition will be held on rinks 2 and 3 from 9:00 a.m. to 8:50 p.m. on Saturday, April 14 and from 8:00 a.m. to 11:20 a.m. on Sunday, April 15.
“Being a team event, spectators will find this is one of the most entertaining kinds of figure skating competitions,” said National Sports Center Figure Skating Director Jane Schaber.
Spectator admission is free.
The ISI expects 108 teams and 1,700 skaters from all over the country to participate.
The Ice Skating Institute is an international governing body for recreational figure skating. It was founded in 1959, in order to promote skating as a recreational activity, and to that end has developed a program of tests and competitions in all areas of figure skating. The ISI and the International Skating Union, governing body of Olympic skating, have a mutual agreement that allows skaters to have membership in both organizations, and be able to compete in both ISI and ISU competitions.
Stick-It to Cancer Hockey Tournament
The 9th Annual Stick-It to Cancer Women’s Ice Hockey Tournament will be held from April 21-23 at the Schwan-Super Rink.
Most hockey teams enter a tournament with the primary objective of defeating their opponent. The 9th Annual Stick-It to Cancer Women’s Ice Hockey Tournament is no different, but there is a second opponent each player will be facing -- breast cancer. The majority of the tournament proceeds will be donated to the University of Minnesota Cancer Center.
Teaming with the Schwan Super Rink, female hockey players and their families created the Stick-It to Cancer Tournament in 1998 as a way of fighting breast cancer through the sport they love.
“This tournament allows men and women to gather every year to learn more about the battle against breast cancer while raising needed funds in a healthy sports atmosphere,” said Jackie Olson, tournament director. “The tournament fills to capacity every year, and that’s largely because the players believe strongly in the cause.”
Awards are eliminated from the event to save tournament costs, and each team must donate three hours of volunteer time to the tournament. These measures increase the amount of proceeds donated to the University of Minnesota Cancer Center. In 2006, fully 80 percent of the net profit from the event was donated.
The tournament consists of ten different divisions: U10, U12, U14, U16, U19, Women’s B, and three tiers of Women’s C. The field filled to a 74-team capacity two months ahead of the tournament. Teams representing Wisconsin, North Dakota, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois and Minnesota will be playing.
Games are scheduled beginning at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, April 20; 7:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 21; and 7:00 a.m. on Sunday, April 22. Championship games will be held on Sunday.
Daily spectator tickets are priced at $8 for adults 19 and over and $6 for students 18 and under. A three-day tournament pass is available for $20 for adults and $15 for students. Children six and under are admitted free. Information is available by calling the Schwan Super Rink at 763.717.3880.
On Saturday, April 21, from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. an all-you-can-eat Waffle Breakfast will be held at the Schwan Center at the National Sports Center. The event will raise additional funds for the University of Minnesota Cancer Center. The price is $6.00 for adults and $4.00 for youth. Children 3 and under are free. The Waffle Breakfast is sponsored by the Park and Sell Auto-Mart in Ham Lake, Minn.