NEWS
The Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, to attend Canadian Ringette Championships to present cup named in her honour
Ottawa, ON – For 46 years, the Canadian Ringette Championships has been gathering the most elite female athletes that our sport has to offer for seven glorious days in April to compete for gold in U16, U19, and National Ringette League categories.
The Canadian Ringette Championships is an annual week-long event that plays host to 49 teams, 249 bench staff, 190 games, and 900+ athletes from across Canada. As well as determining champions, the tournament provides athletes with the opportunity to compete at the elite level, encourages fair play and interprovincial goodwill, and increases the visibility of the sport across the country. The Canadian Ringette Championships will take place in Ottawa from March 31st – April 5th, 2025.
This year, we are honoured to bestow a new trophy on the National Ringette League division named for the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada. Ringette Canada is incredibly proud to have this new trophy endorsed by the Governor General and it will be the first time a National Ringette League Trophy has featured the Inuktitut language.
The Governor General is the first Inuk and the tenth Governor General to hold the title of Honorary Chief Commissioner since the role was established in 1976.
The new ‘Mary May Simon Cup’ will be presented by the Governor General herself following the gold medal game as part of the Canadian Ringette Championships, to occur at 1pm at the Slush Puppie Centre in Gatineau on April 5th, 2025. The Governor General is a proud supporter of female leadership and wants to ensure that there are sporting opportunities for women and girls across the country.
“We feel honoured to welcome the Governor General to the Canadian Ringette Championships in April,” said Peter Leyser, Ringette Canada’s new Chief Executive Officer. “The ringette community is so wonderful, and this event allows us to showcase that on a National stage. The fact that the Governor General is very excited to support the growth of ringette speaks volumes about the rise of the sport across Canada.”
There are several ways you can engage with the Canadian Ringette Championships this year! Whether you want to sponsor, volunteer, or grab tickets to experience the action firsthand, there are many ways to get involved and support this wonderful sport. Visit ringette.ca to learn more.
This event isn’t just about the competition—it’s about shaping the future of women’s sports in Canada and inspiring young girls to dream big!
You can watch the 2025 Canadian Ringette Championships on the Ringette Canada YouTube channel; youtube.com/c/RingetteCanadaRinguetteCanada, on channel 1999 on TELUS’ Optik TV Network and on the CBC Gem App with the gold medal games being featured on CBC Sport.
Ottawa Media Play Ringette for the First Time ahead of the 2025 Canadian Ringette Championships
Unbelievable. Fantastic. Mind-Blowing. Awesome.
Those are just a few of the words used to describe playing ringette from a few of the media personalities who came out to play the sport for the first time. It was the second edition of a Media/Celebrity Ringette Game, (the first was held in 2020), designed to showcase the sport and expose members of the media to the game, ahead of Ottawa hosting the Canadian Ringette Championships coming up March 31-April 5.
Ian Mendes, who recently moved from a media role to become Vice-President of Communications with the Ottawa Senators, hosted the game for his media colleagues, and his daughter Lily, a Nepean Raven U19 player, joined him for the afternoon.
Discovery of the sport and on-ice experience
The first half of the event was a series of drills to give the new players the opportunity to get familiar with moving the ring around the ice, and then they had a brief introduction to the rules. Mendes described the event as ‘awesome’, and went on to say, “I think the best thing is when you expose people who have grown up in the hockey ecosystem to this game one time they realize how fun it is.”
Mendes also sees the game as a positive skill development sport. “I’ll be real honest. Everyone knows I’m a hockey guy but the ringette rules are better. I’ll say it - it’s a better sport. It’s a better sport for young people because it encourages teamwork in a way that hockey doesn’t. It forces you to pass.”
He appreciated his colleagues taking the time out on a Sunday afternoon to take part. “To be able to share that with them, and I think they all know how much the sport has meant to us, it was mind blowing. The best thing was my colleagues seeing these U16AAs skate - they were just snapping their heads back!”
Daughter Lily thoroughly enjoyed the event as well and reflected on playing alongside her dad, “He coaches me a lot but I don’t get a chance to play with him so it was a lot of fun to get to do that. It was great to see him kind of in his element on the ice.”
Media and celebrities won over by ringette.
Former NHL player Shaun Van Allen looked comfortable out on the ice, as he has coached ringette for a number of years, and his daughter played the sport. Playing it for the first time were several members of the media including Alex Adams and Kyle Bukauskas from Sportsnet, TSN’s Graham Creech, Callum Fraser who writes for NHL.com and Graeme Nichols who writes for The Hockey News.
The second half of the afternoon was a game that combined members of the CORA U16AA team with the media members in a friendly scrimmage. That combination worked well for Callum Fraser. “It was really cool to learn the basics right away and then jump into the game. What made it a relatively easy transition was the girls out there. They were really communicative. They were so welcoming and we just had so much fun out there. It was a fantastic day for sure.” It was a similar experience for Sportsnet’s Alex Adams. “It was unbelievable. I had so much fun and to just watch those girls out there - the way they skate; the way they hold onto the ring! I was definitely not the best player out there, but it was a ton of fun and I would definitely want to play the game again.”
A memorable day for all
Referee for the event was Jenna McBride, a former member of Team Canada and National Ringette League player who is serving as one of the Honorary Co-Chairs of the upcoming championships. She loved seeing new people exposed to the game. “This was a super fun game to ref. As a player and coach, and also an official, I love to introduce new people to the sport and see how people who are good skaters and have played hockey all their lives transition quickly to ringette. The feedback that we got on the ice was ‘wow what a great sport’ and how fun it was once they got a hang of some of the rules that were harder for them to grasp a little bit.”
She did hold the players to a certain standard, with a number of ‘friendly’ penalties being called on the new players she said with an impish grin. “There were definitely some high sticks called; a few interference penalties. Definitely a few things that we commonly see when we have people trying ringette for the first time but overall a very friendly game.”
The game was also great fun for the athletes on the ice. Sydney Davis who plays for U16AA CORA said “ I think it was a good experience to play against people I’ve never played against before, and they had fun too.” Leah Lambert, who plays U14AA for CORA, thought the newly exposed players handled it well. “I think they got more comfortable and they got to know more about the rules and how the game works.”
The countdown to CRC 2025 is on!
The Canadian Ringette Championships will feature over 800 athletes in 150 games during the week of March 31 – April 5. Games take place at the Ray Friel Recreation Centre, Richcraft Sensplex, and the medal games will be played at Centre Slush Puppie.
Stay Connected & Follow Along!
Instagram: @crc_ccr
Facebook: CanadianRingetteChampionships
LinkedIn: CRC CCR
Tik Tok: @canadianringettec
January 9, 2025
For 10 incredible days, ringette had the chance to shine at Fan Fest during the World Juniors, a historic first for our sport! With a booth activation designed to engage and educate, we introduced thousands of fans to the fast-paced, strategic, and dynamic game we all love.
Our space featured:
Shoot-on-Net with Radar: A crowd favorite for testing accuracy and speed!
Ringette on Screen: Showcasing the excitement and skill of the game.
Keen Volunteers: A dedicated team of enthusiastic volunteers who helped promote ringette and the 2025 Canadian Ringette Championships! We’re especially grateful to Dave McWaters for leading the charge, our co-chairs Phyllis Bergmans and Kristian Ewen, and Ringette Canada’s Shelley Coolidge.
Proud Partners: Participants were treated to a world class shooting experience thanks to stick and glove donations from Athena!
We’d also like to thank Ottawa Tourism and Hockey Canada for having us out.
What truly stood out was the curiosity and interest from fans, especially those from other countries who asked questions like, “what even is ringette?” It gave us the perfect opportunity to share that ringette is a unique, inclusive sport with its own rich history and global potential.
Seeing our vibrant branding proudly displayed and representing the sport was a moment of pure pride. This activation wasn’t just about promoting ringette; it was about breaking barriers, sparking conversations, and sharing the passion that makes our community so special.
To everyone who stopped by, tried their hand at the game, or learned something new about ringette, thank you for being part of this milestone. Here’s to making history and growing the game!