The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) and Field Hockey Canada have announced the sixteen men who have been selected to represent Canada at the TORONTO 2015 Pan American Games from July 10 to 26 in Toronto, Ontario.
The Pan American Games field hockey competition, which will be held at the new Pan Am Fields at the University of Toronto, serves as an official 2016 Olympic Games qualifying tournament, with both the men’s and women’s winner earning a spot at the Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil next summer.
“Our guys have worked extremely hard to prepare for the Pan American Games,” says Men’s National Team Head Coach Anthony Farry. “Contending for a major title on our own turf will be a wonderful opportunity to showcase our sport to our home fans and to continue to prepare for our ultimate goal of competing at the Olympic Games.”
Canada’s roster is highlighted by veterans Scott Tupper and David Jameson, both of whom have played more than two-hundred international matches, and veteran goalkeeper David Carter, who was named the Player and Goalkeeper of the Tournament at the 2015 World League Semifinals in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
“It will be a big honour to play in front of a home crowd in Toronto,” says Tupper. “We rarely get to play major events with a grandstand full of Canadians, and I’m sure that support will help drive our performance throughout the tournament.”
The men are coming off a strong showing in Argentina, where they finished fourth after defeating two teams – Spain (11th) and New Zealand (7th) – higher in the World Rankings.
The Men’s National Team, currently fifteenth in the field hockey world ranking, will enter the tournament as the second ranked team, behind only Argentina (World No.6). Canada and Argentina have met in the last ten Pan Am Games finals, with Argentina wining in 2011 and Canada in 2007.
The Canadian men begin play on July 14th at 7pm ET against Brazil. Click here for Canada’s tournament schedule.
Canada will field the largest team in its Pan American Games history with more than 700 athletes expected to be named to the Team at the Games in Toronto. With TORONTO 2015 providing a “home Games” experience, as well as a number of qualification opportunities for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, these Games will offer a tremendous experience for Canada’s high performance athletes.
ROSTER – MEN’S NATIONAL TEAM – 2015 PAN AMERICAN GAMES
|
Name |
Position |
Hometown |
Caps |
|
Adam Froese |
Defender |
Abbotsford, BC |
113 |
|
Ben Martin |
Midfielder |
Vancouver, BC |
77 |
|
Brenden Bissett |
Forward |
New Westminster, BC |
29 |
|
David Carter |
Goalkeeper |
Vancouver, BC |
111 |
|
David Jameson |
Midfielder |
Vancouver, BC |
225 |
|
Devohn Noronha-Teixeira |
Forward |
Mississauga, ON |
48 |
|
Gabriel Ho-Garcia |
Forward |
Burnaby, BC |
56 |
|
Gordon Johnston |
Defender |
Vancouver, BC |
67 |
|
Iain Smythe |
Forward |
Vancouver, BC |
104 |
|
Mark Pearson |
Midfielder |
Tsawwassen, BC |
176 |
|
Matthew Guest |
Forward |
Calgary, AB |
96 |
|
Matthew Sarmento |
Forward |
Vancouver, BC |
38 |
|
Paul Wharton |
Midfielder |
Vancouver, BC |
47 |
|
Scott Tupper* |
Defender |
Vancouver, BC |
209 |
|
Sukhi Panesar |
Midfielder |
Surrey, BC |
45 |
|
Taylor Curran |
Midfielder |
North Vancouver, BC |
91 |
*Captain
STAFF – MEN’S NATIONAL TEAM – 2015 PAN AMERICAN GAMES
Head Coach – Anthony Farry (Canberra, ACT, Australia)
Assistant Coach – Paul Bundy (Vancouver, BC)
Team Manager – Celia Plottel (Vancouver, BC)
Physiotherapist – Joshua Ferguson (Melbourne, Australia)
Performance Analyst – Paul Mounter (Vancouver, BC)
Team Doctor – Dr. Navin Prasad (Vancouver, BC)
Sports Psychologist – Dr. Bruce Pinel (Victoria, BC)
CANADIAN MEN’S TECHNICAL OFFICIALS – 2015 PAN AMERICAN GAMES
Assistant Umpire Manager – Chris Wilson
Judge – Ozias D’Souza
Technical Officer – Tony Stewart
Umpire – Gavin Caldecott
