> > Date: Wed, 15 Nov 2000 12:55:30 -0500 > > From: "Angela Strang" > > To: "Andria Hunter" > > Subject: Hi there! > > > > Hi! > > > > My name is Angela Strang and I am in the Journalism program at holland > > College, PEI. > > I was wondering if you would be intersted in talking to me regarding your > > career as a female athlete and if you knew how I would contact Haley > > Wickenheiser and Lesley Reddon. > > > > Thanks! > > > > P.S. Great Site!! > Date: Wed, 10 Jan 2001 09:08:47 -0500 > From: "Angela Strang" > To: "Andria Hunter" > Subject: Re: Hi there! > > Hey, Andria! > > I really appreciate you taking the time to do this. The questions follow, > the story won't make it for this paper, so take all the time you need! > > 1. How old were you when you began your hockey career? I first started skating when I was 4 years old. I figure skated from when I was 6 until I was 8. At 8 years old, I started playing hockey in a boy's league. There was one girls' team in the league, but it was already full so I played on a boy's team my first year. After my first year, I was able to join a team in a girls' house league, and have been able to find girls' teams ever since. > 2. What got you involved in the sport? I'm from the town of Peterborough, Ontario, where hockey is really popular. Everyone except the cats and dogs play hockey! :-) I think I got interested in hockey from the kids at school. We always tossed hockey cards during recess, and we played hockey outside on the pavement during recess as well. My dad played, so I used to go to watch his oldtimer hockey games. I was really taken up with it and soon asked my parents if they would let me play. Skating figures just wasn't for me. I thought hockey would be a lot more fun and exciting. I used to come over to my mom along the boards when we had to skate figures in our figure skating class, asking her if I could play hockey next year! :-) > 3. What players did you look up to? At the time when I started playing hockey, there were no famous female hockey players to look up to, so the NHL players were my role models. I liked Guy Lafleur when I was a kid, and Wayne Gretzky as I got a little older. Once women's hockey started to take off, I looked up to Angela James. I was really excited to eventually become her teammate for Team Canada! > 4. Were you always involved in different sports? Yes, I was always really active in lots of different sports. In my last year of high school, I played on 7 different school teams (don't ask me how I managed to find time for my school work!). I played field hockey, cross country running, ice hockey, volley ball, badminton, soccer, and track. I also played softball, soccer, and ice hockey on club teams. > 5. What was it like to be offered a scholarship to UNH? I was really honoured to be offered a scholarship. I was playing in the Brampton tournament when Russell McCurdy, the coach from UNH at the time, approached me about a scholarship. I could hardly believe it was true. At that time there was no national team, so my dream while I was growing up had been to play for a university. > 6. How did it feel to be chosen to play for your country? I was estatic. It was an undescribable feeling of happiness! I had worked so hard to get ready for the tryouts, and when I learned that I had made the team, I was on cloud nine. It took me some time to come back to reality! I still remember the first time I got to put on the Canadian jersey, and the feeling I had when they raised the Canadian flag and played the anthem after we had won our first game. > 7. Do you feel the female game has progressed alot from when you began to > play? (If so, in what ways?) The female game has definitely processed in many ways since when I first started playing. There are a lot more females who play the game now. This means that the age range on each team isn't so big, which allows girls to play against others their own age. There is also a World Championship and the Olympics for women now. Women's hockey is played in a lot more countries now. Lots of countries have a national championship, and many different levels of leagues. And most importantly the sport is much more excepted for females than it used to be. When you run into someone on the streets and tell them that you play women's hockey, they are no longer shocked, like they used to be 20 years ago! > 8. What do you think of the Canada/US rivalry? I think the rivalry is great. I think close competition is always a lot of fun. Both countries keep pushing each other to be at their best. Either country could win any game, so it means that both countries have be well-prepared and play their best whenever they meet. If either country slacks off, it surely means a win for the other country! > 9. Will we see you back on the ice in the Canada jersey? I haven't tried out for the National Team since I retired in 1994. Unlike Lemieux, I'm not planning a comeback! :-) The reason why I retired was due to a chronic groin injury. It still bothers me to this day. It's okay as long as I get a lot of rest between games, but unfortunately that isn't always possible with the National team. That doesn't mean that I've hung up the blades entirely. I still continue to compete at the top level within Canada. I play for the Mississauga Ice Bears of the National Women's Hockey League. Our team has two exhibition games against Team USA in Lake Placid this weekend. > Thanks again! You're welcome! Best of luck with your article. Take care, Andria A.L. Hunter andria@cs.toronto.edu Department of Computer Science Office: SF2302D University of Toronto (416) 978-7797