Sports

Participants celebrating after the completion of the 1000 Mile Challenge. (Submitted: Rudi Fowler) A New Brunswick-based international snowmobile challenge looks to raise money for local summer camps. From Feb. 16 to Feb. 20, the sixth-annual 1000 Mile Challenge saw teams from across the country and the eastern United States travel across the province.  The event also has a satellite route in Michigan.   “It's not meant to be competitive at all. It's just a bunch of guys goin

Blue Jays players Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Kazuma Okamoto warm up before a spring training game in Florida. (Credit: Sportsnet) After their Game 7 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in last year’s World Series, the Toronto Blue Jays are back for their first week of spring training. This off-season, the Blue Jays didn’t slow down. They signed great pitchers to add depth to their bullpen, along with some new position players to fill the gap left by losing shortstop Bo Bichette to

F1 Drivers lined up during the 2025 Abu Dhabi pre-race parade. (Credit: Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images) With drivers from all around the world travelling year-round, Formula 1 (F1) not only brings fans high-adrenaline racing, but also strategic thinking and team unity.  The 2025 F1 season brought nothing but surprises race after race.  The start to the year was already uncertain as eight of 10 teams started 2025 with a different lineup than they did in 2024, with Lewis Hamilto

Tommies guard Evan Valanne attempts to block a shot in his own end against an opposing player. (Credit: STU Athletics) On Feb. 15, both St. Thomas University (STU) basketball teams closed out their season home schedule with defensive grit and a grad game crowd that was both loud and sentimental. Hosting the Holland College Hurricanes, both the men’s and women’s squads secured victories to solidify their spots at the top of the standings. The women’s team earned a 60-52 win to

Finland's Jusse Saros saves a shot from Sweden forward Joel Eriksson Ek (Credit: Geoff Burke/Reuters) One of the top rivalries in international hockey was renewed at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan, Italy. On Feb. 12, Finland took on Sweden in what was a feisty affair from beginning to end.        The match started in Finland’s favour. During the game, defenceman Nikolas Mantipalo put home a blast from the point. The shot bounced off the post and found room under the c

New Brunswick's Courtney Sarault celebrating her silver medal win in the women's short track 1000m event. (Credit: Darryl Dick/The Canadian Press) The last full week of competition at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics has been exciting for Team Canada. For the second week in a row, Canada is ranked 11th overall, with four gold, four silver and four bronze medals in six sports. Since last week, Canadian athletes have earned 12 more medals, with additions in hockey, skiin

Rikki Doak is one of the first New Brunswick speed skaters to make Team Canada since 2000. (Submitted: Rikki Doak) A Fredericton short-track speed skater will be competing at the sport’s highest level this week.  Rikki Doak, 27, will be racing for Team Canada in the women’s 3000m relay at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.  “I think it's kind of like surreal … to wear the maple leaf is just something I've always wanted to do and at the Olympic stage is even a bigger dea

Megan Oldham celebrates her bronze medal-winning performance after the women's freeski slopestyle event. (Credit: Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP Getty Images) It has been an eventful first week for Canadian athletes at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics. So far, Team Canada is ranked 11th overall, with one gold, three silver and five bronze medals in five sports. The majority of placements are in skiing and speed skating, while the rest were won in figure skating and snowboardin

Corey Kavanagh prepares his stream for the second game of the Fredericton vs. Miramichi playoff series. (Credit: Lucy Francis) Standing in the media box at the Grant Harvey Centre, Corey Kavanagh sets up his three cameras while sipping from a large cup of Tim Hortons coffee. Kavanagh is about to begin his livestream of the second game of the first-round playoff series between the Fredericton Express and the Miramichi Northmen.  Fans are already filling up the stands for the B

Tommies centre Raph Fiset has had 26 kills so far this season. (Submitted: Raph Fiset) Both St. Thomas University (STU) Tommies volleyball teams have a strong chance at winning the Atlantic championship on their home ground.  From Feb. 27 to March 1, STU will be hosting the 2026 Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association (ACAA) Volleyball Championship at the Lady Beaverbrook Gym for the first time since 2019. Raph Fiset, fourth-year men’s centre, believes that playing in their

Carlos Alcaraz holds the Norman Brooks Challenge Cup after his Australian Open men's singles win. (Credit: Getty Images) The tennis season kicked off under the Melbourne sun, with the Australian Open (AO) setting the stage for the first Grand Slam of the year. On Feb. 1, the 114th edition of the Australian Open held its final match between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic. This was a very unexpected but exciting final because it was the first time in the last two years witho

Ivar Stenberg celebrates a goal during the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship. (Credit: David Berding/Associated Free Press) Sweden is a country known for its rich hockey history.  Countless players from the Scandinavian nation have had long careers playing in the National Hockey League (NHL), many of whom were drafted within the top ten choices.   Rasmus Dahlin and Mats Sundin are the only two Swedes to go first overall. Sundin went first overall in 1989, while Dahlin was c

Members of the Fredericton Caps Para Hockey team. (Submitted: Fredericton Caps Para Hockey) Fredericton Caps Para Hockey team is open to all, regardless of age, gender, skill level and physical ability or disability. Ran by Shawn Dickerson and Shane Dunnett, the club aspires to make hockey as accessible and inclusive as possible. Para hockey, formerly known as sledge hockey, trades skates for double-bladed sledges to aid with mobility, aiding each player having two sticks for

The Tommies women's hockey team have won seven of their last ten games. (Credit: STU Athletics) The St. Thomas University (STU) women’s hockey team have clinched a playoff spot with under a month left in the regular season.  The Tommies are in third place overall in the Atlantic University Sport standings with a 15-7-0-2 record. After a shaky start to the season, Head Coach Peter Murphy said that a shootout win against St. Mary’s University in late October was the catalyst fo

Eight teams from across the country participated in the Rainbow Cup in Fredericton. (Submitted: Stephen Muzzerall) From Jan. 23 to Jan. 25, the Capital Winter Club (CWC) hosted their inaugural Rainbow Cup in Fredericton. The pride bonspiel aimed to create a welcoming environment for members of the LGBTQ+ community to enjoy curling. “Everybody should have a safe place to play and it's also to show that curling is for everyone,” said CWC past President and Marketing Committee C

Rick Westhead's new book, We Breed Lions, examines the systemic failings in Canada's favourite sport. (Credit: Liam Carleton/AQ) On Jan. 21, The Sports Network’s Senior Correspondent Rick Westhead delivered the St. Thomas University annual Endowed Chair in Criminology and Criminal Justice Lecture in the Kinsella Auditorium. Titled “From Hockey Rinks to Courtrooms: Hockey and the Public Interest,” the speech covered the culture of silence that exists when dealing with abuse an

Nathan MacKinnon, Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid during the 4 Nation Face-Off last February. (Credit: Christinne Muschi/Canadian Press) Both of Canada’s men’s and women’s hockey teams were announced earlier this month for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milano and Cortina, Italy.  This is the first time the National Hockey League players are allowed to compete since Sochi in 2014, also making it the first to feature players from the Professional Women’s Hockey League.  The

Kendra Woodland takes the ice for her first PWHL game with the Ottawa Charge. (Submitted: Kendra Woodland) University of New Brunswick (UNB) women’s hockey fans can see a recognizable name in the Ottawa Charge lineup. Former Reds player Kendra Woodland will be the team’s third-starting goalie and played her first game in the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) last November. “To play feels amazing, it feels almost indescribable,” Woodland said. “Obviously, ever since th

Tommies post Charlee Connors scored 13 points against the Seawolves on Jan. 10. (Credit: STU Athletics) Both St. Thomas University (STU) basketball teams played the University of New Brunswick Saint John Seawolves (UNBSJ) on Jan. 10, starting the second half of their seasons. The women’s Tommies were 6-1, while the men’s hadn’t lost a game yet this season.  Tommies fan Sheila Graham comes to games regularly. She said she’s happy to see the large and enthusiastic crowds at the

The Richard J. Currie Center during the UNB men's basketball game on Jan. 10 against Cape Breton. (Credit: Fran Harris/UNB Athletics) The sound of sneakers cut across the hardwood mixed with the steady rise of crowd noise inside the Richard J. Currie Center. On Jan. 9, the University of New Brunswick (UNB) men’s basketball team returned, marking the start of the winter semester. Each defensive stop drew claps and calls from the crowd, followed by a swell of noise as UNB pushe