With the 2016 Alberta Summer Games wrapped up in Leduc, it’s officially Grande Prairie’s turn to play host. The games will be coming to the City and County in 2018, and 14 people from the committee spent the weekend in Leduc to see the act they’re going to follow. One thing Chair Lionel Robins appreciated was seeing services like medical, communications and transportation all run out of the same place.
“There was one central hub running the games instead of hosting them all around town. We were already leaning that way. It definitely showed us how efficient that could be.”
The team was also impressed by how well both the Town and County of Leduc worked together, and hope the same can be done up here.
The 14 of them left more determined to focus their event around the youth competing. Media coordinator Raphael Bohlmann says in the long run, that’s who the games are all about.
“We need to keep that in mind. How do we make it the best possible games for the people who it is designed for. Clearly we want a good games for spectators and the families but it is geared towards the kids first.”
Bohlmann encourages anyone with doubts about the City and County hosting the event in the current economy to volunteer or attend to be a part of the experience.