Prince George, B.C. – Provincial MLAs and 2015 Canada Winter Games organizers gathered on the steps of the Legislative Buildings Wednesday to celebrate the one year countdown to the games in Prince George, which officially is today.

Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development Coralee Oakes announced the official Canada Games Roly McLenahan flame and torch relay will begin in Victoria in front of the Parliament Buildings on Oct. 17th of this year.  The torch will visit several communities on the way to Prince George and northern British Columbia. It will be the first time the Canada Winter Games flame has been in BC.  The games run Feb 13th to Mar 1st, 2015.

Shirley Bond, Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training and MLA for Prince George-Valemount says “there is still a lot of work to do and as we celebrate the one year mark we want to encourage people to sign up to volunteer, be a sponsor, get involved.”  Prince George-Mackenzie MLA Mike Morris says “the Canada Winter Games are a major step in the development of BC’s high performance athletes, many of whom will go on to international competitions including the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”

2015 Canada Winter Games Host Society board chair Anthony Everett says “the Canada Games will showcase Canada’s next champions and inspire dreams across the country and within our province.  Todasy we are celebrating an important milestone in our journey to the Games.”

There will be a plaque dedication to the volunteers working on the games at one this afternoon outside Canada Games House on Quebec Street.