Local speed skater proves no matter the circumstance, anything is possible

December 8, 2022 · 0 Comments

By Robert Belardi

Guess you never know until you try it. And when you do, sometimes it just sticks.

When Brampton native Renée Steenge was growing up, her parents always enrolled her and her brother in sport. Nothing completely drew their interest. But that all changed, when speed skating came into the picture.

“It was just by chance that I joined speed skating. Growing up, my parents would put my brother and I in a bunch of sports with the city: swimming, dance, basketball, etc. We tried hockey and figure skating, but never really took to it,” Steenge wrote to The Citizen.

“Then we tried speed skating one time and it stuck. Once the results started to come, I continued and enjoyed the sport even more.”

In the beginning, Steenge recalled she wasn’t very good. As a matter of fact, she was disqualified in a regional competition in Brampton. She wasn’t properly dressed, without knee pads on. It was a moment she will never forget because she never lost confidence in the sport.

At 13, Steenge enjoyed the sport that much more, following a training camp in Cambridge, ON. Little did she know that this was the start of something special.

While learning and continuing to fortify her strengths and her rhythm, Steenge had always done so while wearing rental skates. It wasn’t until after she graduated from Herb Campbell Public School in Caledon that she finally put on the first pair of custom skates in her life.

“I was really excited when I got my first pair of skates. The first time I tried them on, they fit perfectly, but they hurt a lot (which is completely normal). I would get bruises around my ankles and had to untie my skates multiple times in practice to relieve the pain,” Steenge said.

“I am not sure if I got used to them, or if my feet just went numb, but eventually they felt good and offered better support in the corners. It feels like a rite of passage of sorts to advance from club skates to custom boots. It means you got to the next level. Similar to when you first get a set of tips for your gloves.”

In high school at David Suzuki Secondary School in Brampton, she went on to be a four-time athlete of the year and graduated with honours every year. Academics, were incredibly important to her. She had the perfect formula to succeed and when she turned 17, that was when she had that feeling she could go somewhere with speed skating.

“I didn’t realize that I could start doing well until I was 17 and I first moved to Montreal to train at the RTC. When I was there, I really excelled physically with the group and started improving rapidly.”

She was accepted into McGill University’s Civil Engineering program and now, at the age of 24, she is a few semesters away from graduating – with intentions of becoming geo-technical engineering. She loves the foundations of skyscrapers and homes.

And all of this is in the running, as Steenge is in Almaty, Kazakhstan, getting set to compete for Team Canada at the ISU Short Track.

Collaboration for Steenge has been key. She keeps up in touch with her classmates and makes sure that she manages her time well when she needs to complete school work.

“The night before, I will plan certain blocks in my day. When I have two hours, for example, between training, I will make sure those two hours are deliberately and intentionally focused only on school.”

Steenge has been fortunate to have been to many places in the world for speed skating. This is her third consecutive competition with Canada, having previously competed in Montreal and Salt Lake City respectively.

“I have been to Salt Lake City, Utah many times; Shanghai, China; and then Kazakhstan. In terms of improving, I am learning to read races better. Every country has a slightly different style of skating, and international races have a different flow and intensity than national competitions,” Steenge explained.

“The more races I do at the higher level, the better I get at feeling and seeing the races, i.e.: knowing when to punch to the front or when to be patient. I am still learning, but I am getting better.”

The competition in Kazakhstan, will begin tomorrow from December 9-11 and then again from December 16-18.

You can watch coverage of the event on CBCsports.ca and CBC Gem should you have a subscription.