A Powell River teen has been chosen to join Team Canada’s first junior roller derby team.
Emily Lister, 16, nicknamed Selena Go-Mad on the roller rink, is the daughter of Matt and Nicki Lister, involved supporters of Powell River’s recreational roller derby POW! Town team.
Emily is one of 30 skaters chosen in four cross-country tryout sessions for only 20 spots on the team’s roster.
“Emily’s awesome, but you don’t know what’s out there,” said Nicki. “She definitely can hold her own, but living where we live it’s a little harder to get extra training.”
Team Canada Junior Roller Derby represents Canada in international events.
“Now the work is on,” said Nicki. “Emily has to move up to be guaranteed in the top 20.”
That means specialized training sessions to bring the teen’s play to top condition, in addition to the Team Canada training, for which she will have to travel to either Vancouver or Edmonton, she added.
Emily has been skating with the POW! Town team since the beginning of the Powell River league, said CaroleAnn Leishman, league founder. “We’re very proud of her.”
Since the early 2000s the sport has garnered increased interest in Canada, United Kingdom and United States with more junior roller derby programs opening and international tournaments being organized. There are leagues popping up in “just about every country you can imagine,” added Nicki. This year will mark the second time that an international tournament for adult players has been held with the Roller Derby World Cup in Dallas, Texas. The first world cup was hosted by Toronto in 2011.
“The team to beat is always Team USA,” she said. “Canada usually comes second.”
Team USA’s juniors mostly have backgrounds in hockey and speed skating who have transitioned into roller derby. By contrast, Nicki’s daughter has a ballet background.
If Emily makes it onto the opening roster, she will be playing at the World Junior Roller Derby Championship July 8 to 12 in Seattle, Washington.
