Penticton’s Kober identified as potential future Olympian in freestyle skiing
21-year-old coming off strong season on Nor-Am Cup
Penticton’s rising freestyle skiing star and Olympic hopeful Jordan Kober has joined one of the most prestigious athletic clubs in Canada.
Kober, 21, was named this week as one of 55 young Canadian athletes from both summer and winter sports selected by Petro-Canada and the COC to receive Fuelling Athletes and Coaching Excellence (FACE) Program grant.
These athletes and their coaches are awarded a $10,000 FACE grant to help them with their journey ($5,000 directly to the athlete and $5,000 to their coach).
FACE grants are often used for training, equipment and travel expenses.
Past recipients include Olympic and Paralympic medallists Patrick Chan, Hayley Wickenheiser, Rosie MacLennan, Mark Tewksbury, Kaitlyn Lawes, Marielle Thompson, Mac Marcoux and Nicholas Gill.
Kober comes from a freestyle skiing family. His father, Rob, has been the head coach of the Canadian Mogul Team for the last 15 years. His older brother, Josh, formerly competed on the Nor-Am circuit. And his younger sister, Chloe, currently competes provincially for BC Freestyle.
Last season Kober had three top-10 finishes on the Nor-Am Cup circuit.
Kober is coached by Guillaume Turgeon.
Developed by Petro-Canada, the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) and Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC), and facilitated by their National Sport partners, the FACE Program supports upand-coming athletes when they need it most: when they are striving to represent Canada at the Olympic or Paralympic Games, but don’t yet qualify for government funding.
Recipients are selected based on potential. The funding is courtesy of Petro Canada.
Since 1988, FACE grants have supported more than 3,000 athletes and coaches by providing more than $11 million in financial support.
FACE athletes and coaches are also invited to an annual summit to learn from Olympians and Paralympians, and receive advice on media training, public speaking, and personal-brand development.