Capital EX

July 8, 2010

Winter Olympics’ Gold Medalist is Northlands Honourary Grand Marshal

EDMONTON – We watched him go through the entire Olympic tournament without losing a single game. We watched as he had the gold medal placed around his neck, signifying to the entire world that he is the best curling skip in the world. And he lives right here, in Edmonton! Northlands is extremely proud to announce that Kevin Martin is Northlands Grand Marshal for the Capital EX Parade and the Honda Indy Edmonton.

“Kevin’s accomplishments as an Olympic champion, as a world champion, as a four-time Brier champ and a 10-time Alberta champion make him the obvious choice as our honourary grand marshal for the kick off to the summer’s two big events – the Capital EX Parade and the Honda Indy Edmonton,” Northlands President Ken Knowles said. “We want to celebrate the accomplishments of our sporting heroes, in particular a local northern Alberta gold medalist, and Kevin certainly fits the bill.”

The road to gold for Kevin started back in April of 2006 when he formed a new team comprised of John Morris at third, Marc Kennedy at second and Ben Hebert at lead. Focused on the goal of bringing home gold at this year’s Winter Olympics, the team set out to win, and keep on winning.

In the 2007-08 season, Team Martin won the Brier becoming just the 14th team to win a Canadian men’s championship with an undefeated record. The team then traveled to the World Curling Championships in North Dakota and won it all with a 12 and 2 record.

Next stop? The 2009 Olympic trials at Rexall Place where they wound up in the final against Team Glenn Howard. Team Martin prevailed and the rest, as they say, is curling history- Vancouver, the Winter Olympics and a win over Norway to grab gold.

“2010’s been an amazing year for me personally, and for the rest of the team,” said Kevin. “To be asked by Northlands to serve as Honourary Grand Marshal for both the Capital EX Parade and the Honda Indy Edmonton is a huge privilege. I’m really looking forward to riding along the parade route on July 22, seeing thousands and thousands of smiling faces – especially the kids – and then, three days later, to be able to tell the world’s best and fastest open-wheel race drivers to start their engines is going to be a real thrill. I’m truly honoured and I can hardly wait!”

Kevin will lead the 2010 Capital EX Parade through the streets of downtown Edmonton on Thursday, July 22 at 10 a.m., and will kick off the Honda Indy Edmonton at City Centre Airport on Sunday, July 25 at 3 p.m.

Other Information

Broadcast
Edmonton’s biggest community celebration – the Capital EX Parade – kicks off in the heart of downtown on Thursday, July 22 at 10 a.m. SHAW TV will carry the parade live for those unable to attend and will re-broadcast the parade on Thursday, July 22 at 7 p.m., Saturday July 24 at 10 a.m. and Sunday July 25, 7 p.m.

Pre-Parade
Special pre-parade strolling entertainment will amuse the youngsters who are eagerly awaiting the main event.

Northlands rocks Edmonton with 2,500 events each year that attract over 4 million visitors to Alberta’s Capital City. Think, Canadian Finals Rodeo, Farmfair International, Capital EX, Honda Indy Edmonton, the best of horse racing, headliner concerts, international events and all the trade shows you can handle. Visit www.northlands.com to find out more.