Local Strathmore man Devin Olson was one of 43 participants in this year's Children's Hockey Marathon in Chestermere.
The biennial game ran from April 5th to 16th and raised $1.5 million during the event.
The players put on their skates to raise money and awareness for the Alberta Children's Hospital Foundation and attempt to break the world record for consecutive hours played in hockey.
Olson explained that this was his first time attending an event since watching the game unfold from the stands two years ago.
“I took my two daughters there and they put on some really great fun events there with the children's hospital. It was a big part of my life when I was a kid. “When a friend of mine asked me if I'd like to come in, I immediately said yes,” he said. “Before, I was a little bit nervous. You start hearing a lot of stories about the effects and different injuries and different things that come out of it. As the match got closer, it was always on my mind, but I didn't know what caused it. I knew what it was and stayed focused on it.”
Olson explained that players tend to get an average of 16 hours of sleep in about 11.5 days. This equates to approximately 140 hours of time spent on the ice per person.
When asked how one should physically prepare in advance to take part in such a feat, Olson jokingly replied simply, “No way.”
Olson added that competitors must remain inside the arena throughout the attempt, under close supervision by Guinness World Records officials. He recalled that players often lost track of what day it was because he only had a 12-hour clock.
“I kind of stayed on schedule, and by the time the game was over, I took an ice bath and got ready. I probably slept for about an hour, then got up and…stretched.” It was really good, and I went to the nurse. “Please have the blister sealed with tape,” he said. “I didn't get much sleep, and when I did sleep for that amount of time, I was usually so tired that I was awake a lot.''
The donation window remained open until the end of April, but Olson did not release updated numbers before publication.
He himself was able to raise about $12,000 of the donations, which went towards the final total.
John Watson, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Strathmore Times
