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Georgetown shut out in bid to be Hockeyville EAMONN MAHER Staff Writer The judges on the new CBC reality-TV program Kraft Hockeyville 2006 didn't feel Georgetown's bid was able to make the cut as the show debuted Wednesday night. More than 450 communities across Canada submitted bids in the hopes of winning the on-line, vote-driven contest that will play out over the next couple of months. The number of contenders was whittled down to 50 at the conclusion of Wednesday evening's live broadcast from Kingston, Ont., which featured celebrities such as Hockey Night In Canada's Don Cherry and Ron MacLean. Despite early optimism by local organizers about the support for their bid, Georgetown was not named to the Central Region's list of advancing towns and cities. Ten communities in each of the five regions across the nation qualified for the next round of the contest, which will air April 12 and 19. "I think that most of the bids were from the Central Region, which made the competition tough for us, and up north they may have only had 15 bids for 10 spots," said Georgetown organizer Geraldine Hard-castle. was ringed around the boards of Memorial Arena. A CBC camera crew spent several hours filming footage for the Kraft Hockeyville show in Georgetown in early March at a giant road hockey game on the main street of downtown, buoying the confidence of organizers. A photo of that game also appeared in last Saturday's Toronto Star. One of the requirements for the 50 remaining bids is to produce a two-minute video displaying the enthusiasm and spirit of their respective hockey communities, which is due next week. Georgetown's presentation was to have featured the story of the Stone family and the support they received while their young daughter was battling cancer. "I just wish we had the opportunity to submit our video because I think people would have voted for what we were going to put in it," added Hardcastle. The community that wins the contest will get to host an NHL pre-season game this fall and be awarded $60,000 for arena and equipment upgrades. To view the list of remaining communities in contention for Hockeyville 2006 visit website www.cbchockeyville.ca (Eamonn Maher can be reached at emaher@independentfreepress.com) Sisters Katie and Lexi Allinott (left) joined buddy Max Kossel in the Raider cheering section at a recent Ontario Minor Hockey Association playoff game to throw their support behind the Georgetown atom AAs and the town's drive to become Hockeyville 2006 in Canada. But producers of the CBC program didn't include Georgetown amongst the final 50 communities in the running for the title. Photo by Eamonn Maher "It's kind of disappointing because we had great support. I think every kid in Georgetown signed our banner. I think we would (bid) again if we had the chance. We'll just have to watch the shows coming up to see what works and what doesn't." Georgetown's bid was spearheaded by the local youth hockey organizations and the Hockey Heritage Committee, and included a banner with thousands of signatures that Georgetown Black Ice pair chase world title in Prague Two Georgetown residents-- Ashleigh McIndoe and Kelly Longworth-- are in Prague, Czech Republic this week for the World Synchronized Skating Championships as part of the Black Ice senior team from the Upper Canada Skating Club in North York. The Black Ice won the national title earlier this month at the BMO Canadian Synchronized Championships in Hamilton and will be one of 21 teams vying for the International Skating Union crown in Prague. There are two Canadian entries, with the Black Ice performing its long program set to a theme from the Batman movies. Each team has 24 members, with 20 performing in technically elaborate routines. The 22-year-old McIndoe, a third-year nursing student at Humber College, is in her 14th year synchronized skating, while this is the first season at the senior level for the 18- Andrews in record form at indoor York meet Four athletes from Acton District High School competed at the eighthannual Nike Adams Invitational indoor track & field meet at York University last week and star shotputter Kaitlyn Andrews was in a record-breaking mood again. The 17-year-old Andrews, who is headed for Stephen F. Austin State University on scholarship next year, set a new meet record at York with a toss of 13.85 metres in the senior girls' event to pick up the gold medal. Teammate Daniel Kearns finished seventh in the senior boys' shot put at 11.6 metres. Cameron Shortt of the Bearcats placed seventh in the midget boys' 1,000 metres in a time of three minutes, 5.92 seconds, while Matt Bigg was 17th in the junior boys' 1,000m in 3:10.55. A North York-based women's synchronized skating team that includes two Georgetown residents will be vying for gold at this weekend's world championships in the Czech Republic. Ashleigh McIndoe (left) and Kelly Longworth are members of the Black Ice recent national championship performance in Hamilton and both have been involved with the sport for several years. Photo by Eamonn Maher year-old Longworth, a Georgetown District High School graduate who enjoyed success for the past three years with the junior Black Ice teams.