HWS News
1 November 2023 • Athletics Therien '26 Represents Team USA in World Ringette Championship By Paige Cooke
Laura Therien ’26, an English, and writing and rhetoric double major, is representing Team USA in the World Ringette Championship in Calgary this week.
At the suggestion of a family friend, Laura Therien ’27 started playing ringette at 4 years old. This week, she is competing on the world stage playing defense on Team USA.
Invented in 1963 in North Bay, Ontario, ringette is an ice sport created to engage more Canadian women. Although it looks like ice hockey, players use sticks with special tips to shoot a rubber ring.
“My favorite ‘technical’ part about ringette is the speed of the game,” shares Therien, who is from Montreal, Quebec. “Ringette is actually the fastest sport on ice, and skating is definitely one of my favorite parts of being on ice. The other aspect which makes the game so important to me are the lifelong relationships I’ve developed with teammates and coaches.”
A member of the HWS sailing team, Therien says the two sports are similar in the trust you need with your teammates.
“In sailing, especially in team racing, you need to trust that your teammates know and will stick to a play. Similarly, in ringette you trust your teammates to follow through with the breakouts or offensive zone plays,” she says.
In preparation for the world championship, Therien says she had not practiced in person with the team since August. They prepared using virtual training sessions and attended training camp in Calgary last weekend before the championship.
“It’s a little surreal. I’m really excited to be able to play at such a high level,” says Therien, about representing Team USA. “A big part of being on Team USA Ringette is growing the sport in the States. There aren’t any ringette leagues in the U.S., so our team is mostly made up of American citizens who grew up playing ringette in Canada.”
