Alex Clarke, left, and Cianna Lieffers, right, have gone through the Saskatchewan officiating program together and are ultimately bound for the Olympics. (Submitted photo/Cianna Lieffers)

‘It’s a dream come true’: Two Sask. female hockey officials heading to the 2022 Olympic Winter Games

After years of continued hard work and passion for the game, a pair of Saskatchewan female hockey officials will be heading to the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing.

By Ian Gustafson | PA NOW

Cianna Lieffers (BScKin'17, BEd'18) and Alex Clarke will have their dreams become reality when they head to China at the end of the month to officiate the women’s hockey tournament. The news, which was announced on Friday, will make them the only two out of five selected from across Canada to be from Saskatchewan.

Clarke and Lieffers know each other well after going through the Saskatchewan officiating program and officiating games together.

Lieffers said, in an interview with PA NOW, it’s a huge accomplishment for her and Clarke to be the only Saskatchewan-based referees to be going to the Olympics.

“It just shows how much growth we’ve had over the last couple of years to now be able to produce two officials going to the Winter Olympics and that we’re both on the female side is just something that we are so proud of, and I think it’s a great reflection of our program back home,” she explained.

Lieffers also had high praise for Clarke saying she’s a great person to have in your corner and awesome to be around both on and off the ice.


“She is such a determined and hardworking person, and this shows in her performance on the ice…I know when she steps on the ice, she’s going to do her job to the best of her ability every single time,” Lieffers explained. “I know she’s always going to have my back and I always look forward to working with her that familiarity I know is going to be really nice when we have a game together in Beijing.”

Clarke echoed many of Lieffers’ sentiments and said she’s much more excited to go knowing she gets to share the experience with Lieffers than to go alone.

“To be able to share that opportunity with somebody I know closely and have seen the effort they’ve put in as well,” Clarke said. “I would say she’s the happy-go-lucky, calm, cool, collected person and official. I don’t think she can get too frazzled as a person or an official and tends to kind of keep her calm regardless of the situation that comes her way.”

Read the full story at https://panow.com.