Keenan Brown (Archery, Winnipeg) and Christian Higham (Women’s Hockey, Winnipeg) have been named Team Manitoba’s flag bearer and lantern bearer respectively for the opening ceremonies of the 2015 Canada Winter Games in Prince George, BC. Brown and Higham will lead the herd into the CN Centre in the evening on Friday February 13, 2015.

“We never have a shortage of qualified candidates,” said Team Manitoba Chef de Mission Ted Bigelow on the honour that goes to a week one participant in recognition of their dedication, achievements and contributions in their sport, leadership and spirit. “It’s difficult to pick just two athletes but Keenan and Christian have proven performances both on and off the field of play.”

Brown has represented Canada at World Youth Championships since 2008, winning gold at the 2011 World Championships in Junior Men’s Team Compound. He captured a bronze medal in Individual Compound at the 2011 Canada Winter Games.

Higham is one of four members of Team Manitoba who won silver at the 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women’s World Championship. With an academic average of 87% she has committed to play for the Big Red at Cornell University. Her sister Natasha competed in Diving at the 2009 and 2013 Canada Summer Games.

As flag and lantern bearers, Brown and Higham will lead Team Manitoba in the parade of athletes as part of the Canada Games opening ceremonies which will be televised nationally by TSN2 (21:00 CST).

Also announced today was this year’s Honourary Captain, Kaitlyn Lawes. Lawes is a past Canada Games athlete who competed for Manitoba in curling at the 2003 Canada Winter Games. She won back-to-back Canadian junior titles as a skip in 2008 and 2009. Lawes won an Olympic gold medal for Canada as the third on Jennifer Jones’ team in Sochi last year. Her team posted a perfect 11-0 record with Lawes as the top third in the tournament.

“The Canada Games is a competition that I hold dear to my heart as the games were a huge milestone in my young sporting career that propelled me to chase my dreams of competing at the Winter Olympics,” said Lawes. “As our athletes prepare for a journey of a lifetime, I hope to inspire, motivate and encourage the team to trust in their preparation, have fun and enjoy the process, and leave it all out on the field of play! We as Manitobans are already proud of their accomplishments and look forward to celebrating their many successes to come! It is an absolute privilege to be this year’s Honourary Captain of Team Manitoba!”

Other Team Manitoba alumni who have been Honourary Captains for previous Games include Janine Hanson, Cindy Klassen, Jennifer Botterill, Cam Barker, Sami Jo Small, and Jay Lyon.