2 athletes from P.E.I. inch closer to their Olympic dreams after national talent search

Two athletes from Prince Edward Island are one step closer to the Olympics after being selected for funding and accelerated development through the Canadian Olympic Committee’s official talent search program, RBC Training Ground.

Carmen Seaman, a 21-year-old former UPEI track athlete from Emyvale, and Jenna Larter, a 23-year-old long-track speed skater from Brookfield, were among just 35 athletes from across the country chosen to receive funding after competing in the program’s national final in Vancouver.

More than 2,500 athletes aged 14 to 25 took part in RBC Training Ground testing events across Canada this year.

From that group, only 100 were invited to the national final.

From track to bobsleigh

For Seaman, the opportunity opens the door to a new Olympic pathway in bobsleigh, a sport she is only just beginning to pursue.

“I’m actually brand new at it, so coming from the East Coast, you can only train in the West Coast," she told CBC’s Mainstreet P.E.I. "This funding is going to mean a lot to me, and it’s going to help me with this journey."

RBC Training Ground identified Seaman as a potential bobsleigh athlete based on a range of performance indicators like speed and strength. Her strong testing results matched what the sport needs, despite the fact that she has never competed on an actual bobsleigh track.

So far, her experience has been limited to training at an ice house facility in Calgary, where athletes practice the explosive start that is critical in bobsleigh.

Seaman said the transition doesn’t intimidate her.

“I’m kind of an adrenaline junkie, so I think it’s going to be a lot of fun,” she said.  “I think at the beginning… it's definitely going to be frustrating, and… I’m going to have to get over some hurdles and stuff, but I think that's all part of the learning process.”

She’s now setting her sights on the 2030 Winter Olympics in the French Alps.

“My dream was never really to go to the Olympics. As an athlete, I always want to be the best athlete I can, while I can,” she said. “So it was kind of always like a background goal. But ultimately, I was just kind of focused on being the best I could be.”

She’s pursuing that goal with support from some of P.E.I.’s most accomplished Olympians.

Seaman said she connected with two-time Olympic gold medallist Heather Moyse over the summer, and has been training at a local gym with Dave (Eli) MacEachern, who won gold in two-man bobsleigh for Canada in 1998 — the very first Olympic gold for a P.E.I. athlete.

“I got all the bobsled support on the Island,” she said. “Hopefully I can follow in their footsteps.”

Seaman is now part of the national athlete pool and expects to travel to training camps to learn more about the sport in the coming months.

Speed skater eyes Olympic trials

For Larter, the funding comes at a critical time in an already strong season.

The long-track speed skater, who trains at the Olympic Oval while attending the University of Calgary, is preparing for Olympic trials in early January.

“This is definitely really high up for me,” Larter said. “Being able to get not only the financial support, but the recognition and all the resources that RBC brings and... apply that to my speed skating in my athletic career — it's super important.”

She said the program is even more competitive than many realize, noting that it ultimately came down to just three speed skaters.

Despite the stakes, Larter said she didn’t feel overwhelmed during the testing process.

“I do feel pressure, but I’m so confident in my abilities at this point. I train every day, and I know that I’m strong,” she said. “I'm going out there and I'm just doing my thing. It's like riding a bike at this point.”

The funding will help offset the high cost of speed skating, including equipment, she said.

“My blades are $1,000 alone, and I go through those... more than I go through running shoes. So it's definitely a very expensive sport,” Larter said.

“I can dedicate all my time to training rather than having to work and do other stuff to cover me financially…. And then being an RBC future Olympian, just getting that title and that recognition opens up so many doors.”

The 2025 season has been a strong one for Larter at both the national and international levels. She has the potential to make Canada’s Olympic team in the 500-metre event and is now training hard for the trials in January.

“There’s about four of us who are going for these three spots,” she said. “It will be a tough battle. And no matter what, we're sending an amazing team.”

A comeback story

Larter’s rise in long-track speed skating hasn’t come easily.

About four years ago, she tore her anterior cruciate ligament, and was told by a doctor that she might never skate again — or at least never skate as fast.

“That was something very hard to hear,” she said. “I’ve always been a very determined person. I knew I had a lot more to give in sport, and I really wanted to show it.”

No matter where you're from… if you work and put the grind in, you know, anything is possible.- Carmen Seaman

After struggling to regain her form in short-track, she made the switch to long-track. And it paid off.

“I just shot straight up the rankings and I became, like, a real threat in long-track very quickly,” Larter said.

“It was a big change for me, and I'm very excited that I can compete at this international level.”

While both Larter and Seaman attended Bluefield High School in P.E.I., they only really connected at the national final in Vancouver.

“We're such a small island,” Seaman said. “But it just kind of shows, like, no matter where you're from… if you work and put the grind in, you know, anything is possible.”