Kelly Bechard

Kelly Bechard (born January 28, 1978 in Sedley, Saskatchewan) is a women's ice hockey player. Bechard competed for Canada at the World Championships in 2000 and 2001. [ Canadian Gold 2002, p. 114, Andrew Podnieks, Fenn Publishing Company Ltd, Bolton, Ontario, Canada, 2002 ] In 2002, she competed for Canada at the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. She was also a provincial doubles badminton champion in High School.

In the gold medal game, Bechard was called for a tripping penalty late in the third period, and this led to Karen Bye of the United States scoring a goal. [ Canadian Gold 2002, p. 114, Andrew Podnieks, Fenn Publishing Company Ltd, Bolton, Ontario, Canada, 2002 ] The goal made the score 3-2 in Canada’s favour, as Bechard was part of the first Canadian Women's Hockey Gold Medal hockey team in Olympic history.

After the Olympics, Bechard returned to the University of Calgary, where she played for the university’s hockey team, and pursued a degree in management. [ Canadian Gold 2002, p. 114, Andrew Podnieks, Fenn Publishing Company Ltd, Bolton, Ontario, Canada, 2002 ] In 1998, she was named to the CIAU’s First All-Star team and was presented the Award of Merit. [ Canadian Gold 2002, p. 114, Andrew Podnieks, Fenn Publishing Company Ltd, Bolton, Ontario, Canada, 2002 ] She also played for Calgary’s Oval X-Treme and the Brampton Thunder.

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