With sports such as soccer, swimming and cross-country skiing continuing to build on impressive registration numbers, and hockey remaining one of the Canadian favorites, it doesn't leave much room for the remaining sports.

Add high school activities such as volleyball and basketball, and it can be downright difficult for other organizations to attract a healthy number of athletes. But a few of the groups in the Yukon seem to be finding a way as of late.

The popularity of speed skating over the past few years has been well-documented, and should only increase after the Canadian performance at the Olympics over the past two weeks. The Canada Post Age Class Short Track Championships, which will be held Mar. 31 to Apr. 2 in Whitehorse, will only further add fuel to the fire locally.

One of the more unlikely sports starting to emerge as a favourite in the territory is skipping. Led by dedicated instructors at Takhini, Jack Hulland and Holy Family elementary schools, young skippers turned up in droves at the fourth annual speed and power skipping championships, held this past weekend at Takhini 85 in total, competing in 15 events.

'This has been phenomenal,' said Teresa Fuller, one the coaches at Jack Hulland. 'It's been a great weekend.'

'The kids have a lot of fun,' added Janine Fedoriak, another coach from Jack Hulland. 'Even if they don't place, they get a ribbon, and that's so great for them.'

Jack Hulland started the school year with 101 kids signed up for skipping, and while that number has been whittled down to 75, it's still the largest group the school has had.

'We've had a third of the school join this year, which is amazing,' pointed out Fuller. 'This is the most we've ever had.

'We also have 12 to 16 parent helpers at each practice (three times a week) and we couldn't run the program without the parental support.'

Sandy Lansfield, the coach at Holy Family, is also pleased with the numbers for skipping this year. While only five athletes from the school attended the championships Friday, there are 25 skippers who practice on a regular basis. And Takhini, lead by Judy Ratcliffe, has always had a strong program.

They attended the national championships for the first time last summer, where they finished fourth overall, just one point out of the bronze medal position.

The coaches chalked the new-found popularity of the sport up to several factors. Just about anybody can do it, it's a physical activity that you can do on your own, at anytime, and it's quite creative with all the new tricks.

'More than the competitive side, it also really appeals to the creative person,' agreed Lansfield.

You don't necessarily have to be the most athletic person, added Ratcliffe, but just by practice and perseverance, you can become a valuable team member.

Skipping is also a valuable asset as a training tool for other sports, the coaches pointed out. Fedoriak said she's had many parents tell her that their son or daughter's skipping practice has really helped with their skating, because of the endurance factor.

With the popularity of skipping on the rise, Ratcliffe hopes to see a citywide skipping club in Whitehorse some day soon. The Takhini Heartbeaters are currently the only team which travels to Outside competitions, such as nationals and the provincial championships.

Fuller said the students at Jack Hulland would love to make trips as well, but the organizers and coaches with the club, such as herself, just don't have the time to make it happen.

'This is all volunteer and (going to nationals) is just such a huge undertaking. To put in that much work, when I already work a full-time job ... it's just too much.'

In an earlier interview, Ratcliffe acknowledged that while the idea of a citywide club is great, new people would have to step up and organize it, since she and the others are just about burnt out.

Results of the skipping championships were unavailable by press time.