RICHMOND, BC (January 26, 2012) – Sport BC is bringing the Community Sport Hero Awards, presented by Teck, to the Corporation of Delta on March 21, 2012. The awards will honour long-standing community volunteers who have made significant contributions to sport. Nominations are now being accepted through sportbc.com until Friday, February 24, 2012.

“Volunteers are what fuel the development and sustainability of community sport withinBritish Columbia,” saidSportBC’s Event Manager, Carey Summerfelt. “These awards are a rare and meaningful opportunity to acknowledge individuals who have made a significant and continued contribution to sport within their community.”

To be eligible, nominees for the Community Sport Hero Awards must meet the following criteria:

• Be an individual from the local community who makes a voluntary contribution to sport through coaching, officiating, boards, administration, special events, etc;
• Be an individual (not an organization or foundation); and
• Has been, or continues to be, a dedicated sport volunteer for a minimum of eight years.

 This ceremony marks the second stop of 2012 for the traveling awards show, presented this year by Teck. It will be the first visit to Delta for Sport BC’s Community Sport Hero Awards since the program began in 2001.

About the Community Sport Hero Awards presented by Teck:
The Community Sport Hero Awards presented by Teck honours outstanding sport volunteers in communities across British Columbia. The awards recognize coaches, officials, mentors and administrators who have dedicated themselves to grow and develop amateur sport at the community level. For more information on the Community Sport Hero Awards presented by Teck, please visit SportBC.com.

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 Who do you think is BC’s best athlete?

Sport BC partners with the Province of British Columbia to promote people’s choice award for top BC amateur or professional athlete

Richmond, BC (January 24, 2012) – Sport BC, in partnership with the Province of British Columbia, encourages all British Columbians to have their say in naming the top BC athlete of 2011 by voting online at SportBC.com. The athlete who receives the highest number of votes will be honoured with the Best of BC award for his or her achievements at Sport BC’s 46^th Annual Athlete of the Year Awards presented by TELUS.

Voters will be asked to choose the athlete they feel best represented BC nationally or internationally in either a professional or amateur sport from the following finalists:

• Dylan Armstrong (Kamloops,  BC) – Athletics, 2011 Pan American Games Gold Medalist
• Andrew Harris (Nanaimo, BC) – Football, 99^th Grey Cup – Most Outstanding Canadian
• Paul McCallum (Surrey, BC) – Football, Record most consecutive field goals in the CFL
• Mark Recchi (Kamloops, BC) – Ice Hockey, Stanley Cup winning season
• Christine Sinclair (Burnaby, BC) – Soccer, 2011 Pan American Games Gold Medalist & flag bearer

“British Columbians are exceptionally proud of our athletes and the sport system that supports them as they train, develop and compete,” said Hon. Ida Chong, Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development. “These five athletes have made tremendous achievements in their sport, and truly represent the best of BC’s collective spirit – excellence, fortitude and strength.”

“2011 was an outstanding year for BC’s athletes, as evident by the calibre of candidates put forward for this award,” said Carey Summerfelt, Event Manager for Sport BC. “These five athletes are powerhouses, not only as competitors in their respective sports, but also in their representation of our province on the world stage.”

The online vote, along with athlete profiles, can be found at SportBC.com/bestofbc. Voting closes on February 27, 2012 and the people’s choice for Best of BC will be revealed the following day. Previous winners of the Best of BC Award include Lauren Woolstencroft (Para Alpine Ski, 2010), Justin Morneau (Baseball, 2008) and Steve Nash (Basketball, 2005 & 2006).

Sport BC’s Athlete of the Year Awards is Canada’s longest running sport recognition event, celebrating BC’s finest athletes. Tickets for this year’s event, taking place March 8 at the River Rock Show Theatre in Richmond BC, are still available and can be purchased now at SportBC.com.

About Sport BC’s Athlete of the Year Awards:

Sport BC’s Athlete of the Year Awards is the longest standing sport recognition event in the country. Awards in 17 different categories are given each year to athletes, coaches, and officials on their performance and contribution to sport in the province. The awards play a valuable role in nurturing athletic success and recognizing some of BC’s growing talents. For a list of previous award winners and additional information on the 46th Annual Athlete of the Year Awards presented by TELUS, please visit SportBC.com.

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For more information, please contact:
Jessica Doherty
Manager, Communications
T: 604.333.3422
E: Jessica.doherty@sportbc.com

BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum to Induct 9 Individuals and 1 Team

Vancouver, B.C. (January 17, 2012) – The British Columbia Sports Hall of Fame to induct nine individuals and one team for induction as part of its 2012 class.

“The 2012 Class of Inductees to be honoured by the BC Sports Hall of Fame is exceptional,” said Marion Lay, chair of the Selection Committee, “Our selection committee did an outstanding job of sifting through over 120 nominations. The Class of 2012 truly reflects the best of the best.”

Induction recognizes excellence in sport, contribution to sport and the impact on sport in British Columbia, in the categories of athlete, team, builder, media, pioneer, and W.A.C. Bennett.  A selection committee, comprised of members of the BC Sports Hall of Fame Board of Trustees, the media and the sport community made the final decision.

Honoured Member and Chair of the BC Sports Hall of Fame, Gareth Rees, announced the 2012 induction class: five athletes have been honoured with selection for  induction, Michael Edgson (para-swimming), Howard Kelsey (basketball), Ashleigh McIvor (ski cross), Bernard Buster Moberg (softball), and Andrea Neil (soccer). In the builder category, David Esworthy (equestrian) and Don Martin (sailing) have been selected for induction. Selected for induction in the pioneer category is Barbara Howard (track and field) and in the W.A.C. Bennett category May Brown has been selected for induction. The 1945-46 Vancouver Canucks Hockey Team have been selected for induction in the team category (ice hockey).

The 2012 Inductees will be formally inducted to the BC Sports Hall of Fame at the 44th Annual Banquet of Champions at the Vancouver Convention Centre on September 20, 2012.

ATHLETE CATEGORY

MICHAEL EDGSON – Para-Swimming
Nearly twenty years since his retirement, Nanaimo’s Michael Edgson remains one of the most decorated Paralympic athletes in Canadian history.  Competing in the B3 category for athletes with visual acuity lower than 20/200, over his twelve-year career (1981-92) Edgson represented Canada at three Paralympic Games (1984, 1988, 1992) and compiled a remarkable twenty-two Paralympic medals in para-swimming, including eighteen gold.  Combined with world championship competitions, Edgson won thirty-two individual medals and set more than twenty world records.  After winning a remarkable nine Paralympic medals and setting four world records, Edgson was selected as Canada’s flag bearer at the Closing Ceremonies of the 1988 Seoul Paralympics.  In 1992, he finished as a finalist with Mark Tewksbury and Mark McKoy for the Norton H. Crowe Award for Canada’s Male Athlete of the Year.

HOWARD KELSEY – Basketball
One of the greatest basketball players ever to represent Canada internationally, Vancouver’s Howard Kelsey was a standout on the men’s national team for eleven years (1977-88) appearing in over 400 games at a time when Canada was consistently ranked in the world’s top-six.  The two-time Canadian Olympian (1980, 1984) stands as one of only two native British Columbian basketball players to represent Canada in two Olympic Games.  Among Canada’s best results while Kelsey was a key starter included a fourth-place finish at the 1984 Olympic Games, gold at 1978 Commonwealth Basketball Championships, gold at 1983 FISU World University Games, and Canada’s first-ever defeat of the US in a major international competition at the 1981 FISU Games.  An outstanding high school player at Point Grey, Kelsey retains the highest career scoring average in BC history at 34.5 points per game.

ASHLEIGH McIVOR – Ski Cross
As an English student at UBC in 2003, Whistler’s Ashleigh McIvor wrote an essay that she later sent to the IOC arguing that ski cross should be added as an Olympic sport.

By the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, McIvor’s wish came true.  Ranked in the top-three in world ski cross for the past three years, McIvor quickly erased any doubt the pressure of competing in the Olympics at home would be an issue.  Breezing through qualifying, McIvor shot out to a quick lead in the snowy final on Cypress Mountain, holding on to make history as ski cross’ first-ever women’s Olympic champion.   Prior to this, McIvor won the 2009 FIS world championship and a silver medal at the 2010 Winter X Games.  To date, McIvor has accumulated ten World Cup podium finishes.   She is currently rehabilitating a knee injury suffered during the 2010-11 World Cup season with the intention to defend her Olympic crown at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi.

BERNARD BUSTER MOBERG – Softball
The most dominant softball pitcher during the greatest era of BC’s top league, North Vancouver’s Bernard ‘Buster’ Moberg’s 100 mile-per-hour fastball was feared by many batters during his fourteen-year career (1958-71) on South Hill Senior A men’s pitching mounds.  Moberg rewrote the South Hill record book during that time recording the most-ever wins (111), most innings pitched (1099), most strikeouts (1598, for an amazing average of 1.5 per inning), most no-hitters (11), most one-hitters (14), and most shutouts (33).  His dominance at times was frightening.  Over a stretch of four seasons, Moberg won twenty-eight consecutive league games and on several occasions struck out more than twenty batters in a single game.  Moberg pitched for six BC championship teams at the world championships (1958, 1959, 1960, 1963, 1964, 1965) and four times led his Vancouver teams to the Canadian championship title.

ANDREA NEIL – Soccer
One of Canada’s greatest ever female soccer players, Vancouver’s Andrea Neil remains one of the most respected players ever to don the red-and-white for Canada on the pitch.  Making her debut on the Canadian national team at age 19 in 1991, Neil remained a fixture of the program until her retirement in 2007, accumulating 132 caps-at one time more than any other Canadian player, male or female.  She also scored twenty-four goals in that time, ranking her fifth all-time.  Neil led Canada to four Women’s World Cup tournaments (1995, 1999, 2003, 2007) including Canada’s best-ever finish at a World Cup tournament when the Canadian women finished fourth in 2003.  Neil also spent six seasons (2001-06) playing club soccer with the Vancouver Breakers/Whitecaps establishing club records for games played (69), minutes played (6066), and assists (22).  While club captain, she led the Whitecaps to two W-League championships in 2004 and 2006. Andrea is the first women inducted in the athlete category in the sport of soccer.

BUILDER CATEGORY

DAVID ESWORTHY – Equestrian
A long-time resident of Vancouver, who has called Langley home for over a decade, David Esworthy has dedicated his life to equestrian sport in British Columbia, Canada, and internationally through the FEI (Federation Equestrian Internationale).  Esworthy has been described as a true horseman, in that he has served in virtually every role possible in his sport: as a rider, judge, steward, horseshow organizer, horseshow chair, and industry advisor.  Beginning as a young cowboy wrangling horses on a ranch to his current status as an Equine Canada and FEI steward, judge, and clinician, Esworthy has experienced the sport at all levels over a fifty-plus-year career.  Always working to give equestrian greater recognition and credibility, Esworthy served as president of Horse Council BC, Equine Canada, and assisted in the preparations for equestrian events at the 1976 and 1984 Olympic Games.  Perhaps Esworthy’s biggest impact is in the countless individuals he has mentored in BC, Canada, and beyond, who themselves have gone on to become accomplished athletes, officials, and administrators.

DON MARTIN – Sailing
A fixture in the BC sailing community for forty years, Vancouver’s Don Martin has been involved in the sport as a boat designer, boat builder, sailor, coach, mentor, judge, and official.  Incorporated in 1975, Martin Yachts Ltd. has been responsible for the design and construction of over 600 composite craft up to 27 meters.  Martin’s designs include the Martin 242, which has become one of the most popular one design keel boat classes in the Pacific Northwest, and the popular Martin 16, designed specifically for people with a disability to sail independently.  Martin actually donated all design rights of the Martin 16 to the Disabled Sailing Association of BC.  A co-founder of the Easter Seals Regatta in 1991, since its inception the event has raised over $1 million for children with disabilities.  As a sailor, Martin’s resume includes numerous Canadian national titles, several North American championship victories, and participation in several Admirals’ Cup and America’s Cup efforts.  An active international judge certified by the International Sailing Federation, Martin has volunteered at many of the world’s top competitions.  Martin served as the team leader for both the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic sailing teams at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and Paralympics and more recently as coach of the 2004 and 2008 Canadian Paralympic sailing teams competing in Athens and Beijing respectively.

TEAM CATEGORY

1945-46 VANCOUVER CANUCKS HOCKEY TEAM
Formed in the summer of 1945, the inaugural edition of the Vancouver Canucks proved remarkably successful winning the 1945-46 Pacific Coast Hockey League Northern Division with a 37-21 record.  Scoring an average of nearly five-and-a-half goals a game and having four of the top-ten scoring players in the PCHL put the Canucks in good stead going into the playoffs.  The Canucks’ Andy Clovechok led the league with 56 goals and 103 points.  The Canucks defeated the PCHL’s Southern Division winner Hollywood Wolves 4-1 in the best-of-seven final series to be crowned Pacific Coast Hockey League champions.  From there, the Canucks challenged the Boston Olympics, champions of the Eastern Hockey League, for the United States Amateur Championship.  In an epic seven-game series played out of the Vancouver Forum, the Canucks battled back from a 3-1 deficit to defeat the star-laden Olympics 4-3 and become the first and only Canadian team in history to win both the PCHL championship and United States amateur championship.

Team Members:

PIONEER CATEGORY

BARBARA HOWARD – Track and Field
During the late 1930s, Vancouver’s Barbara Howard was one of the fastest female sprinters in the British Empire and looked poised to make her mark on the larger Olympic stage.  If not for the outbreak of World War II, she may well have.  In 1938, at the age of seventeen, Howard ran the 100-yards in a scorching time of 11.2 seconds at the Western Canada British Empire Games trials, bettering the British Empire Games record of the time by one-tenth of a second.  The result earned Howard selection to represent Canada at the 1938 British Empire Games in Sydney, Australia.  After the month-long trip by boat, Howard, who had never left Vancouver before, became a minor celebrity Down Under, black athletes being a rarity at the time in Australia.  In fact,

Howard is believed to be the first black woman athlete to represent Canada in international competition.  In Sydney, Howard finished sixth in the 100-yard dash and helped two Canadian relay teams to silver and bronze medals.  Determined to run at the 1940 Olympics in Tokyo, war intervened and the Games were cancelled.  Her sprinting career was over by the time the Olympics resumed a decade later.  Howard later became a Vancouver school teacher and today at the age of 91 remains active in the Burnaby community.

W.A.C. BENNETT CATEGORY

MAY BROWN
As the first-ever female W.A.C. Bennett Award recipient, Vancouver’s May Brown must be considered among the most highly principled individuals in the volunteer world of sport and recreation this province has ever known.   Brown volunteered countless hours to sports organizations and causes over a sixty-year career beginning in 1947 as a UBC field hockey coach.  In the 1950s, Brown was critical to the development of synchronized swimming in BC.  Twice she was elected to serve on the Vancouver Park Board in 1972 and 1974-serving as chair during her latter term-and was responsible for the creation of many new sports facilities and parks.   From 1969-74, Brown served on the National Advisory Council on Fitness and Amateur Sport establishing the Canada Games, creating Sport Canada, and approving grants for national sports governing bodies.  Brown was a member of the BC Advisory Council for Sport and Recreation from 1987-92, the 1994 Commonwealth Games Society from 1989-94, and the sport sub-committee that worked for six months to encourage Vancouverites to vote “Yes” in the City of Vancouver referendum on the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games bid.

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About the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
The BC Sports Hall of Fame has re-opened at Gate “A” of BC Place with a new Vancouver 2010 Gallery and a new Hall of Champions and is open daily from 10am-5pm. The BC Sports Hall of Fame, a non-profit society, is the ‘go to’ organization for BC sport heritage. For over 40 years, we have honoured BC’s teams, builders, athletes, pioneers, and media through the annual induction ceremony the Banquet of Champions. To date 325 individuals and 54 teams have been inducted onto the BC Sports Hall of Fame. The collection of the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum includes over 25,000 artifacts and 20,000 archival documents representing 100 years of sporting accomplishments in British Columbia. In everything it does, the BC Sports Hall of Fame honours, educates, and inspires through the Hero In You© educational program.

Media contacts:
Allison Mailer
Director of Operations
BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
Direct               604-687-5520
Cellular             778-839-8576

Honouring the Past.   Inspiring the Future

Finalists announced for Sport BC’s 46th Annual Athlete of the Year Awards presented by TELUS
Winners for performances in 2011 to be honoured at ceremony on March 8, 2012

Richmond, BC (January 10, 2012) – Sport BC announced today the outstanding amateur athletes, coaches and officials named as finalists for 14 of the 17 award categories to be presented at the upcoming Sport BC Athlete of the Year Awards, presented by TELUS.

The awards ceremony and gala dinner, set for March 8, 2012 at the River Rock Show Theatre in Richmond BC, recognizes BC’s best amateur athletes, coaches, and officials for outstanding performances in their sport over the 2011 season. Each finalist was nominated by their Provincial Sport Organization, high school or university, and voted for by a selection committee of BC sportswriters, broadcasters, athletes and amateur sport experts.

“We received a number of very strong nominations this year from our Provincial Sport Organizations,” said Sport BC’s Event Manager, Carey Summerfelt. “Sport BC’s Athlete of the Year Awards provides a great opportunity to give these talented athletes, coaches and officials the recognition they deserve.”

Other awards presented at the ceremony include Best of BC, a people’s choice award presented to an outstanding professional or amateur BC athlete. Submit your vote starting January 23 for the Best of BC award winner and reserve tickets for the dinner and award ceremony at SportBC.com.

Sport BC’s 46th Annual Athlete of the Year Award Finalists:

Athlete with a Disability, presented by the Province of British Columbia
Braedon Dolfo (Langley, BC) – BC Blind Sports Athletics
David Scott Patterson (Vancouver, BC) – Swimming
Michelle Stilwell (Nanoose, BC) – Wheelchair Athletics

Coach of the Year, presented by Canadian Sport Centre Pacific
Anatoliy Bondarchuk (Kamloops, BC) – Athletics
Peter Lawless (Victoria, BC) – Wheelchair Athletics/ Handcycling
Bruce Wilson (Victoria, BC) – Soccer

College Athlete of the Year
Li (Melody) Liang (Burnaby, BC) – Badminton, Douglas College
William Quiring (Abbotsford, BC) – Volleyball, Columbia Bible College
Preston Tucker (Vernon, BC) – Volleyball, UBC Okanagan

High School Female Athlete of the Year, presented by Scotiabank
Georgia Ellenwood (Langley, BC) – Athletics, Langley Secondary School
Alexandra McCawley (North Vancouver, BC) – Field Hockey/Basketball/Rugby, Carson Graham Secondary
Emily Oxland (North Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball, Handsworth Secondary

High School Male Athlete of the Year, presented by The Province
Sunny Dhinsa (Abbotsford, BC) – Wrestling, WJ Mouat Secondary
Adam Keenan (Victoria, BC) – Athletics, Lambrick Park Secondary
Reiner Theil (West Vancouver, BC) – Basketball/Football, Vancouver College

Junior Female Athlete of the Year
Shirley Fu (Burnaby, BC) – Table Tennis
Jisoo Keel (Coquitlam, BC) – Golf
Emily Schmidt (Victoria, BC) – Diving

Junior Male Athlete of the Year, presented by Triple O’s
Curtis Lazar (Vernon, BC) – Hockey
Kevin Kwon (Pitt Meadows, BC) – Golf
Filip Peliwo (North Vancouver, BC) – Tennis

Master Athlete of the Year
Christa Bortignon (West Vancouver, BC) – Athletics
Margaret Hudson (Port Alberni, BC) – Badminton
Stephanie Keifer (Vancouver, BC) – Triathlon

Official of the Year, presented by MyBackCheck.com
Jim Mitchell (Abbotsford, BC) – Wrestling
Terry Mosdell (Surrey, BC) – Lacrosse
Wayne Van Osterhout (Victoria, BC) – Rowing

Senior Female Athlete of the Year
Paula Findlay (Victoria, BC) – Triathlon
Amanda Gerhart (Vancouver, BC) – Wrestling
Rebecca Marino (Vancouver, BC) – Tennis

Senior Male Athlete of the Year, presented by TELUS
Dylan Armstrong (Kamloops, BC) – Athletics – Shot Put
Ryan Cochrane (Victoria, BC) – Swimming
Vasek Pospisil (Vancouver, BC) – Tennis

Team of the Year, presented by the TEAM 1040
Surrey United (Surrey, BC) – Soccer
TWU Men’s Volleyball (Langley, BC) – Volleyball
UBC Women’s Volleyball (Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball

University Athlete of the Year, presented by the Vancouver Sun
Helen Crofts (West Vancouver, BC) – Athletics, Simon Fraser University
Jacob Doerksen (Langley, BC) – Basketball, Trinity Western University
Shanice Marcelle (Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball, University of British Columbia

About Sport BC’s Athlete of the Year Awards:
Sport BC’s Athlete of the Year Awards is the longest standing sport recognition event in the country. Awards in 17 different categories are given each year to athletes, coaches, and officials on their performance and contribution to sport in the province. The awards play a valuable role in nurturing athletic success and recognizing some of BC’s growing talents. For a list of previous award winners and additional information on the 46th Annual Athlete of the Year Awards presented by TELUS, please visit SportBC.com.

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For more information, please contact:
Jessica Doherty
Manager, Communications
Sport BC
E: jessica.doherty@sportbc.com
T: 604.333.3422

The Canadian side will face three academy sides including Welbeck Form Military College (February 26th), Leicester Tigers Academy (February 29th) and Northampton Saints Academy (March 3rd).

Eight of the 27 players were members of British Columbia’s U18 national championship side that downed Ontario for the 2011 title this past August.

“It’s gratifying to see players coming through our Pathway programs to reach this level,” said BC Provincial Coach and Development Manager Dave Brown. “Jorden Best for example, has played BC U14 right through to U18 as well as Canada U17 and the Youth Commonwealth Games Sevens. Most of the players have also been involved with the BC Academy with the exception of [Burnaby's] Fuku Vikilani who came into the Provincial program at the U18 level.”

The national selection is the first for Jordan Harvey who co-captained the BC U18 team at nationals in Calgary this year. Harvey carried his form into the fall club season, where he guided Capilano RFC to the 2011 U19 provincial club championship.

“It is really pleasing to see Jordan get the credit that he deserves,” Brown added. “From Playing prop on our U16 pogram, Jordan has developed into an excellent back row player who combines a solid skill set with a great work ethic and tremendous on-field leadership and maturity.”

Brown also acknowledged the work of local rugby programs in developing the players who will represent their country in the coming months.

“Of course we can not fail to mention the work done by both club and school coaches in developing these players to their current level,” Brown added.

Canada U19 touring roster
(Name/ Club/ Province)
*Paul Ahn (UBC Thunderbirds / British Columbia)
*Jorden Best (Abbotsford RFC / British Columbia)
Josh Boyles (Ontario)
Mac Chown (Ontario)
Joe Franey (Saskatchewan)
Eric Garnham (Ontario)
*Fergus Hall (Castaway Wanderers RFC / British Columbia)
Lucas Hammond (Ontario)
*Jordan Harvey (Capilano RFC / British Columbia)
Sawyer Hearn (Ontario)
Matt Heaton (Quebec)
Daniel Lantos (Newfoundland)
Jonny LaPlaca (Ontario)
*Alex Mascott (UBC Thunderbirds/ British Columbia)
Kerry McElhaney (Alberta)
David Merithew (Ontario)
*Liam Murphy-Burke (UBC Thunderbirds/ British Columbia)
Jon Nadler (Quebec)
Luca Pattellia (Ontario)
Darcy Ralph (Alberta)
D.J. Sears (Ontario)
Scott Sopel (Ontario)
Monty Tichowsky (Saskatchewan)
*Reid Tucker (Capilano RFC/ British Columbia)
*Fuku Vikilani (Burnaby Lake Rugby Club/ British Columbia)
Jacob Webster (Ontario)
Matt Whittle (Newfoundland)
*denotes 2011 national champions with BC’s U18 team

Non-Traveling Reserves
Chris Gladney (Ontario)
*Connor Hamilton (Vancouver Rowing Club / British Columbia)
*Connor Hunter (Abbotsford RFC / British Columbia)
Curtis Lauzon (Ontario)
Kainoa Lloyd (Ontario)
Mike Santangalli (Ontario)
*Charlie Thorpe (UBC Thunderbirds / British Columbia)
*Quinton Willms (Bayside Sharks RFC / British Columbia)
*denotes 2011 national champions with BC’s U18 team

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Sport BC to recognize sport heroes in Trail
Sport BC now accepting nominations for the Community Sport Hero Awards presented by Teck

RICHMOND, BC (December 14, 2011) – Sport BC will bring the Community Sport Hero Awards, presented by Teck, to the City of Trail on February 8, 2012. The awards will honour long-standing community volunteers who have made significant contributions to sport. Nominations are now being accepted through sportbc.com until Friday, January 13, 2012.

“Volunteers are what fuel the development and sustainability of community sport within British Columbia,” said Sport BC’s Event Manager, Carey Summerfelt. “These awards are a rare and meaningful opportunity to acknowledge individuals who have made a significant and continued contribution to sport within their community.”

To be eligible, nominees for the Community Sport Hero Awards must meet the following criteria:

• Be an individual from the local community who makes a voluntary contribution to sport through coaching, officiating, boards, administration, special events, etc;
• Be an individual (not an organization or foundation); and
• Has been, or continues to be, a dedicated sport volunteer for a minimum of eight years.

This ceremony marks the first stop of 2012 for the traveling awards show, presented this year by Teck. It will be the fourth visit to Trail for Sport BC’s Community Sport Hero Awards since the program began in 2001.

About the Community Sport Hero Awards presented by Teck:
The Community Sport Hero Awards presented by Teck honours outstanding sport volunteers in communities across British Columbia. The awards recognize coaches, officials, mentors and administrators who have dedicated themselves to grow and develop amateur sport at the community level. For more information on the Community Sport Hero Awards presented by Teck, please visit SportBC.com.

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Media Contact:
Jessica Doherty
Manager, Communications
Sport BC
E: Jessica.doherty@sportbc.com
T: 604.333.3422

Toronto, ON (December 7, 2011) – Tennis Canada announced Wednesday that Rebecca Marino (Vancouver) has been named 2011 Most Outstanding Female Player. The 20-year-old’s impressive season featured many career milestones, including reaching her first WTA final, advancing to the third round at the French Open, and hitting a high of No. 38 on the WTA rankings in July.