Awards recognize Aboriginal athletes

There was a handful of Aboriginal connections when it came time to hand out some hardware at a Saskatchewan sports awards banquet.

The Saskatchewan Sports Awards, organized by Sask. Sport Inc. which is the federation of provincial sport governing bodies, was held on Apr. 7 in Saskatoon.
The guest speaker at the banquet, Ted Nolan, an Ojibway from Ontario’s Garden River First Nation, is a former National Hockey League player and coach. Also, Colette Bourgonje, a Métis wheelchair athlete from Prince Albert, was one of the three finalists for the female athlete of the year award.

And the Saskatchewan boys’ squad that captured the gold medal at the 2010 National Aboriginal Hockey Championships is a finalist in the team of the year category. Pat Rediger, the communications co-ordinator for Sask. Sports Inc., said the federation has been placing a greater emphasis recently on Aboriginal sport development.

The organization has a different guest speaker each year for its banquet.

“It seemed appropriate for somebody like Ted to come and deliver his message this year,” Rediger said.

Nolan, one of 12 children in his family, grew up on a First Nation near Sault Ste. Marie. Nolan eventually made it to the NHL and played with the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins in the ’80s. He later coached in the NHL with the Hartford Whalers, Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders. Nolan captured the Jack Adams Award, annually presented to the NHL’s best coach, for his work with the Sabres during the 1996-97 season.

Nolan is still involved with the game. He’s the vice-president of hockey operations for the Rochester Americans, members of the American Hockey League.
Meanwhile, Bourgonje certainly had a memorable 2010. And it’s little surprise she was a finalist for the female athlete of the year accolade considering her accomplishments this past year.

For starters, Bourgonje, a member of the Saskatchewan Wheelchair Sports Association, won a pair of medals at the Paralympic Games staged in British Columbia last winter. She captured a silver medal in her 10-kilometre sit-ski event. And she earned a bronze medal in her 5-kilometre race.

Afterwards, at the closing ceremonies, Bourgonje, 48, was presented with the Whang Dai Adversity Award for exemplifying the spirit of the Paralympic Games. She also competed at the world championships in France this past year. She returned home with three medals—one gold, one silver, one bronze—from that competition.

Bourgonje also participated in several other countries in cross-country sit-ski events during the 2009-10 season. She won seven races, placed second in two others and also had a third-place finish.

The two other finalists for the top female athlete award were Colleen Sostorics and Kaylyn Kyle.

Sostorics was a member of the Canadian women’s hockey squad that captured the gold medal at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Kyle is a member of the national women’s soccer team, which earned a berth in this year’s female World Cup.

As for the Saskatchewan-based Aboriginal boys’ hockey team, it won the gold medal at its national tournament held in Ottawa this past May. The event featured 10 clubs in the boys’ division.

The other finalists in the team of the year category were the University of Saskatchewan Huskies men’s basketball club and the Saskatoon Hilltops, a football squad.
The Huskies won the national university crown while the Hilltops captured the Canadian Junior Football League championship.