Finalists announced for Sport Newfoundland and Labrador Annual Awards

Trevor Paine, chairman of the Sport Newfoundland and Labrador Annual Awards Committee, today announced the finalists in seven categories for the 2005 annual awards.

The finalists for the Ferd Hayward Senior Male Athlete of the Year include curler Brad Gushue, rugby player Peter Densmore and softball player Ward Gosse.

The finalists for the Elizabeth Swan Senior Female of the Year include basketball player Jenine Brown, Julia Howard of athletics and rower Ashley Peach.

The finalists for the Joe Mullins Junior Male Athlete of the Year include Adam Paul of rugby, figure skater Joey Russell and wrestler Wesley Saunders.

The finalists for the Margaret Davis Junior Female Athlete of the Year include rugby player Johanna Clift, swimmer Katarina Roxon and Sarah Mary Brown of snowshoeing and athletics.

The finalists for the John Drinkwater Coach of the Year include Pat Parfrey of rugby, Paul Power of rowing and Basil Kavanagh of basketball.

The finalists for the Graham Snow Executive of the Year include Brian Murphy of soccer, Bev Power of skating and Andrew Orsborn of rowing.

The finalists for the Edward Brown Team of the Year include the Brad Gushue Curling Team, the Rock Rugby Team and the 2005 Canada Summer Games Rowing Team.

Sport Newfoundland and Labrador President Tom Godden says, "We are extremely pleased with both the number and quality of the nominations received this year. This is a true testament of the commitment we see from those involved in sport in our province."

There have been a number of outstanding athletic achievements in Newfoundland and Labrador this year. Paine said, "2005 has been a memorable year for our province in all areas of sport and recreation. Sport Newfoundland and Labrador is honoured and pleased to announce the three finalists in each of the award categories for this year�s event."

The Sport Newfoundland and Labrador Annual Awards Dinner will take place on Saturday, March 25, at the Royal Canadian Legion in Pleasantville (St. John�s) beginning at 7:00 p.m. Individuals interested in purchasing tickets for this year�s event are asked to contact the Sport Newfoundland and Labrador office either by telephone (709)576-4932 or e-mail sportnl@sportnf.com

The Senior Male Athlete of the Year finalists include curler Brad Gushue of St. John�s with his 2005 season highlighted by capturing the 2005 Canadian Olympic Trials title, earning him a trip to the Winter Olympics in Turino, Italy.

Rugby player Peter Densmore of St. John�s captained the Rock rugby team who captured the Rugby Canada Super League National Championship in 2005. Densmore was also played for the Canadian Senior Men�s Team in the Churchill Cup.

Joining Gushue and Densmore in the Male Athlete of the Year Category is softball player Ward Gosse of Torbay. Ward was a member of the silver medal winning team at the 2005 Canadian Senior Men�s Fast Pitch Championships where he was named all star pitcher at the event.

The Senior Female Athlete of the Year finalists include basketball player Jenine Brown of St. Bride�s. In 2005 Jenine became MUN�s all time leading scorer with a total of 2,041 points in her career at MUN. She was also the AUS leading scorer, was named AUS MVP and AUS play-off MVP.

Rower Ashley Peach of St. John�s captured a silver medal in the women�s pair event at the 2005 Canada Summer Games in Regina, Saskatchewan. For her efforts throughout 2005 Ashley was invited to try out for 2006 Canadian National Rowing Team and was named the 2005 Provincial Rowing Female Athlete of the Year.

Julia Howard from St. John�s of athletics rounds out the Senior Female Athlete of the Year Category. In 2005, Julia represented Canada at the World Student Games in Izmir, Turkey. She was the winner of three NAIA events and was a member of a record breaking NAIA indoor medley-relay team.

The Junior Male Athlete of the Year finalists for 2005 include rugby player Adam Paul of St. John�s. Adam captained the 2005 Canada Games Team as well as the Provincial Under 18 team winning a silver medal at the Eastern Canadian Championships. Paul also made his senior debut with Rock in several Rugby Canada Super League games, eventually winning the national title. Throughout 2005 Adam also attended various national team camps culminating with his selection to the National Under-19 team.

Figure Skater Joey Russell of St. John�s was the 2005 Skate Canada Newfoundland and Labrador Junior Men�s Champion and was a member of the National Junior Team. Russell won a bronze medal at the 2005 BMO Eastern Challenge, was a gold medalist in three national events and two international events in 2005.

Wesley Saunders from Carbonear of wrestling captured a bronze medal at the 2005 Canada Summer Games in Regina, Saskatchewan and was Atlantic champion in the 105 kg class. At the provincial level, Saunders is the provincial champion in both, the 95 kg class and the 105 kg class as well as the winner of five gold medals at regional events for 2005.

The Junior Female Athlete of the Year finalists for 2005 include rugby player Johanna Clift of St. John�s. Johanna played in two international matches against the USA, she attended two under-19 national camps leading to a spot on the Under-19 National Team. At the provincial level, Clift captained the under-19 teams at the Eastern Canadian and National Championships.

Swimmer Katarina Roxon of Stephenville captured a silver medal in the 100m breaststroke at the 2005 Canada Summer Games in Regina, Saskatchewan to highlight her season. Katarina also won a bronze medal in the 200m breaststroke at the 2005 USA Paralympic swimming championships and is ranked 10th in the top world rankings in the 100m breaststroke.

Sarah Mary Brown from Gander of snowshoeing and athletics won a gold medal in the 4 x 100m relay at the 2005 Special Olympics World Winter Games in Nagano, Japan becoming one of the youngest Canadians to win gold at a world games. Provincially, Sarah captured three gold medals and one bronze in athletics at the 2005 Special Olympics Newfoundland and Labrador Summer Games.

The Coach of the Year" finalists for 2005 include rugby coach Pat Parfrey of St. John�s who led the Rock to a national championship in the Rugby Canada Super League. Parfrey was also the head coach of the 2005 Canada Summer Games Rugby Team, the Provincial Under-18 team who won a silver medal at the Eastern Canadian Championships and was co-coach of the Provincial Under-21 team winning a gold medal at the Eastern Canadian Championships. Pat was also instrumental in the development of five senior national men�s team representatives from this province.

Rowing coach Paul Power of St. John�s coached the 2005 Canada Summer Games Rowing Team to a provincial best, two medals � silver in the women�s PAIR and bronze in the men�s EIGHT. Power was named the 2005 Rowing Coach of the Year for Atlantic Canada and received a national rowing award for outstanding coaching at the 2005 Canada Summer Games.

Basketball coach Basil Kavanagh from St. John�s coached the women�s team at the 2005 Canada Summer Games where they upset heavily favoured teams from Quebec and Manitoba. Kavanagh also coached the Provincial Under-19 Team to a gold medal at the Great Canadian Shootout in Edmonton.

The Executive of the Year finalists include Brian Murphy of soccer from St. John�s. Brian is the treasurer of the St. John�s Senior Soccer Association. He led a host committee team in hosting the Provincial Challenge Cup and the Jubilee Shield, he also had a hand in the hosting of the international matches between Germany and Canada. Murphy is also the driving force behind the construction of the new turf stadium at King George V Park.

Bev Power from Labrador City of figure skating had a busy year as she sat on numerous committees including the MasterCard Skate Canada International Steering Committee, Skate Canada Nominating Committee, Skate Canada Executive Committee, 2005 Women in Sport Committee and she chaired the Skate Canada Sections Committee. As well Power server on the 2005 Canada Summer Games mission staff along with many other responsibilities at the provincial and local level.

Andrew Orsborn from St. John�s of rowing was the manager of the 2005 Canada Summer Games Rowing Team as well as various crews at the Atlantic Championships. Provincially, Andrew managed teams at the Royal St. John�s Regatta, organized Provincial Time Trails and helped in fundraising efforts allowing for the purchase of a new racing shell.

The Team of the Year finalists include the Rock Rugby Team who captured the 2005 Rugby Canada Super League National Championship. On their way to winning that title, the team was winner of the Rugby Canada Super League Eastern Division title with a record of 6-0.

The Brad Gushue Curling Team were winners of the 2005 Canadian Olympic Trials earning them a spot at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turino, Italy. They were also winners of the 2005 provincial championship, finished 5th at the Tim Horton�s Brier and 2nd at the 2005 World Curling Tour Players Championship event in St. John�s.

The 2005 Canada Summer Games Rowing Team captured two medals at the 2005 Canada Summer Games. A silver medal in the Women�s PAIR and a bronze medal in the Men�s EIGTH. The team also won a total of 34 medals at Atlantic Championships in 2005.

For further information, contact: Troy Croft, troy@sportnl.ca, (709) 576-4932

2006 03 15        10:20 a.m.