Several Surrey-area athletes are in the running for Sport BC’s Athlete of the Year awards.
Nominees for the organization’s 54th annual awards event were made public on Wednesday (Jan. 15), in advance of a March 12 gala hosted by CBC’s Scott Russell at Vancouver Convention Centre East.
The 2019 finalists represent 20 sports from 24 cities and towns in British Columbia.
For her work with track and field athletes, Semiahmoo Peninsula’s Lynn Kanuka is nominated in the Female Coach of the Year category, along with Christine Wong (golf, Vancouver) Katie Yuris (hockey, Trail).
Sprinter/hurdler Jasneet Nijjar, a Queen Elizabeth Secondary grad now competing as a freshman at Washington State, is nominated in the High School Female Athlete of the Year category, along with Semiahmoo Secondary basketball star Deja Lee.
• RELATED STORY, from 2019: Lee among Semiahmoo Totems’ trio selected for Canada Basketball U16 team.
Holy Cross football standout Uyi Ologhola is among the three nominees in the High School Male Athlete of the Year category.
For Senior Female Athlete of the Year, White Rock’s Sara Groenewegen is in the running for her prowess on the softball diamond, along with Rachel Cliff (athletics, Vancouver) and Kristen Tsai (badminton, Vancouver).
• READ MORE: Groenewegen’s comeback highlights Canada Cup for longtime tournament chair.
Surrey-raised Kiera Van Ryk (volleyball, UBC) is nominated in the University Athlete of the Year category, and her Thunderbirds squad is up for Team of the Year honours. The team includes Earl Marriott Secondary grads Tessa Davis and Danika Cowie, former Seaquam Secondary standout Brynn Pasin and Pacific Academy grad Gabrielle Attieh.
• RELATED STORY: Surrey’s Van Ryk kills it again as top female athlete in Canadian university sports.
The full list of award nominees is posted to sportbc.com.
The awards recognize the province’s best in amateur sport, including athletes, coaches, teams, and officials, for outstanding performances in their sport over the 2019 season.
Each finalist was nominated by their provincial or multi-sport organization, high school, college or university. The awards selection committee, led by chair Bernie Pascall, included “a diverse group of highly experienced British Columbia sport leaders and media members,” according to a Sport BC news release.
On March 12, an additional six awards will be presented at the ceremony including the Best of BC, KidSport BC Community Champion, Harry Jerome Comeback, Daryl Thompson Lifetime Achievement Award and In Her Footsteps Honourees.
tom.zillich@surreynowleader.comLike us on Facebook Follow us on Instagram and follow Tom on Twitter
