| Jared Connaughton receives the Lieutenant Governor’s Award as the overall athlete of the year for 2008 from Sport P.E.I. president Wendy Reid, left, and Lt.-Gov. Barbara Hagerman at the annual Sport P.E.I. awards banquet Wednesday in Charlottetown. (Submitted photo) | ||
Olympian scores big
Jared Connaughton claims three Sport P.E.I. awards, including athlete of the year
Jared Connaughton claims three Sport P.E.I. awards, including athlete of the year
CHARLES REID
The Guardian
Awards are old hat to Kara Grant and Jared Connaughton, but that didn’t stop the Olympic duo from grabbing four more trophies at the Sport P.E.I. awards banquet Wednesday night in Charlottetown.
Connaughton, a 200-metre semifinalist at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, earned senior male athlete, the Lieutenant Governor’s Award as the overall athlete of the year and the Bill Halpenny award for excellence in international competition.
Grant, who competed in modern pentathlon in Beijing, took home the senior female athlete award.
Combined, Connaughton and Grant have won 18 Sport P.E.I. honours since 1995 and were shutout just three times in 13 years.
Still, Connaughton believes winning awards is always special.
“This one is the most unique because it’s the first one I could attend,” the New Haven native said of Wednesday’s banquet. “I had to pull every string I had to get here. It doesn’t get routine.”
It’s Connaughton’s second Lieutenant Governor’s Award (he also won in 2005) and second senior male athlete award (the other also came in 2005).
Throw in a pair of intercollegiate athlete award and he’s running out of display room.
Grant’s the same.
She’s won a trio of senior female athletes, two all-around female athlete (now defunct) and junior female awards and a Halfpenny honour.
That’s 18 walks to the podium, 18 acceptance speeches. So do the accolades still carry have meaning?
Grant thinks so.
She’s been winning since 1995, the year of her first junior female athlete of the year honour, so she has an idea of what performances might put her in the running for an award.
“Yes and no. Certainly you can never expect anything,” said Grant, who finished 31st in her event in Beijing.
“(Each have) different experiences leading up to them. It’s always great to be here.”
Other award winners Jim Rand, Ashley MacDonald, Brandon Gormley and Stephanie Ramsay were unable to attend the banquet.
Connaughton ran the third leg of Canada’s sixth place 4x100-metre men’s relay team at the 2008 Games.
(More on the Sport P.E.I. awards banquet in Saturday’s edition of The Guardian)
*****
Sport P.E.I. award winners for 2008:
* Masters Athlete: Collin Affleck, karate.
* Team of the Year: Avondale Islanders soccer.
* Coach of the Year: Jim Rand, gymnastics.
* Official of the Year: Justine Lewis, soccer.
* Intercollegiate Male Athlete: Paul Craig, soccer.
* Intercollegiate Female Athlete: Ashley Macdonald, UPEI rugby.
* Junior Male Athlete: Brandon Gormley, Moncton Wildcats, hockey.
* Junior Female Athlete: Stephanie Ramsay, University of Alberta, hockey.
* Premier's Award: 55-plus Games Society.
* President's Award: Margaret and Frank Parslow, badminton.
* Senior Female Athlete: Kara Grant, modern pentathlon.
* Senior Male Athlete, Lieutenant Governor's Award, Bill Halpenny Award: Jared Connaughton, athletics.
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