Orienteering Ottawa Club Awards 2023

The 2023 Orienteering Ottawa Club Awards were presented at the Orienteering Ottawa Annual General Meeting (AGM) on January 28, 2024. The 2023 Awards Committee, represented by  Robbie Graham ,Bill Anderson, Paul Lefebvre and Anne Teutsch, announced the awards with the following speeches about the award winners. 

Colin Kirk Memorial Award for Junior Orienteer of the Year

Presenter : Paul Lefebvre

 The Aspiring Junior of the Year - Colin Kirk Memorial Award goes to Daniel Mahoney.

Pat de St. Croix Memorial Award for Volunteer of the Year

Presenter:  Bell Anderson

Pat de St. Croix was an outstanding contributor to the development of the sport of orienteering in Canada. She was a fixture in the orienteering community from the very earliest days of Orienteering in Canada - the early 70s. She worked tirelessly for our sport at the club (Niagara and Ottawa) and at the national level as COF President in the 1980's. She was a volunteer who stood out among volunteers.

The Pat de St. Croix Memorial Award recognizes Pat’s volunteerism by honouring an Orienteering Ottawa member who has, over the past year:
• Contributed a significant amount of time to volunteer in local orienteering events in any capacity.
• Made a significant impact to the Ottawa Orienteering Club or raised the profile of orienteering in the community, in other organizations or schools.
• Shown a commitment to personal development, teamwork and supporting the development of others.
• Demonstrated leadership in the club

There were 7 different names submitted for this award. I think that demonstrates what a strong volunteer base that we have in this club!

I would like to quote from one of the submissions for the winner of this award:
This volunteer must spend 90% of his life on orienteering! I know he has previously received a Club Award but his continued dedication to the club must be recognized for:

• Managing grant applications and supervising summer mapping interns;
• Chairing the mapping committee;
• Mapping at a local and provincial level;
• Directing or controlling many of our major events such as O-Fest and now the 2024 North American Championships
• Organizing and supporting our club training programs

The Club wouldn't be what it is without Stefan Bergström. Thank you, Stefan, from the bottom of our hearts.

Pierre Brassard Memorial Award for Orienteering Spirit

Presenter:  Anne Teutsch

Pierre Brassard was a former Orienteering Ottawa club president who was always smiling, always full of life, always out to beat the orienteering course. Pierre particularly loved the longer events, but he enjoyed every orienteering format. Pierre was welcoming, he was friendly, he was encouraging, he challenged himself, and he had fun. The Piere Brassard Memorial Award recognizes Piere’s spirit and is awarded to an Orienteering Ottawa member who:

• Shows the true spirit of orienteering; 
• Set him- or herself high personal challenges;
• Shows a welcoming spirit to newcomers in the sport
•  Encourages members to increase their participation, either competitively or be helping with the
  organizing of events.

This year’s winner of the Spirit award is a club member who goes above and beyond to make things happen within the club. They bring forward new ideas and suggestions, and regularly follow through with the legwork to ensure success. They advocate for orienteers in all their club roles. They juggle family, work, and volunteer commitments – a very busy life.

This year’s winner is particularly passionate about supporting junior athletes and young orienteering families. They are a level O300 official who has been a course planner for Ottawa O-Fest. They contribute their web design skills to the club.

Last year, they were key to organizing the Family and Junior Training Camp at Foley Mountain, bringing in many seasoned orienteers to lead, coach, mentor, and course set for the camp. They are constantly taking measures to ensure that young people get to know each other and enjoy the camaraderie of the sport – including finding the financial resources to obtain orienteering and other outdoor games, and a group tent to create a “Juniors’ Corner” at major events. They are always looking out for and advocating for the young folks.

In addition to being a major advocate for junior athletes and orienteering families, this year’s winner of the Spirit award is a dedicated meet organizer. For close to two years now, they have been part of the planning committee for the 2024 North American Orienteering Championships. They have developed and now maintain the event website, and they have been a main player in getting set up for hosting the sprint events in Kingston. And they are always thinking of what is best for every orienteer that might want to attend the event.

For their dedication to the sport, to juniors, to orienteering families, to orienteers of all level, this person is very deserving of the club Spirit award.

Having worked with her a great deal as we plan the North American Orienteering Championships, and gotten to know her passions and drive better, it gives me particular pleasure to be able to present the 2023 Orienteering Ottawa Award for Spirit to my NAOC planning committee colleague and friend, Cherie Revells.

Brian Graham Memorial Award for Orienteer of the Year

Presenter: Robbie Graham

This year's recipient has been a long-time club member. Whether it's course setting, controlling, acting as s board member, sitting on committees, and of course out in the woods, this orienteer has contributed much to the success of the club and enjoyment of its members.

You will find this orienteer at most local events and nearly always challenges herself to do the long-advanced course. She has consistent results, often posting times near the top of the board and as one of the first women. And it’s no surprise, those who follow her on Strava or Attackpoint are impressed by the sheer volume of training she puts in, averaging this year over 11 hours each week. This year she had some excellent results at the Canadian Orienteering Festival making the semi-finals in the knockout sprint and racking up a 4th, 3rd, and 2nd place finish in the Canadian Championship races.

Yet no matter what happened out on course, she always emerges from the forest with a smile on her face eager to chat with her fellow clubmates about their races. An easy task for her as she knows everyone so well. She has also recently introduced many members of her cross country ski club to the sport, some of them now regulars to local events.

This year she set excellent courses for the O-Fest at the Ark which included some diabolical legs that challenged even the most proficient of competitors. In addition, she will be the controller for both the middle and long distance at the North American Championships next summer in Calabogie, sure to be lots of work, but no doubt a superb event.
This orienteer has contributed so much over the years and this recognition is long overdue. So it's my pleasure to present this year's Brian Graham memorial Orienteer of the Year award to someone very near and dear to me, my mother, Marketa Graham.

Event of the Year

This year the awards committee decided to introduce a new award to recognise all the hard work put in by our many meet organizers, “Event of the Year”. The inaugural recipient is the O-Fest Knockout Sprint! Congratulations to everyone involved, many of whom are in this room. I and many others thoroughly enjoyed trying the new race format and despite the weather and some unfortunate construction, it was a great success. There is a full article on the club website about it featuring an interview with the course setter, Andrew Cornett, so be sure to check that out when you get a chance.