2021 Orienteering Ottawa Annual Awards
Introduction
We were all hoping that 2021 would be a return to orienteering as normal but it was not to be. Still, as a club we made the best of it, and by July we were up and running again with modified club offerings including a summer sprint series, a full slate of fall events, youth programs, outreach activities, and plenty of training opportunities. Club members also participated strongly in Ottawa O-Fest and the Quebec Orienteering Championships.
Even with a pandemic still underway, there were plenty of opportunities for club members to shine and demonstrate excellence in orienteering, and dedication to our sport and club.
Thank you to everyone who took the time to submit a nomination this year. They were inspiring to read, and they speak to the respect and pride that we have in the dedication and accomplishments of our fellow club members.
Colin Kirk Memorial Award - Aspiring Junior of the Year
2021 Recipient: Lukas Raz
This year's winner of the Colin Kirk Junior of the Year award is everything you'd look for in a well-rounded orienteer: hard working, competitive, inspiring and a pleasure to chat with after any race. After joining Orienteering Ottawa several years ago, this year's award recipient has grown into one of our club's top athletes - with no intention of slowing down. He's got an exceptional drive to improve in all aspects of his orienteering, which places him at the top of the advanced courses at our local meets and medals at provincial and national competition. I am sure we are all excited to see him make waves in national and international competitions for years to come.
When this orienteer isn't racing, he can be found at our club's Tuesday night coaching sessions inspiring the next generation of athletes, handing out maps and picking up flags. His passion for the sport is contagious and his energy keeps his youth programs group engaged all evening. Additionally, this orienteer spent his summer months creating new maps for our club in Kanata.
For these reasons, it is our pleasure to recognize Lukas Raz as the Colin Kirk Junior of the Year for 2021.
Pat de St. Croix Memorial Award - Volunteer of the Year
2021 Recipient: Kumiko Murasugi
This year's volunteer arrives early in the morning to virtually every club meet. She commits a huge amount of time before, during, and after each one, overseeing the setting up, operation, and packing away of our registration area. Our recipient is an amazing leader; she trains new helpers, works the registration table herself, and is known to fulfill more than one vacant spot when helpers are unavailable. She's coordinated registration responsibilities for countless B-meets, and A-meets, including O-fests and the 2017 COCs. As these duties take time, she typically starts her own course long after the rest of us, something she does without complaint.
Our recipient's careful collection of meet fees and waivers benefits us all, as it ensures the integrity and viability of our club. She also prepares the post-meet financial reports, a task formerly on the Meet Director's roster. Using her analytical skills, she voluntarily prepares audits of past registrations in order to improve efficiency.
A switch to the electronic registration system prompted this volunteer to write a helpful instruction document, which she provides to others so they can use the new system proficiently. The onset of pandemic restrictions caused many changes to the registration process in particular. She used her experience to draft appropriate Covid-19 protocols for the club, which enabled our meets to continue safely.
This year's volunteer is also an ambassador who greets newcomers and seasoned club members alike with an encouraging, friendly welcome, and a smile on her face. Anyone who has worked with her is heartily thanked for their contribution. Now it is our turn to recognize and thank her for the tremendous amount of time, effort, experience, and commitment that she contributes to every orienteering meet, and to our club.
Please join us in congratulating our 2021 Pat de St. Croix Volunteer of the Year Award recipient, Kumiko Murasugi.
Pierre Brassard Memorial Award - Orienteering Spirit
2021 Recipients: Andrew Cornett and Cathy Bakker
There are some orienteers you see out in the forest and you wave and smile, or even stop and chat with them because of their wonderful, friendly nature. And then there are others who you usually only see from behind, running away from you, with no hope of catching them. This year, the Orienteering Ottawa Spirit Award recognizes both of these types of orienteers.
Here’s a short list of what these highly active and engaged club members have accomplished over the past year: they organized and ran three successful events on newly created maps; they participated and medalled at both O-fest and the Quebec Orienteering Championships; they volunteered on club committees and at events, and were highly committed to physical and navigation training in any and all weather conditions. And they did it all with friendship, enthusiasm and smiles.
This orienteering power couple are ever present at club events, and ready to talk about route choice and race tactics to all who might listen. They also make great Rogaine partners, always ready to push and encourage others to success. This dynamic duo embody, together, a true love of orienteering and a shared passion for the sport that is demonstrated every week in their positive attitudes and actions and their encouragement of club members of all ages.
Please join us in congratulating this year’s Pierre Brassard Orienteering Spirit award winners… Andrew Cornett and Cathy Bakker.
Brian Graham Memorial Award - Orienteer of the Year
2021 Recipient: Jeff Teutsch
This year’s recipient has been a member of both the Canadian and Junior Canadian national teams, has competed at most Canadian national and North American champs since 2007, and twice at the World University Championships, not to mention many other European events.
But in addition to his personal races, he has been and continues to be a driving force in helping others achieve better results. He has been Canada’s High-Performance coach since 2016, JWOC team coach from 2016-2018, has single-handedly created the software and content for the national skills database (see https://skills.orienteering.ca ), and on a local level, he has been (and still is) one of the main contributors to the success of our club’s junior program.
His mapping skills are legendary. For example, last November he introduced us to a map he made for the fun of it. The course he designed along with it involved up to three layers of Place du Portage outdoor terraces and walkways. A leg of this course was published as an example of a challenging section in the international World-of-O Christmas series. He has mapped several universities for sprint races, many forests and fields across the country as well as the City of Perth for the Canadian Champs, which our club organized a few years ago.
He is a driving force in promoting and growing our sport. His work -- both locally and nationally – with athletes, coaches, clubs, event organizers and administrators encourages, coaxes, challenges, mentors and supports their work to improve, to build resources, to create events, to achieve new heights. It is important to him that an event has a festive, exciting atmosphere, and we have all heard him as announcer at provincial and national meets.
His passion for the sport of Orienteering matches Brian Graham’s. For all the work he has done for Orienteering for our club, our area and for Canada, we therefore award the 2021 Brian Graham Memorial Award of Orienteer of the Year to Jeff Teutsch.