Athletic Awards 2000

The Male Athlete of the Year is Frank Pons, captain of the soccer team. Pons, 29, is from Avignon, France, and is in his second year at Concordia, doing his PhD in consumer behaviour with Professor Michel Laroche. Pons teaches part-time at Université Laval and also plays for the Quebec City Dynamos. Stingers soccer coach Vladimir Pavlicik says he shows great leadership and consistency, and returned from a serious accident this year to excel on the field. He was the unanimous choice for the first team QSSF All-Stars, and was the only Concordia player named a first team All-Canadian.

Female Athlete of the Year is wrestler Tamara Medwidsky, who has competed at the local, national and international level. This year, she won gold medals at three of her four university tournaments, and was named an All-Canadian after winning the CIAU championship in London, Ont., in February. She will compete at the Canadian champion- ship in May and then hopefully represent Canada at the world championship next fall.

Stingers Merit Awards were presented to:

* Geneviève Fagnan, an All-Canadian defender and the captain of the women's hockey team, graduating after four seasons with the Stingers.

* Gus Gymnopoulos, a captain on the men's basketball team. Gus is graduating after five years with the Stingers.

* Jon Kronemeyer, a quarterback and captain with the football team whose very first game was with the Stingers in the Vanier Cup on national TV. He gives a lot of his time volunteering at the Montreal Association for the Blind, with learning disabled students and at the YMCA.

* Carol-Anne Tull, captain, two-time All-Canadian and the highest-achieving Stinger in the history of Concordia women's basketball. Only one other player has reached All-Canadian status in the 25-year history of the university. Coach Keith Pruden says, "She's a ferocious competitor, and a leader who makes everyone who plays with her better."

Director's Shields

were presented to:

* Jason Tremellen, accepting on behalf of Molson Breweries, for their loyal corporate support of the Stingers.

* Corinne Swirsky, longtime star of the women's hockey team. Five years ago a quiet, unassuming rookie went out and scored seven goals to help the Stingers defeat the Toronto Varsity Blues 7-1 and win the Theresa Humes tournament. Now, she's the most accomplished athlete to ever wear the Stinger uniform and one of the best in the history of the CIAU.

* Richard Charette, for being an unusually supportive parent. He attended virtually every hockey game to support his son Alexandre Charette. His citation said, "Watching him and the deep love he has for his son, we've all been able to experience the games at a different level, with a greater sense of joy, of pride and satisfaction. We'd like to thank Mr. Charette for sharing this gift with us and for his fatherly support of all the Stingers."

* Linda Bailey, the department's long-time coordinator of administrative services, who will retire next month after 26 years at Concordia.

The Rector's Academic Awards, given for athletic achievement combined with a cumulative GPA of 3.4 or higher over the past two years, were presented to:

* Sabrina Silla, a forward on the women's soccer team, and a student in Exercise Science majoring in Athletic Therapy. Now in her third season with the Stingers, she is a two-time Academic All-Canadian. Her career goal is to become a physiotherapist or a doctor.

* Vince Labossi¸re, veteran defenceman on the men's hockey team, who consistently maintains a 3.8 GPA in Exercise Science. He was awarded the prestigious Guy Lafleur Scholarship in 1998. He is a three-time Academic All-Canadian and this is the third time in four years he has earned this award.

Awards for Fittest Male and Female Athletes of the Year went to Lisa-Marie Breton, a third-year centre on the women's hockey team and a member of the Sociology program, and Loan Duong, a cornerback with the football team.

Male Rookie of the Year was Jean-Michel Paquette, a young running back who had Stinger football fans screaming and applauding as he made spectacular runs on returns and in the backfield.

The Laurie Brodrick Award for outstanding female rookie went to Catherine De Abreu, a forward with the women's soccer and hockey teams.

The Ron Lapointe Award, given for loyalty and commitment to excellence, went to Alex Charette, captain of the men's hockey team. Studying in his second language, he has achieved Academic All-Canadian status three times in three years. He has given countless hours of his time to minor hockey and is a hero to hundreds of young hockey players near his hometown of Mascouche.

The Denise Beaudet Award, named for a player with the women's hockey team who died in a car accident in 1985, went to Jessika Audet, goaltender for the hockey team for five seasons. She is a superb athlete with a gift for working with people, notably members of a program for the re-integration of people with cognitive disabilities.

* 1998-99 Academic Awards went to Jean-Louis Adler, Alex Charette, Amy Coelho, Monika Conway, Josˇe Deloretto, Dominique Des-roches, Swanne Gordon, Patrick Groleau, Gus Gymnop-oulos, Chantal Hurtubise, Fran¨ois Lapalme, Andrew McClory, Laura Murray, Gino Nini, Malika Oberoi, Frank Pons, Georgia Woods and David Zaffino.

Copyright 2000 Concordia's Thursday Report.