Charlottetown, PE – February 8th, 2017 will be another special night in Island sport as Sport PEI prepares to host its 43rd annual awards night at Holland College’s Florence Simmons Performance Hall.  The evening will showcase the Island’s finest amateur sporting accomplishments from 2016.

Leading the field of athletes will be the nominees for the Bell Aliant Senior Athletes of the Year, including male finalists Brett Gallant (curling), Mark Arendz (biathlon), and Kyle Baillie (rugby).  On the female side, Amy (née Kneebone) Burk (goalball), Caitlin Campbell (biathlon), and Shannon MacAulay (hockey) will look to take top spot.

Brett Gallant

Charlottetown’s Brett Gallant is no stranger to winning, having been a former Canadian Junior Champion and now looking for even higher achievements at the Brier and Olympic levels.  Brett added two Grand Slams to his resume this past year, plus the Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Championship and a Cash Spiel. Playing second stone with Newfoundland and Labrador’s Brad Gushue rink, Gallant and his teammates have a major goal in mind, to “win the Brier”.  In 2016 they came up just short, losing 9-5 to Alberta’s Kevin Koe and took home the runner-up position. After winning the 2016 Canadian Mixed Doubles Championships with Jocelyn Peterman, Gallant gave up his chance to play in the World Mixed Doubles event, in order to curl in the Player’s Championship with the Gushue Rink.  It proved to be a rewarding decision, as the team left with no less than a gold medal.  Training hard with Team Gushue, Brett has his eyes set on qualifying for the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.  At their current rate, a podium finish for Brett Gallant and his teammates would not be out of the question. 

Winners have already been determined in the following categories:

ADL Administrator of the Year – Lori Lund (soccer)

PEI Mutual Insurance Official of the Year – Marguerite Middleton (swimming)

ADL Masters Athlete Award – Heather Ayles (powerlifting)

PEI Mutual Insurance Coach of the Year – Josh Whitty (Holland College basketball)

SCORE! Team of the Year – Holland College Women’s Basketball (basketball)

The event is marking its first time being hosted at Holland College’s Florence Simmons Performance Hall, but familiar faces of Matt Rainnie of CBC and Jo-Anne Holden will be back to emcee the proceedings. 

“We had another extraordinary year in Island sport,” said Sport PEI President Tracey Clements.  “Our awards night will, again, allow athletes, coaches and officials to receive the recognition they deserve for working tirelessly throughout the year towards achieving their goals.  What is particularly amazing is the level of international experience the finalists and winners have achieved”.

Reception begins at 6:30 pm with awards on stage at 7:15 pm. Tickets are $25 and are available by calling Sport PEI at (902) 368-4110.

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The full list of athlete finalists is as follows:

Intercollegiate Male Athlete of the Year – Alex Cyr (cross-country), Ligrit Sadiku (wrestling), Trevor Banks (wrestling)

Intercollegiate Female Athlete of the Year – Jessica Cameron (hockey), Ellen Murphy (rugby), Briar Roberts (soccer)

DP Murphy Hotels and Resorts Junior Male Athlete of the Year – Jordon Montgomery (rugby), Mark Rainnie (tennis), Lucas Boudreau (biathlon)

DP Murphy Hotels and Resorts Junior Female Athlete of the Year – Ava Boutilier (hockey), Emma Jinks (squash), Hannah Taylor (wrestling)

Bell Aliant Senior Male Athlete of the Year – Brett Gallant (curling), Mark Arendz (biathlon), Kyle Baillie (rugby)

Bell Aliant Senior Female Athlete of the Year – Amy (née Kneebone) Burk (goalball), Caitlin Campbell (biathlon), and Shannon MacAulay (hockey)