Six individuals were inducted into the Canada Hall of Honour Thursday for their contributions to the Canada Games.
Jennifer Bishop – Distinguished Alumni – Tennis – Team NL (1985, 1989)
Jennifer Bishop participated in the 1985 and 1989 edition of the Canada Games for tennis.
Bishop was inducted into the Hall of Honour for her work in law and sports governance.
Since participating in the games, Bishop has served as the Global Chair of the International Bar Association’s Women’s Leadership Group.
She has also served as Chair of the Board for Tennis Canada, while also working with the International Tennis Federation and Canadian Olympic Committee.
Bishop said that being inducted into the Hall of Honour in her home province was something she holds with “great honour.”
Bishop hopes she can continue to create opportunities for future leaders and athletes to “build sport across the country.”
Ajay Patel – Builder – Team BC (2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011)
Patel served as Chef de Mission for Team BC for six straight years between 2001-2011.
At the event he was credited extensive contributions to helping grow the Canada Games Movement.
Aside from the Games, Patel is being recognized for his contributions as one of Canada’s Top Immigrants along with his community involvement.
Patel has also held other positions in sports, serving as a board member with Sport BC, along with serving as CEO of Gymnastics BC.
Patel said that the Canada Games and the Team BC program helped play “a significant role in my life and career” and that it helped “shape who I am as a person, as a community leader and as a president of a college.”
The most important thing Patel wanted people to take away from the Canada Games is that it is “not just about building on a legacy, it’s about the thousands of legacies that are built on the experiences that the coaches, athletes and mission staff will have this week.”
Sharon and Shirley Firth – Athlete – Cross-Country Skiing – Team NT (1971, 1975)
Sharon and Shirley Firth both hold very prestigious careers in cross-country skiing, as they both participated in the 1971 and 1975 Canada Games for the Northwest Territories.
The Firth sisters dominated the sport for years, breaking numerous records, and winning multiple medals and national championships.
Their hard work payed off at the 1972 Winter Olympics as they became the first ever female Indigenous athletes to represent Canada.
They would also participate in the 1976, 1980 and 1984 Winter Olympics. They are both members of the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, as well as being member of the Order of Canada.
They are both seen as big role models for Indigenous athletes.
Sharon Firth was there on both her own behalf and her sister Shirley’s behalf, who passed away in 2013.
Firth said this was a “ginormous award that is very important to us as Indigenous people,” and that she hopes more Indigenous people are taking part in the Games.
Firth also talked about her twin sister Shirley: “It’s very emotional because my twin sister is not here with me. She was a leader in so many ways. We grew up in the residential schools, so we are both victims and survivors, and no matter what we do in life, we are going to survive, and that’s the message I want to pass on to the Indegenous youth today.”
Diana Matheson – Athlete – Soccer – Team ON (2001)
Diana Matheson participated in the 2001 Canada Summer Games for soccer, a sport where she has since had a lot of success, representing Canada at three Olympic Games and three Women’s World Cup’s.
During her illustrious soccer career, she is best known for scoring the winning goal for Canada at the 2012 Olympic Games to help them win Bronze over France, Canada’s first ever Olympic Medal in women’s soccer.
Since her playing career she has founded the Northern Super League, which is Canada’s professional women’s soccer league.
Matheson said the Canada Games had a huge impact on her life and that she still remembers what her experience was like.
“The Canada Games is special and you can talk to so many former and present Canadian athletes about what the Games meant to them, my wife included. It creates the next generation of leaders, it invests in sport infrastructure, which is so needed, and its unifying like nothing else.”
Lennox Lewis – Athlete – Boxing – Team ON (1983)
Lewis is a household name in boxing, as he became the undisputed world heavyweight champion in 1999. Lewis also participated in the 1988 Summer Olympics, where he won Canada’s first gold medal in boxing in 56 years. Lewis has since been inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame and the Order of Canada. Before that, Lewis participated in the 1983 Canada Games for Ontario, where he won a gold medal.
Lewis was unable to attend the ceremony.
