Local halls of fame delay induction ceremonies

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/11/2020 (2083 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Manitoba Rugby Hall of Fame is the latest provincial sports hall of fame to announce its 2020 induction class.

Entering the hall will be Clint Evans as a pioneer and builders Scott Harland and Colleen Holton. Evans was a player, founder and first president of the Assassins Rugby Football Club, which was originally made up of players from Churchill High School and the Riverview area. In 1987, Harland began coaching and refereeing. He coached 14 provincial women’s teams and officiated nationally and internationally. Holton coached the Brumbies women’s team and served in administrative positions with the Wasps, the Winnipeg Women’s Division and Rugby Manitoba.

Like other halls whose inductions have been derailed by COVID-19, rugby plans to honour its 2020 class next year. President Ray Hoemsen said the goal is to induct three more in 2021 and hold an induction dinner on Oct. 30.    

When the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame announced its class of 2020 in late July, organizers said the group would not be inducted this year. The class consists of athletes Baxter Humby of muay thai/kickboxing, curler Ed Werenich, racquetball’s Jennifer Saunders, volleyball star Ruth Klassen, multi-sport athlete Ralph Lyndon, builder Marilyn Fraser, and Paul Robson, the former Winnipeg Blue Bombers player and general manager whose building efforts touched most sports. Hockey player and advocate Sheldon Kennedy will be recognized as an athlete/builder. The 1996-1997 University of Manitoba women’s basketball teams will be inducted in the team category.

A plan for a ceremony honouring this group in 2021 is on hold.

The Manitoba Runners’ Association Hall of Fame 2020 induction banquet has been moved to April 21, 2021. Builder Teresa-Lee (Terry) Cooke and senior athlete Jack Dubnicoff (the father of Olympic cyclist Tanya Dubnicoff) will be honoured.

The Softball Hall of Fame had planned its induction for Brandon in the spring and then rescheduled for the fall before cancelling. Les Newman said the board has decided to move any ceremony in 2021 to Winnipeg, but no date is yet in place. The board is considering the idea of honouring additional members of the softball community next year.

The Baseball HOF said it will induct its 2020 class in 2021. It is no doubt hoping for Morden in early June, when the induction traditionally is held.

Rick Henkewich reported that the Manitoba Football HOF has moved its induction to September next year and the next one after that will be held in 2023. The Basketball HOF, which inducts new members every two years, is shooting for Sept. 21, 2021 for its ceremony. Nominations are being accepted until Dec. 15.

The golf and hockey shrines have not made decisions about fall inductions.

The Manitoba Lacrosse HOF has what it describes as “a bold plan” for 2021. A special veterans committee has selected a group of individuals and a team involved between the 1920s and 1940s that the board hopes to honour in the spring. The players are Glen Christianson, Lorne Christianson, Mark Flynn, Lionel Merrick, Charlie Sabo, Al Smallwood, Ken Williams and Jeep Woolley. Ron Henley will go in as a player/builder and Eric Abbott as a builder. The 1926 and 1928 Canadian senior finalist Tammany Tigers will enter in the team category. The plan also includes a regular induction later in 2021.

In recognition of Manitoba’s 150th anniversary, the Curling HOF named the 150 Most Notable teams in our province’s curling history. The top 25 were then identified and the committee’s ranking will be announced in mid-December.

I don’t know how you can compare Gordon Hudson’s 1920s Brier champions to Don Duguid’s world championship teams of the early 1970s or to Jennifer Jones’ Olympic gold medallists. Have fun HOF executives Peter Nicholls, Resby Coutts, et al. The public can select a people’s choice team by making donations in support of a favourite team. The HOF hopes to honour its 2020 induction class next year.  

Memories of Sport appears every second week in the Canstar Community News weeklies. Kent Morgan can be contacted at 204-489-6641 or email: sportsmemories@canstarnews.com