Scott Russell: Legends of the Left Coast

It is the longest running celebration of sporting excellence in the country.

Sport BC’s Athlete of the Year Awards started 49 years ago and they have since recognized the exploits of homegrown talent in a diverse variety of pursuits.

The likes of wheelchair icon Rick Hansen, basketball superstar Steve Nash, alpine ski champions Nancy Greene and Kerrin-Lee Gartner have been honoured at this gathering. So has Nigerian born wrestler and Olympic gold medallist Daniel Igali, as well as soccer phenomenon Christine Sinclair, not to mention triathlon trailblazer Simon Whitfield.

All of them combine to form just a fraction of the illustrious folklore of a province which is in love with sport.

And not just one sport, but a feast of activity on the lush fields of play, which belong to supernatural British Columbia.

As the host/emcee of this year's gala event, I was looking to make a connection with this community of sport in my opening remarks.

For inspiration and to clear my head, I embarked on an early-morning run along the spectacular seawall. It is, I must tell you, one of the most glorious running spots on the face of the earth, bar none.

I first passed the public square where the elaborate cauldron from the 2010 Olympic Winter Games is on display. I thought to myself, more than five years have somehow evaporated since one of the greatest sporting spectacles Canada has ever known reignited the passion of an entire country.

Next I trotted by Club16 Trevor Linden Fitness. I was reminded that the revered Linden had captained the Vancouver Canucks to the 1994 Stanley Cup final against the New York Rangers. It turned out to be one of the most thrilling seven-game series I have witnessed, one in which the Canucks were barely eclipsed by Mark Messier and company.

Almost unbelievably, that was more than two decades ago.

Out on the water, the scullers were busily working at daybreak. They had launched from the Vancouver Rowing Club, founded in 1886, where the boathouse is perched on the shore at the gateway to idyllic Stanley Park. I recalled the Canadian men's eight, which was has long been based in British Columbia … in Victoria … won a brilliant gold medal at the Beijing Olympics almost seven years ago ... my how time flies.

And then I happened upon the beautiful, almost mythical statue dedicated to the late Harry Jerome.

Jerome was a sprinter, a world record setter and thus, for an extended period of time, the fastest man in the world.  He is acknowledged to have been British Columbia's athlete of the province's first century and also the inaugural winner of BC's Senior Athlete of the Year in 1966.

Jerome was in his prime almost 50 years ago.

At the dinner that night, I sat at a table with Charmaine Crooks, a five-time Olympic track star, Bob Lenarduzzi, one of the handful of men to have played for Canada in the 1986 FIFA World Cup, Jamie Taras, a Grey Cup champion, and the family of the late Jack Poole, the man who was the driving force behind bringing the Olympics to Vancouver/Whistler in the first place.

Rich history

To the nearly 500 athletes, coaches and volunteers assembled, I related the story of my reawakening to the rich history of BC sport over the course of the morning run and then we proceeded to hand out the awards.

The names are too numerous to mention.

Suffice it to say, they represented a complex and magical mosaic of sporting achievement. There were professional and junior hockey players, Olympic and Paralympic champion skiers, high school wrestlers and golfers, a gymnastics judge, coaches from basketball and figure skating as well as a longtime builder representing the sport of track and field.

Throw into the mix a dominant international cycling team, standard setting university swimmer, small-town speed skater who has gained worldwide acclaim, ski-cross racer who is more importantly a community champion and a 71-year-old competitor in orienteering who is the best in his age group on the planet.

It was, to say the least, astounding to understand that all of this greatness could occur in just this one province.

And as I pondered that, I came to realize that these local stars are the ones who resonate not only in British Columbia but in every corner of the country. They are the ones we remember, the graduates from our modest backyards who distinguish themselves and their communities through their adventures in far-flung arenas.

Prince George, BC just finished hosting the Canada Winter Games, which happens to be the largest, national, multi-sport gathering for developing athletes anywhere in the world. The Games were an unqualified success and the province has been buoyed by its ability to stage athletic competitions on a number of fronts.

Just around the corner is the FIFA Women's World Cup in Vancouver. The arrival of the America's Masters Games which will bring 7,500 athletes over the age of 30 to the region in the summer of 2016 is creating major excitement. And local organizers are beating the bushes for more events to bolster Canada's Year of Sport in 2015.

There is, in BC, an obvious and voracious appetite for a complete menu of athletic endeavour.

It strikes me this is reflective of the importance of sport to many people's culture. A vast majority of us find it irresistible to play games and to applaud those who are the best among us.

We tend to cherish our champions.

The legends of the left coast, it would seem, are the ones who are most familiar to British Columbians. They grew up closest to home and made a very good name for this place much further afield.