Commonwealth Games Canada Announces Delhi 2010 Mission Staff
OTTAWA, Oct. 8, 2009 – Commonwealth Games Canada (CGC) today announced its Mission Staff for the 2010 Commonwealth Games to be held in Delhi, India, October 3-14, 2010 – and celebrated the commitment to sport of its motivated volunteers.
“This outstanding group will help us create the right conditions for Canadian athletes and coaches to produce best-ever performances,” said Scott Stevenson, CGC’s Director of Sport. “The Commonwealth Games are a proven, valuable stepping-stone for many Canadian athletes en route to other international, Olympic and Paralympic success.”
The Games will feature more than 4,000 world-class athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and territories, competing in 19 different sports. Canada, which finished third overall at the 2006 Games in Melbourne, Australia, is expected to send a highly competitive team of approximately 400 athletes, coaches, and volunteers.
“On behalf of the Commonwealth Games Canada leadership team, we are delighted with the selection of these capable Canadians to our team,” said Martha Deacon, Chef de Mission for Team Canada 2010. “A year from now, their passion and enthusiasm will contribute in countless ways to the success of our world-class athletes.”
The Mission Staff will work under the guidance of the Mission Team Leaders, whose appointment was announced in April 2009. Chef de mission Martha Deacon, named in November 2008, will head the team.
“Every time Canada mounts a mission to a major Games, the demands and expectations increase,” said Greg Mathieu, Chief Executive Officer of Cycling Canada. “This Mission Staff has the capacity, energy and experience necessary to ensure Canada’s team in New Delhi has the highest level of support which is reassuring to each National Sport Organization participating in these Games.”
Joanne Mortimore, Chief Executive Officer of Athletics Canada, added: “It is reassuring to see the Mission Staff who have been appointed to 2010 Games. The group clearly has the skills to create the best environment for the team to compete at their best in Delhi.”
Mission Staff for the 2010 Commonwealth Games
Operations: Martin Routhier and Anne Warburton (Administration), Jim Bradley and Yvonne Bierman (Transportation); Sue Boreskie and Suzanne Weckend (Clothing); Shravan Chopra (Technology and Webmaster)
Team Member Support and Services: Todd Allison, Monique Allain, Alexandra Orlando
Communications: Yan Huckendubler, Patrick Kenny, Martin Richard, Julie Audette, Hélène Lavigne (Translator), Dan Galbraith (Photographer)
Coaching and Applied Sport Science: Lisa Smith, Michel LeBlanc, Shelley Milton
Mission Team Leaders for the 2010 Commonwealth Games
Dr. Jon Kolb – Coaching and Applied Sport Science
Dr. Navin Prasad – Health and Wellbeing (Medical)
Kelly Laframboise – Team Operations
Jackie DeSouza – Communications and Media Services
Michael Smith – Team Member Support and Services
Please see the attached Backgrounder for biographies of Mission Team Leaders and Mission Staff, as well as CGC Director of Sport Scott Stevenson and Chef de Mission Martha Deacon.
About Commonwealth Games Canada
Commonwealth Games Canada (CGC) is the international franchise holder for the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth movement in Canada, and an active, contributing member of the Canadian sport community. Led by its volunteer Board and supported by professional staff, CGC is committed to strengthening sport in Canada and throughout the Commonwealth.
For more information, please contact:
Martha Deacon
Chef de Mission, Equipe Canada 2010
Work: (519) 748-1341
Cell: (519) 239-5334
Email: martha_deacon@wrdsb.on.ca
BACKGROUNDER
Biographies
Commonwealth Games Canada Director of Sport
Scott Stevenson (Orléans, ON) – A St. John’s, Nlfd. native, Scott is responsible for strengthening CGC’s role in the Canadian sport community by working closely with national sport organizations and partners such as Sport Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee to ensure that Canadian athletes reach their fullest potential. Before joining CGC in 2007, Scott was CEO of Synchro Canada for four years. He was Executive Director of Diving Canada from 1997 to 2002 and served as the Manager of Athlete and Coach Development for Diving Canada from 1994 to 1997.
Chef de mission
Martha Deacon (Oakville, ON) – An elementary school principal in Kitchener, ON, Martha has spent the past 25 years as a professional educator. Her extensive background in multi-sport games dates back to the 1991 Canada Winter Games and also includes a trio of Commonwealth Games as an apprentice coach (1994) and badminton team leader/manager (1998, 2002). She was a member of the Canadian mission staff at the 2007 Pan American Games and 2008 Olympic Games. At the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, Martha managed Canada’s satellite site in Park City, Utah. The past president of Badminton Canada, Martha is a member of the Canadian Olympic Committee Board of Directors.
Mission Team Leaders for the 2010 Commonwealth Games
Dr. Jon Kolb – (Ottawa, ON) Coaching and Applied Sport Science – The manager of Sport Science and Sports Medicine at Own the Podium and Associate Professor, University of Calgary. Dr. Kolb provides leadership, expertise, and assistance to targeted Olympic and Paralympic summer sports in the creation, implementation and assessment of an integrated sport science and medicine program.
Dr. Navin Prasad (Vancouver, BC) – Health and Wellbeing (Medical) – A veteran of five major international games, Dr. Prasad’s career in sports medicine has seen him work with athletes in field hockey, soccer, figure skating and athletics. He has been the primary care sports medicine physician for the British Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League for the past 13 seasons. Dr. Prasad speaks Hindi.
Kelly Laframboise – (Limoges, ON) Team Operations – A 20-year veteran with Commonwealth Games Canada – one of the original staffers hired prior to the Auckland, New Zealand Games in 1990. Kelly has been involved with behind-the-scenes administrative and logistic operations for five major Games and two Youth Games, along with managing the CGC office and supporting the Board of Directors and CEO.
Jackie DeSouza (Toronto, ON) – Communications and Media Services – The Director, Communications and Public Affairs for Toronto’s Mount Sinai Hospital, Jackie was formerly the Communications Director for the Canadian Olympic Committee, spanning two Olympic Games and two Pan American Games. She also led the planning and implementation of the Beijing 2008 Communications Plan prior to leaving the COC in May 2008.
Michael Smith (Nepean, ON) – Team Member Support and Services – A partner in the Ottawa law firm Langevin Morris Smith, LLP, and the former President of Athletes CAN (2003-2006). His experience as a wrestler includes the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the 1999 Pan American Games. He served as Athlete Advocate on Canada’s Commonwealth Games mission staff (2002 and 2006), in addition to the 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games and the 2004 Athens Olympics.
Mission Staff for the 2010 Commonwealth Games
Operations- Administration
Martin Routhier (Orléans, ON) – Senior Program Officer, Hosting and Major Games Division for Sport Canada, Martin was press attaché for athletics at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia. He is chef de mission for the Sport Canada delegation to the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and was Sport Canada’s assistant chef de mission for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Anne Warburton (Navan, ON) – Manager Domestic Programs, Diving Canada. Responsible for domestic rules, doping control program, and NCCP coach education materials, Anne was diving team manager at the 2007 and 2009 FISU World University Games, and diving and synchronized swimming team manager at the 2002 Commonwealth Games. As an administrative assistant, she worked on arrangements for the Canadian team for the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Malaysia.
Operations - Transportation
Jim Bradley (Ajax, ON) - Over the past 20 years, Jim Bradley has been to three Commonwealth Games as a member of the mission staff, most recently at the 2002 Games in Manchester, England. Jim has dedicated his 35-year career to working with Canada’s high performance amateur athletes and is the Chief Executive Officer of the Sport Alliance of Ontario. He has attended 11 Canada Games with Team Ontario, having twice served as chef de mission.
Yvonne Bierman (Toronto, ON) – Formerly the Director, Traveller and Transaction Services for Carlson Wagonlit Travel. Yvonne has held various positions at Olympic, Commonwealth and Pan Am Games in administration, transportation, team services, Canada Olympic House administration and Performance Centre administration. She was a Mission Staff member at the 1994 and 2002 Commonwealth Games.
Operations - Clothing
Sue Boreskie (Winnipeg, MB) – Sue has been involved with CGC since 1994 as a member-at-large and as a vice president (2002 to present). With a professional background in physical education, Sue is Executive Director of a large health and fitness centre in Winnipeg. During the 1999 Pan American Games in that city, she was a member of the Organizing Committee in the Special Events and Protocol sector and was also a member of the Games Board of Directors.
Suzanne Weckend (Vancouver, BC) – Suzanne is a high school teacher, administrator, athlete and coach who competed for Canada at the World Championships in 1994 (Rome) and the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria in swimming, and the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in triathlon. Suzanne is Director of Aquatics and Head of Athletics at St. George’s School and works with the swimming and triathlon teams. She also sits on the Board of Directors for both Commonwealth Games Canada and AthletesCAN.
Operations - Technology and Webmaster
Shravan Chopra (Orleans, ON) is an avid sports fan who works for the federal government as a Senior System Analyst and Team Leader on several IT procurement projects in the Information Technology Services Branch. He previously worked as a Senior Technical BI Analyst in the Department of Foreign Affairs and also as a Quality Control Analyst at Cognos, Inc. Shravan was born and brought up in Delhi and speaks Hindi.
Team Member Support and Services
Todd Allison (Brackendale, BC) – A former national freestyle team athlete, coach and high performance director, Todd contributed to the creation of Own The Podium in 2004. He works on the Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games as Manager, Village Rooms. He was mission staff at the 2002 Commonwealth Games and 1999 Pan Am Games, on VANOC staff at the 2006 Turin Olympics and team leader for Freestyle Canada at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.
Monique Allain (Fredericton, NB) – Director of Research, Health and Education Research Group, Faculty of Education, University of New Brunswick. Monique has been mission staff at various multi-sport games including the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics, 2006 Commonwealth Games, and 2003 and 2005 Canada Games. She is an assistant professor in physical education and is pursing a PhD in education/sport psychology. She has been a university and provincial level basketball coach.
Alexandra Orlando (Toronto, ON) – At the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games, Alex won six gold medals, tying the world record for most gold medals ever won at a single Games and breaking the world record for her sport. She also competed at the 2003 and 2007 Pan American Games and the 2008 Olympic Games. In recent years, Alex has become involved in athlete advocacy and now sits on three boards of directors as an athlete representative: Gymnastics Canada, AthletesCAN and the 2015 Toronto and Greater Golden Horseshoe Pan American Games Bid.
Communications
Yan Huckendubler (Chelsea, QC) – Yan has been involved in sport (mostly field hockey and athletics) for over 40 years, in both France and Canada as an athlete, coach, umpire, technical official and administrator. He has worked as media attaché at Olympics, Pan Am and Commonwealth Games, is a member of the Pan American Hockey Federation Media & Communications Committee, and has been Web/Media Officer at many international competitions for the Canadian field hockey team.
Patrick Kenny (Carleton Place, ON) – Patrick is Director of Marketing and Communications, Canada Games Council. Formerly at Skate Canada in various roles, his experience includes acting as press chief for major national and international events, managing hundreds of volunteer staff, liaising with TSN/RDS, CBC, CTV, and almost every media outlet in Canada and many from around the world.
Martin Richard (Ottawa, ON) – Communications Director, Swimming Canada. Martin was a mission staff member at the 2006 Commonwealth Games. He also worked at the 2001 Jeux de la Francophonie, 2004 and 2008 Olympic Summer Games, 2007 Pan American Games, and the last three FINA World Aquatic Championships.
Julie Audette (Pointe-Claire, QC) – Communications and marketing coordinator for l’Alliance Sport-Études et la Fondation Sport-Études, supporting student-athletes in higher education. At the 2006 Torino Olympics, Julie was delegated by the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada to volunteer as research assistant for the Canadian team lawyer to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Hélène Lavigne (Toronto, ON) – Translator. Hélène has extensive experience translating material for Commonwealth Games Canada, including a range of public products before and during the 2006 Melbourne Games and the 2008 Youth Games in Pune, India. A professional with over seven years experience, Hélène translates all types of communications from English to French or vice-versa, and can also act as a French interpreter.
Dan Galbraith (Toronto, ON) – Photographer. Dan was a Commonwealth Games Canada Mission Staff member in 1998, 2002 and 2006. He’s also worked at Olympic Games, Pan Am Games, Paralympic Games, Canada Games, World Blind Games, Francophone Games and Special Olympics. He is President of Details Group, a video production/photography/corporate communications company in the Greater Toronto Area.
Coaching and Applied Sport Science
Lisa Smith (Cochrane, AB) – Lisa, a gymnastics coach, has run the University of Calgary competitive girls gymnastics program for 20 years. She also teaches a pedagogy class on gymnastics in schools at the University of Calgary, and is an NCCP course conductor for gymnastics. A former gymnast and Level 4 coach, Lisa has been on the women’s technical committee for the Alberta Gymnastics Federation for many years.
Michel Leblanc (Quebec City, QC) – The Canadian Olympic Committee’s Manager, Olympic Preparation, Michel was a 2008 Beijing Olympic mission team member as Manager of the Performance Centre. He will work at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics in the same role. Previously a national team mountain bike coach to Olympic silver medallist Marie- Hélène Prémont, Michel has been full-time at the COC for two years.
Shelley Milton (Aylmer, QC) - Executive Assistant to Alex Baumann, Chief Technical Officer of Own The Podium. Shelley’s key project currently is the Own The Podium Leadership Conference coming up in November as part of the Petro-Canada Sport Leadership Conference. Previously a project coordinator at Field Hockey Canada, Shelley also played field hockey at the provincial level.
