Nominated by Makwa Sahgaiehcan First Nation and supported by Saskatchewan High Schools Athletic Association

• Often regarded as a father figure to his athletes, Tony Fineblanket began volunteering his time as a volleyball coach in 2022. In that time, he has seamlessly stepped into the role of mentor to youth athletes. He often commits early mornings to travel for weekend tournaments and is willing to dedicate the time required to allow his athletes to compete at out of province events. Tony’s efforts are to ensure that his players have the opportunity to explore their passion in sport.

Nominated by Saskatchewan Rowing Association

• For more than 30 years, Sheila Leach has been involved in the world of sport through various capacities. In 2008, she founded the Estevan Minor Football club and took to coaching water polo and baseball on separate occasions. Since 2013, Sheila has stepped into the role of officiating rowing, overseeing various provincial and national events and working to grow the sport as a whole. Outside of her regular officiating duties, Shelia has worked to grow the number of active umpires in Saskatchewan and acts as a mentor for umpires at regattas throughout the year.

Nominated by Special Olympics Saskatchewan 

• Since joining the Special Olympics program 20 years ago, Lindsay Markwart has become an ambassador for the community. She leads with kindness and encourages individuals from athletes to spectators to join in the celebration of major and minor accomplishments. Lindsay has competed at the provincial and national level, in various sporting events and was the first ever recipient of the Special Olympics Canada Athlete Community Excellence Award, last November.

Nominated by Wascana Racing Canoe Club and supported by Canoe/Kayak Saskatchewan

• Bob Kary has been a dedicated volunteer with Canoe Kayak Saskatchewan since 2010, serving in multiple roles. Annually, for the last 15 years, Bob has officiated numerous provincial regattas, dedicating time to the sport he loves. In his role as High-Performance Director, Bob introduced a sprint council to support athletes and clubs throughout the province. More recently, he assisted in introducing the Paddle-All unified events at the 2024 Prairie Divisional Regatta, providing athletes with a pathway to compete at the national level and supporting the sport’s development within Special Olympics.

Nominated by Skate Saskatchewan 

• As an event technician and announcer for figure skating, Blair Seifert ensures that skaters have the opportunity to experience their best performance with him at the controls. Blair will arrive early before events to test all equipment, which contributes to a positive experience on the ice. From small regional to national qualifying events, Blair is willing to help officials and new event technicians who may benefit from his vast knowledge. Blair has become instrumental in the improvement of Skate Saskatchewan’s event technician team, guiding them through various competition requirements and technology innovation.

Nominated by Bowls Saskatchewan 

• Over his 31 years of dedication to coaching lawn bowling, David Calam has guided multiple athletes from their time as youth participants through to claiming national titles in adulthood. His ability to connect with and lead individuals has inspired athletes to explore coaching certification themselves, taking his patient demeanor as inspiration. David contributed to the accessibility of training opportunities by co-developing a clinic that was offered out of season to athletes, which has since become the Annual Development Clinic, in Saskatoon and Regina. In 2019, David received the Bowls Saskatchewan’s Award of Merit for his contributions to the sport of lawn bowling.

Nominated by Tennis Saskatchewan

• Denise Fernandez has guided numerous players to achieve success on the international stage. Following work stints in the United States and Central America, Denise took the knowledge gained and applied it to her career in Saskatchewan. In 2010, one of Denise’s primary responsibilities was focusing on provincial developmental and high-performance junior development. Since, she has coached athletes to receive National Collegiate Athletics Association.  Apart from her time coaching, Denise prioritizes her own growth by attending workshops, such as the Women’s Tennis Association Coach Inclusion Program.

Nominated by Saskatchewan Athletics

• Carla Nicholls has made various contributions to the provincial and national athletics community during her 30 years involved in the sport. In 2004, Carla expanded the University of Regina’s track & field club into a permanent team and in the process, grew the program’s number of participants. She aided in the integration of Para athletics into Athletics Canada programming and continues to facilitate opportunities to bring Para athletics coaches together. In addition, Carla has attended the Olympic Games three times — Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016 — as well as two Paralympic Games as Para Athletics Lead — Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. Carla also lends her guidance as a mentor to other female coaches.

Julie Kozun – Melfort
Nominated by the public and supported by Sask Volleyball

• As the lone Saskatchewan athlete on the team, she assisted in earning Canada’s first Paralympic medal in sitting volleyball, bringing home bronze from the 2024 Games.

Shelby Newkirk – Saskatoon
Nominated by Swim Saskatchewan

• Won Paralympic bronze in Paris in the S6 100-metre backstroke and claimed 11 medals at international and national events, while also setting a world record in the S6 50-m backstroke.

Carissa Norsten – Waldheim
Nominated by MacDowell Rugby and supported by Saskatchewan Rugby

• 2024 HSBC SVNS Female Rookie of the Year, captured a historic silver medal with the Canadian women’s sevens rugby team at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, while also medalling at Canada West and U SPORTS championships.

Keely Shaw – Midale
Nominated by Saskatchewan Cycling Association

• Raced in four events at the 2024 Paralympic Games, earning her second consecutive Paralympic bronze medal in the Women’s C4 3000-metre Individual Pursuit and also captured bronze at two other international competitions.

Savannah Sutherland – Borden
Nominated by Saskatchewan Athletics

• Two-time Olympic finalist, debuted in Paris in the women’s 400-metre hurdles to finish seventh and finished sixth in the 4×400-m relay, as well as medalled and set records at other events.

Graeme Fish – Moose Jaw
Nominated by Speed Skating Saskatchewan

• Recipient of gold and silver medals from separate ISU Four Continents Speed Skating Championships in the 5,000-metre distance, also skated to earn two bronze medals at world championship events.

Blake Tierney – Saskatoon
Nominated by Swim Saskatchewan

• Named Swimming Canada’s 2024 Breakout Swimmer of the Year (Olympic Program), he set a Canadian record of 49.39 seconds in the men’s 100-metre backstroke event at the World Aquatic Championships and was the sole representative of Saskatchewan on the Canadian Olympic men’s swim team in Paris.

Rylan Wiens – Pike Lake
Nominated by Dive Sask

• 2024 bronze Olympic medallist, who claimed Canada’s first medal in the men’s 10-metre synchronized platform event and finished seventh in the individual event, while also capturing a pair of silver medals at the World Cup.

Mary Carroll – Saskatoon
Nominated by Dive Sask

• Guided two divers to qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games and attended as one of two Team Canada coaches, while leading an athlete to claim a historic bronze medal in the 10-metre synchronized event.

Ryan Jones – Saskatoon
Nominated by Swim Saskatchewan

• Attended the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games as a Canadian swimming team coach, along with three of his athletes, one of which who won bronze, while also helping swimmers to set 16 individual Canadian records and a world record.

Tyrell Sawatzky – Saskatoon
Nominated by Saskatchewan Athletics

• Recognized as the 2024 Saskatchewan Athletics Coach of the Year as a result of leading two Para athletes to set Canadian records in the F13 javelin, as well as the F56 javelin and shot put and coached an athlete to the qualifying standard for the 2024 Paralympic Games.

Jordan Carroll – Saskatoon
Nominated by family and supported by Gymnastics Saskatchewan

• Only Canadian to win a medal at the Junior Pan Americans Championships, took home gold and helped Team Canada to secure a fourth-place finish.

Dryden Parchewsky – Saskatoon
Nominated by family and supported by Saskatchewan Weightlifting Association

• Commonwealth Weightlifting Championship bronze medallist, as well as best 89-kilogram weightlifter and gold medallist as a youth athlete competing at Canadian Junior Weightlifting Nationals.

Kash Tarasoff – Saskatoon
Nominated by Dive Sask

• Three-time medallist at the Junior Elite National Championships, who scored perfect 10s on three dives, to set a Saskatchewan record and also claimed two international gold medals.

Ali Diehl – Prince Albert
Nominated by Prince Albert Sharks Swim Club and supported by Swim Saskatchewan

• 2024 Citi Para Swimming World Series gold medallist, who captured multiple medals at national and provincial events and set a new Canadian short-course national record in SB 9 50-metre breaststroke.

Etta Love – Saskatoon
Nominated by Saskatchewan Weightlifting Association

• Broke youth world record with a clean and jerk lift of 146-kilograms at the Junior World Championship to win silver and added gold at Senior Nationals and Youth World Championships.

Lila Stewart – Regina
Nominated by Dive Sask

• Claimed three gold medals at national events, as well as one at Junior International Diving Meet and competed at the Junior World Championships.

Elise Miller and Annabelle Porter – Regina
Nominated by Saskatchewan Baton Twirling Association

• Provincial and Canadian Championship gold medallists, finished first at National Team Trials to qualify for World Championships where they came in ninth in the junior pair division.

Regina Rebels
Nominated by Hockey Saskatchewan

• Won the program’s first-ever Esso Cup, the women’s U18 national hockey club championship, in addition to the team claiming their second consecutive Saskatchewan Female U18 AAA Hockey League title.

University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s 4×800-metre Relay Team
Nominated by Saskatchewan Athletics

• First-place finishers at the U SPORTS National Championships, setting a University of Saskatchewan record with an 8:45.60 time, in addition to claiming the gold medal at Canada West Championships.