And the nominees are...

I had the pleasure of being part of the group of British Columbia amateur sport boosters that gathered Jan. 10 at Sport BC’s head office in Richmond to vote on the finalists for the 46th Annual Athlete of the Year Awards.

As always, the jury was faced with a high-quality crop of athletes of all ages and abilities (and from all regions) from which to choose. The winners will be announced March 8 at the River Rock Show Theatre in Richmond.

Athlete with a Disability, presented by the Province of British Columbia
Braedon Dolfo (Langley, BC) – BC Blind Sports Athletics
David Scott Patterson (Vancouver, BC) – Swimming
Michelle Stilwell (Nanoose, BC) – Wheelchair Athletics

Coach of the Year, presented by Canadian Sport Centre Pacific
Anatoliy Bondarchuk (Kamloops, BC) – Athletics
Peter Lawless (Victoria, BC) – Wheelchair Athletics/ Handcycling
Bruce Wilson (Victoria, BC) – Soccer

College Athlete of the Year
Li (Melody) Liang (Burnaby, BC) – Badminton, Douglas College
William Quiring (Abbotsford, BC) – Volleyball, Columbia Bible College
Preston Tucker (Vernon, BC) – Volleyball, UBC Okanagan

High School Female Athlete of the Year, presented by Scotiabank
Georgia Ellenwood (Langley, BC) – Athletics, Langley Secondary School
Alexandra McCawley (North Vancouver, BC) – Field Hockey/Basketball/Rugby, Carson Graham Secondary
Emily Oxland (North Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball, Handsworth Secondary

High School Male Athlete of the Year, presented by The Province
Sunny Dhinsa (Abbotsford, BC) – Wrestling, WJ Mouat Secondary
Adam Keenan (Victoria, BC) – Athletics, Lambrick Park Secondary
Reiner Theil (West Vancouver, BC) – Basketball/Football, Vancouver College

Junior Female Athlete of the Year
Shirley Fu (Burnaby, BC) – Table Tennis
Jisoo Keel (Coquitlam, BC) – Golf
Emily Schmidt (Victoria, BC) – Diving

Junior Male Athlete of the Year, presented by Triple O’s
Curtis Lazar (Vernon, BC) – Hockey
Kevin Kwon (Pitt Meadows, BC) – Golf
Filip Peliwo (North Vancouver, BC) – Tennis

Master Athlete of the Year
Christa Bortignon (West Vancouver, BC) – Athletics
Margaret Hudson (Port Alberni, BC) – Badminton
Stephanie Keifer (Vancouver, BC) – Triathlon

Official of the Year, presented by MyBackCheck.com
Jim Mitchell (Abbotsford, BC) – Wrestling
Terry Mosdell (Surrey, BC) – Lacrosse
Wayne Van Osterhout (Victoria, BC) – Rowing

Senior Female Athlete of the Year
Paula Findlay (Victoria, BC) – Triathlon
Amanda Gerhart (Vancouver, BC) – Wrestling
Rebecca Marino (Vancouver, BC) – Tennis

Senior Male Athlete of the Year, presented by TELUS
Dylan Armstrong (Kamloops, BC) – Athletics – Shot Put
Ryan Cochrane (Victoria, BC) – Swimming
Vasek Pospisil (Vancouver, BC) – Tennis

Team of the Year, presented by the TEAM 1040
Surrey United (Surrey, BC) – Soccer
TWU Men’s Volleyball (Langley, BC) – Volleyball
UBC Women’s Volleyball (Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball

University Athlete of the Year, presented by the Vancouver Sun
Helen Crofts (West Vancouver, BC) – Athletics, Simon Fraser University
Jacob Doerksen (Langley, BC) – Basketball, Trinity Western University
Shanice Marcelle (Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball, University of British Columbia