Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance – Ottawa, Ont. February 1, 2017:  Nominees from right across the country make up the 24 finalists for the 2017 Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance (CSTA) PRESTIGE Awards.  Representing a wide spectrum of the sport tourism industry in Canada, finalists are drawn from seven different provinces and 20 cities/communities.  The events recognized range from local to national to major international championships and tournaments. The awards also honour outstanding volunteers and organizations, who work to bid, host and stage sport events across Canada.

“Each one of these finalists has contributed to the over six billion dollar sport tourism industry in Canada,” said Rick Traer, CEO, Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance. “Through the PRESTIGE Award program we are proud to honour the people, the events, the sponsors and the communities who have helped make Canada a world leader in the sport tourism industry. It was quite remarkable to see the breadth of nominations from across the country. Thank you to everyone who took the time to submit nominations and congratulations to all of the finalists.”

Recipients will be announced on Tuesday, March 21, 2017 during the 11^th PRESTIGE Awards gala luncheon sponsored by Saskatoon Sports Tourism. It takes place at the CSTA’s annual Sport Events Congress  at the Westin Ottawa Hotel, emceed by broadcast journalist Scott Russell, host of CBC Sports Road to the Olympic Games.

2017 PRESTIGE AWARDS FINALISTS (in alphabetical order)

CSTA Canadian Sport Event of the Year Award (Group A: budget greater than $1 million) presented by Laval SportCité

• 2016 Tim Hortons Brier (Ottawa, Ont.)
• HSBC Canada Sevens (Vancouver, B.C.)
• Ski Tour Canada 2016 (Gatineau, Que., Montreal, Que., Quebec City, Que., Canmore, Alta.)

CSTA Canadian Sport Event of the Year Award (Group B: budget less than $1 million) presented by Laval SportCité

• 2016 Global News Canadian Gymnastics Championships (Edmonton, Alta.)
• 2016 RBC Cup (Lloydminster, Alta.)
•     Canadian Track and Field Championships and  Selection Trials for the 2016 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games

CSTA International Sport Event of the Year Award presented by Tourism Toronto             

• 2016 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship (Kamloops, B.C.)
• 2016 IIHF U18 Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship (St. Catharines, Ont.)
• FINA World Swimming Championships [25m] 2016 – Windsor (Windsor, Ont.)

CSTA Canadian Sport Event Sponsor of the Year Award presented by Adup Display

• Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) – HSBC Canada Sevens (Vancouver, B.C.)
• Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) – 2016 RBC Cup (Lloydminster, Alta.)

CSTA Sport Event Volunteer of the Year presented by CBC Sports

• Bill MacMackin; East Coast Games, Athletics New Brunswick, Saint John Track Club (Saint John, N.B.)
• Gary Petitpas; World Sledge Hockey Challenge, U18 Women’s Canadian Fast Pitch Championship, U16 Boys & Girls National Club Soccer Championships (Charlottetown, P.E.I.)
• Trudy Ion; Sport Events Congress (Brantford, Ont.)

CSTA Sport Tourism Champion Award presented by ConnectOnCampus                                                                                                   

• Paul Burke, Special Events Developer, City of Thunder Bay (Thunder Bay, Ont.)
• Therese Quigley, Director of Athletics, Western University (London, Ont.)
• Candice Stasynec, Executive Director, Edmonton Events (Edmonton, Alta.)

Sport Tourism Organization of the Year presented by WestJet

• Municipality of Clare Tourism (Municipality of Clare, N.S.)
• Sport Burnaby (Burnaby, B.C.)
• Sport Hosting Vancouver (Vancouver, B.C.)

CSTA Sustainable Sport Event of the Year presented by Edmonton Events

• 2016 Alberta Summer Games (Leduc, Alta.)
• Best of the West Gymnastics Fest (Richmond, B.C.)
• FINA World Swimming Championships [25m] 2016 – Windsor (Windsor, Ont.)

Tickets

Tickets to the PRESTIGE Awards luncheon are included with Sport Events Congress registered delegates’ fees. Tickets for the awards luncheon are available for individual purchase at a cost of $75 + tax per person. For more information about Sport Events Congress, the PRESTIGE luncheon or to register/purchase tickets, visit the CSTA’s website.

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About the PRESTIGE Awards

PRESTIGE Awards are the CSTA’s marquis Program Recognizing Exceptional Sport Tourism Initiatives, Games & Events. Now in its 11^th year, this annual award program shines a spotlight on the dynamic Canadians, places and events that are building our nation’s growing sport tourism industry. 

About the Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance (CSTA)

The Canadian Sport Tourism Alliance is a non-governmental, member-based, capacity building organization that promotes sport tourism as a grassroots economic development initiative at the community level. The CSTA services over 500 members across Canada, including 150 municipalities, 300 national and provincial sport, multi-sport and major games organizations and a variety of other sport and tourism industry partners. Sport tourism is the fastest growing segment of the tourism industry in Canada with over $6 billion in annual spending by domestic and international visitors.

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For more information contact:

Barb MacDonald, CSTA Communications Consultant

Tel: (613) 521-7314
bmacdonald@canadiansporttourism.com
#PRESTIGE @CdnSportTourism
#SEC17 @SportEventsCong
#sporttourism