Planning Underway for 17th Annual Achievement Awards

The ‘wheels are in motion’ to make arrangements for the 17th Annual Sports Media Canada Achievement Awards. The Awards planning committee met this week for a review of all that has happened since last year’s most successful Awards process and Awards Luncheon, which neatly morphed into an avalanche of ideas for this year’s event.

The 2012 Awards Luncheon is scheduled for Tuesday, October 16th. It will again take place in the Concert Hall of the Royal York Hotel in Toronto — as last year. The Awards will again be for an Outstanding Career in Canadian Sports Journalism, as well as for Outstanding Sportswriting, Outstanding Sports Broadcasting, and Outstanding Sports Photography. The Canadian Sports Executive of the Year will be recognized and significant Canadian Sports journalists, now deceased, will be named to the Sports Media Canada Honour Roll, the de facto Sports Journalism Hall of Fame. The Sports Media Canada President’s Award will again be a feature of the Awards Luncheon.

Paul Hendrick

The Master of Ceremonies for the 2012 event will be Paul Hendrick who joins a distinguished list of previous MCs which includes Matt Devlin (2011), Jerry Howarth (2010), Dave Hodge (2009), Jamie Campbell (2008), Evanka Osmak (2007), Jim Tatti (2006), Debbie Van Kiekebelt (2004), Jim Van Horne (2003), Terry Leibel (2002), Rod Black (2000), John Wells (1999), Bill Stephenson (1998), Brian Williams (1997) and Don Goodwin (1996, 2001, 2005).

Paul Hendrick enters his 16th season (in 2012-13) as the Maple Leafs’ sideline reporter and in-game host on Sportsnet and Leafs TV televised broadcasts. He is also co-host of Leafs Today, and Gate 5 Live pre and post-game shows on Leafs TV. Prior to joining Leafs TV, the native of Noranda, Quebec spent time with CHCH TV in Hamilton and CKCV TV and radio in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. Hendrick, a graduate from the University of Toronto in Political Science, was also the play-by-play voice of Ontario University football and basketball for 15 years on CHCH TV.