Sports leaders top list of new Order of Canada appointees

Canadian sports icons including Stacey Allaster, Donovan Bailey and Angela James are among the 85 new appointees to the Order of Canada this year.

This year’s list of appointees also includes Canada’s first Indigenous female MP, the first MP for Nunavut, and a number of contributors to the arts, including Emmy nominated actress Sandra Oh.

The Order of Canada, considered one of Canada’s highest civil honours, is meant to recognize individuals who make “extraordinary contributions” to the nation, according to the Governor General of Canada website.

Allaster was named as a companion, the highest of the honour’s three levels, which also include the level of officer and member. There can only be 165 living companions at a time.

Born in Windsor, Ont., and raised in Welland, Ont., Allaster was an executive with the Women’s Tennis Association from 2006 to 2015, first serving as president before being promoted to chair and CEO in 2009.

She was instrumental in securing equal prize cash for women at six WTA events and all four Grand Slams. She was also instrumental in streamlining WTA’s calendar and securing an important international media agreement.

Allaster was named the first female tournament director at the U.S. open in 2020.

Former Olympic and world champion sprinter Donovan Bailey will be invested as an officer of the order. The former world record holder won Olympic silver in 1996 in the men’s 100-meter race as well as in the men’s 4×100 metre relay.

Bailey said, “It is amazing.” saidThe order was appointed. “I feel very blessed and humbled to have shared amazing moments with Canadians.

Bailey saidBeing invested in the Order of Canada is a formal recognition of the things he has heard from his fans over the past decades.

“Getting the officer of the Order of Canada is a tremendous honour, but I’m telling you that I’ve been validated for 27 years; I’ve been validated every single day by the incredible fans,” he said.

Angela James is a pioneer in women’s hockey, first as a player and now as the general manager and part-owner of the Toronto Six women’s pro hockey team.

She was the winner in four world championships. The first in 1990 saw her score 11 goals in five games. She was also a tournament all-star. said being invested in the order encapsulates all her achievements on and off the ice.

“It encompasses everything I’ve done in life, and to think my life matters to Canadians seems pretty special,” she said. said.

James, a star of the Canadian hockey team before women’s hockey became an Olympic sport in 2010, was one of two women inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame. saidShe hopes to see women’s hockey continue to grow.

“As long that we all get together and work together, I think there’s no stopping the women playing their game,” she stated. said.

Indigenous leaders

Among the appointees to the order are a number of Indigenous leaders, including Canada’s first Indigenous woman elected as a member of Parliament.

Ethel Blondin-Andrew was first elected as the MP for the Northwest Territories in 1988, and would go on to become the minister of state for northern development in the cabinet of past prime minister Paul Martin.

She has continued to be an advocate for Indigenous women in politics, and recently took part in a United Nations panel in Geneva to discuss that topic.

Blondin Andrew is joined in the order by Nancy Karetak Lindell, former Nunavut MP.

Karetak-Lindell was first elected as the MP for Nunatsiaq in 1997, the riding that would become Nunavut after it was recognized as a territory in 1999.

Karetak Lindell: “I’ve tried very hard for people who might have not had a chance,” said.

After stepping away from federal politics in 2008, she would later become the president of the Inuit Circumpolar Council in 2016, serving for a two-year term.

Despite the fact that she saidShe feels honored to be awarded the Order of Canada. said”The greatest reward will always lie in that I made someone see the future with more optimism.”

Blondin-Andrew is to be made an officer of the Order, while Karetak Lindell will be made a member.

Other Indigenous leaders among the appointees include Elders David and Imelda Perley of New Brunswick for contributions to education around Wabanaki culture.

Elders Reg and Rosemary Crowshoe of Alberta are similarly being recognized for their preservation of Blackfoot culture.

Contributors to the arts

A number of Canada’s most important contributors to the arts have been also appointed to this order, including actress Sandra Oh who will be invested as an Officer.

This Emmy Award-nominated actress is most well-known for her role in the hit TV series, including Killing Eve Grey’s Anatomy. She has also lent her talents to the big screen in movies such as Turning red Under the Tuscan Sun.

Donald Mowat is also being recognized for his contributions to the big screen, having been the head of makeup and design on such films as The Fighter, 8 Mile, Sicario, Nightcrawler, Prisoners, Nocturnal Animals, Stronger, Blade Runner 2049.

Mowat was recently nominated for the Oscar for best makeup and hairstyle for Denis Villeneuve’s Dune.

Alexander Mair, the founder of Attic Records, has been appointed music director.

Attic represented a number of Canadian artists and groups including Anvil, Irish Rovers, Triumph and Teenage Head.

The Order of Canada

Gov. Gen. Mary Simon has appointed the following people, who were recommended for appointment by the Advisory Council of the Order of Canada:

Companions of Canada’s Order of Canada

• Stacey Allaster.
• Frank Hayden (This is a promotion within the order).
• Peter Russell (This is a promotion within the order).
• Donald Savoie (This is a promotion within the order).

Officers of Canada

• Naomi Azrieli.
• Donovan Bailey.
• The Honourable Ethel Blondin–Andrew
• Robert Davidson (This is a promotion within the order).
• Paul Dubord.
• Donald Enarson (deceased).
• François Girard.
• Ian Hodkinson
• Angela James.
• David Lynch.
• Sandra Oh.
• Alberto Pérez-Gómez.
• David Waltner-Toews.

Members of the Order of Canada

• Frances Abele
• Ajay Agrawal.
• Louis-Philippe Albert.
• R. Jamie Anderson.
• Suzanne Aubry.
• Stephen Augustine is the Hereditary Chief.
• Granger Avery.
• Michel Beaulac.
• André Blanchet.
• Marilyn Bodogh.
• Jacques Bourgault
• Bernard Brault.
• Marilyn Brooks.
• Marion Buller.
• James Brynes.
• Geneviève Cadieux.
• James Cassels.
• Euclide Chiasson.
• William Clark.
• Zane Cohen.
• Ethel Côté.
• Elder Reg Crowshoe.
• Elder Rosemary Crowshoe
• Sheldon Currie
• Reginald Davidson.
• Dorothy Dobbie.
• Eliahu Fathi.
• Madeleine Féquière.
• Staff Sgt. Gary Goulet, (Retired).
• Michael Harris.
• Paul Heinbecker.
• Deborra Hope.
• Sister Margaret Hughes
• Moira Hutchinson.
• Gérard Jean.
• Adam Kahane
• Nancy Karetak-Lindell.
• Eva-Marie Kröller.
• Gary Levy.
• Alexander Mair.
• Guy Matte.
• Milton McClaren.
• Roderick McKay.
• Ben Mink.
• Donald Mowat.
• Robert Munro.
• Sister Bernadette Mary O’Reilly
• Donna Ouchterlony.
• Fred Pellerin.
• Elder David Perley.
• Elder Imelda Perley.
• G. Ross Peters.
• Sandra Pitblado.
• Guy Pratte.
• Parminder Raina.
• Joel Reitman
• David Rush.
• The Honourable Anne Russell
• Suzanne Sauvage.
• Martin Schechter.
• Jacques Shore.
• Ronald Tremblay.
• Guylaine Tremblay
• Michelle Valberg.
• Germaine Warkentin.
• James West.
• Michael West.
• Margie Wolfe.
• Lorraine M. Wright.
• Robert Wyatt.
• Jan Swicky.