By Earl Zukerman
Football player Laurent Duvernay-Tardif of St. Hilaire, Que., and distance runner Jullien Flynn of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., headed a list of 13 bursaries won by McGill University athletes from the Quebec Foundation for Athletic Excellence, during the 28th annual University Sports Gala at the Hotel Sheraton-Laval, on Nov. 26.
The Foundation, which recognizes the top student-athletes, coaches and teams, dished out a record 90 bursaries totalling $204,500. Laval led all schools with 28 winners, including 19 recruitment bursaries. Montreal was next with 19 total (11 for recruitment), followed by McGill (13/6), Concordia (10/6), Sherbrooke (8/5), UQTR (3/2), UQAC (3/1), Bishop’s (2/1) and UQAM (2/2).
Duvernay-Tardif, a medical student who was named last week as the most outstanding lineman in CIS football, received two awards totalling $3,700. One was for athletic excellence and the other for academic athlete-of-the-year honours.
Flynn, a straight-A student in medicine, received a $2,000 cheque for being the top academic athlete on the women’s side.
Two additional awards for athletic excellence went to McGill’s Mariam Sylla (basketball, $1,500) of Guinea and Charles-Edward Litwin (cross-country, $1,750).
Montrealer Dianna Ros of the McGill women’s basketball team was the biggest prize-winner of the soiree with a $4,000 award for perseverance. Jonathan Collin, a co-captain with the football Redmen who hails from Greenfield Park, Que., merited a leadership award for $1,750.
The remainder six McGill’s honorees were for recruitment, including basketball players Francois Bourque ($3,500) of Terrebonne, Que., Jennifer Silver ($3,500) of Montreal and Michael Peterkin ($3,000) of Toronto. Rounding out the group was soccer player Michael McIntyre ($3,500) of Pte. Claire, Que., and hockey players Brittany Smrke ($3,000) of Oakville, Ont., and Gabrielle Davidson ($1,750), also from Pte. Claire.
Since the awards were initiated in 1983, McGill athletes, coaches and teams have garnered 288 awards totalling $550,250.