Stronger Influence of Olympic Movement Displayed in 'Power 50' List
COC President, 2012 Chef de Mission Among Honourees
The widespread influence of Canada’s surging Olympic Movement is illustrated in The Globe and Mail’s “Power 50” list published today. Alongside eight current athletes are influential members of several Canadian Olympic Team partners, and three individuals closely tied to Canada’s potential success at the London 2012 Olympic Games.
“Canada’s Olympic Movement is building momentum not only here in this country but across the globe,” said Jean R. Dupre, COC Chief Executive Officer. “It’s a very special time as our Olympic athletes continue to inspire and impassion Canadians, just as Canada’s worldwide influence in Olympic sport grows higher and higher.”
Leading the Olympic executives on the Power of 50 list is COC President Marcel Aubut, who has raised the profile of the organization since taking office in April 2010, building on the Olympic momentum flowing from Vancouver 2010. Joining him on the list is Canada’s 2012 Chef de Mission Mark Tewksbury, who will lead and support the Canadian Olympic Team at the London Games, and Alex Baumann, the swimming icon who returned to Canada in 2007 to lead the COC’s summer sport development – and who is now chief executive director of Own the Podium.
Athletes on the Power 50 List include:
• Sidney Crosby, whose gold medal goal brought the nation together
• Christine Sinclair, among the best women’s soccer players in the world
• Christine Nesbitt, now the world’s most dominant middle-distance speed skater
• Hayley Wickenheiser, women’s hockey icon playing a role in the sport’s development
• Kevin Martin, gold medallist and the most recognizable face in curling
• Clara Hughes, inspirational Olympian, 2010 flag bearer with considerable non-profit involvement
• Jenn Heil, star moguls skier, recent world champion and two-time Olympic medallist
• Steve Nash, 2000 Olympian and Canada’s most influential basketball player ever
• Lauren Woolstencroft, who won five gold medals at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games
Several Olympic partners and sponsors are also featured on the list, led by Gord Nixon, president and CEO of RBC, a long-time COC sponsor that has supported Canadian athletes since 1947. Also on the list are Bob Nicholson and Steve Yzerman, who guided Canada’s hockey teams to great success, and Tennis Canada’s CEO Michael Downey.
