Category: 2016 Inductees

Those inducted in 2016 to the Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame

  • Donna Brooks – Athlete

    The name Donna Brooks is synonymous with Women’s Hockey in Prince Albert. She was a trail blazer in minor hockey in the city, going on to represent the city and province at numerous high level competitions then forging a strong women’s team for over 30 years.

    In the early 1980s Donna wanted to play minor hockey, but was uncomfortable as she would be the only girl. She approached minor hockey and asked them if she formed an all-girls team, could the team play in minor hockey. She did form a team of girls aged 10-16 and this team was placed in the peewee division.  That grew into 3 teams for a brief time, but the boom was short lived and she then competed on men’s rec teams. Eventually she was recruited by Nancy Dragon to join the PA Bingo Blazers, an organization she would be an integral part of for many years.

    In Donna Brooks’ prime as a hockey player she competed provincially 12 times as well as at First Nations tournaments, Western Canadian Shield competitions and the Esso National Championship.

    From 1991 to 1993 she was the Captain of the Prince Albert entry in the Western Canadian Shield championship tournament, then in 1994 was picked up by Saskatoon for the same event. In all four Western Canadian tournaments, Brooks won at least one Player of the Game honour. She also played on teams at the Banff Hockey Canada Tournament 3 times, including winning the event in 1995.

    In 1990 Brooks joined a team from Saskatoon to compete for the Esso Canadian Women’s Challenge. Although the Saskatchewan entry was not strong, Brooks was the only member of the team to score a goal against powerhouse Ontario, managing to beat Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Geraldine Heaney to the puck.

    Later on in her career, Brooks would compete at the Edmonton Ice Nomads tournament three times highlighted in 2012 by scoring the only goal in a 10 person shoot out.

    Donna Brooks’ milestone contribution to hockey in Prince Albert began with the PA Bingo Blazers. Within three years of joining the team Brooks was the key organizer, a position that has lasted through 2016. The team has had various names along the way: Loren’s Blades, PA Optimist Rangers, the PA Stars and the PA Tundra. For 28 of the 30 years she was involved, it is believed Brooks was the teams’ points leader tallying well over 500 goals and 1000 points.

    Her organizational skills as a volunteer to line up practices and games have allowed hundreds of women over the years to participate in the sport in Prince Albert. A recipient of the YWCA Women of Distinction Award,

    At the time of induction in 2016, Brooks was still play and organizing the PA Tundra women’s rec hockey team and active in the sport of Crossfit.

    2016 sees Donna Brooks retire as an active player in Women’s Hockey but her legacy in the sport will be a lasting one in Prince Albert.

    Donna Brooks – Athlete

  • Bryan Swystun – Athlete/Builder

    Bryan Swystun’s life has been about sports; from a strong player in many disciplines, to organizing and coaching. Swystun has been able to successfully transcend his love of sports to help young athletes develop into the best they can be, not only in sport, but in life. Having developed athletes from grassroots to elite levels, Swystun has used his enthusiasm and love of coaching to develop these athletes into responsible citizens. Winning is not his primary focus, but teaching athletes to become the best they can both in and out of sport.

    Swystun grew up playing all sports in Prince Albert from volleyball, golf and basketball to badminton, water sports and soccer. He was most proficient in hockey and football. In football he captained and quarterbacked his Crescent Heights minor team to a provincial title. He went on to play high school football for St.Mary and was set to redshirt at the University of Saskatchewan with the Huskies as quarterback. However his hockey career would take precedence over football.

    Swystun played his minor hockey in Prince Albert through house league and developmental levels. Highlights included in Pee Wee he won a Provincial Title and with the Midget Raiders he was selected to attend the Sask Midget All-Star game. He had a short stint with the Humboldt Broncos in the SJHL, but returned home that year to play football in his Grade 12 year. That winter he played for the PA North Stars and was selected to the Saskatchewan Team that participated in the 1983 Canada Winter Games in Quebec.

    He then accepted a hockey scholarship at Camrose College of the ACAC where he was the Rookie-of-the-Year in 1983-84. He then went on to play for the U of S Huskies from 1985-88 including a trip to the National Finals in 1987.

    Swystun then took his hockey career overseas to play for the English Division 1 Romford Raiders in 88-89. He then returned home to finish his Education degree. After accepting a teaching position in Meath Park he extended his hockey life by playing Senior with Birch Hills, winning the Provincial ‘C’ title in 1993, as well as the Senior ‘A’ title with the PA Buckeyes in 1998.

    In golf, Swystun represented Saskatchewan at the Canadian National Long Drive Competition in 2000 and 2001. In 2001 Swystun had the longest drive recorded in Canada at 426 yards.

    His playing background set up Swystun to become a very knowledgeable and instinctual coach in many sporting disciplines. In hockey he coached from Initiation to house league to developmental levels with the PeeWee AA Raiders, as well as two coaching stints with the Midget AAA Mintos. His also has coached in soccer, lacrosse and football at the minor levels.

    Bryan Swystun – Athlete/Builder

  • Ron Hlasny – Builder

    From a strong competitor to coach, Ron Hlasny’s love of speed skating has resulted in the Prince Albert Speed Skating Club. At age 14 Hlasny joined the Saskatoon Lions Speed Skating club where he competed in provincial, western Canadian and National levels.

    Hlasny then stepped back from the sport to attend school in Lethbridge where he was recruited by a parent to assist with three young long track skaters making up the Lethbridge Speed Skating Club. One of the three skaters he coached there won a silver medal at the Alberta Provincials and his coaching career was forged.

    After school, Ron and his wife, Heather settled down in Prince Albert where they would create the Prince Albert Speed Skating Club in 1991. Similar to Lethbridge, the PA Speed Skating Club started with three members, all from one family that recently moved to PA from BC. The Club was the fourth in the province joining Moose Jaw, Regina and Saskatoon. One of the highlights of the club was an outdoor oval Ron and other club members, along with help from SIGA, Broda Construction Inc., Prince Albert Fire Department and the Midtown Rink Association, built and maintained at the PA Exhibition Grounds for 3 years in the mid 2000’s. The oval allowed skaters to try long track speed skating and a place for school groups to take children out for a skate.

    Ron and Heather Hlasny operated the PA Speed Skating Club for 10 years before both of their children would compete from 2001 to 2010. Daughter Magda has followed in her father’s footsteps as one of the PASSC’s coaches. There have been many successful athletes under Hlasny’s coaching that have gone on to the Saskatchewan Speed Skating Provincial and Development Teams for both short and long track. Skaters at this level attend training camps and continue to be coached by the local club.

    Many members of the Prince Albert Speed Skating Club have competed in both the Saskatchewan and Canadian Winter Games. One skater, Elliott Nelson moved on to both the National and International level in long track speed skating.

    One of Ron Hlasny’s best attributes that has resulted in a long and successful career as founder and coach of the PASSC is his willingness to help everyone in the sport. He has reached out to many nearby communities like Debden, Shellbrook, Nipawin, Kinistino and Melfort to welcome athletes of help a in forming a club. He often takes time at meets to confer with other coaches about the technical aspect of their skaters’ performance.

    Ron Hlasny has had a tremendously positive affect on athletes and families through the sport of Speed Skating in Prince Albert and has nothing but praise for the skaters, their parents and the communities in the Prince Albert area that have helped to maintain the Prince Albert Speed Skating Club over the last 25 years.

    Ron Hlasny – Builder

  • Mark Nagy – Builder

    Swimming, running and biking have been a part of Mark Nagy’s life for the past 30 years. His obsession with the sport of triathlon has led him to participate and organize races with the Prince Albert Triathlon Club.

    It started in 1987 when Mark did his first Triathlon in Weyburn followed by his first Frank Dunn Triathlon in Prince Albert. In October, 1987 Mark and his wife Kathryn on their honeymoon travelled to Hawaii to watch the Ironman in Kona, on the island of Hawaii.

    As a competitor from 1987 to 2016, Mark Nagy has participated in 185 triathlons including 77 sprint, 55 Olympic, 15 Frank Dunn, 24 Ironman and 14 Ironman distance races. Participating from Winnipeg to the interior of British Columbia. As a competitor his greatest accomplishment is to have competed in 11 straight Ironmans from 2001-2011 with the support of Kathryn and his 3 children.

    As an organizer, Mark Nagy is best known as the Race Director of the Frank Dunn triathlons in Waskiesui from 1990-2016; 26 consecutive years and counting. The Frank Dunn was started by Frank Dunn and a group of friends in 1982 who wanted to try triathlon.  The race had unique distances which attracted thousands to participate.

    The PA Roadrunners took over the organizing of the event in 1986, and Mark was asked in 1990 to help out as he had the experience having travelled to Alberta and BC and competed in National caliber events. Mark brought some experience and a professional approach to the Frank Dunn Triathlon, which has resulted in a tradition of a well-organized event that is a must-attend function on the calendars of triathletes across Western Canada.

    Nagy competed in, as well as organized, the event for the first 15 years he was involved, As the race grew, Nagy stepped back from competing to concentrate on organizing this marquee event. In 2003 the PA Triathlon Club was formed and has become a major supporter of the Frank Dunn, continuing the races’ success.

    Nagy has seen numbers as high as 200 individuals and 40 teams participate in the Frank Dunn triathlon which utilizes Waskesui and the beautiful Prince Albert National Park as a track that racers truly love.

    Having competed and organized in 185 triathlons, with more on the horizon, Mark Nagy will be inducted into the Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame as a Builder.

    Mark Nagy – Builder

  • Bob Tichkowsky – Builder

    Bob Tichkowsky started in the sport of boxing at age 10 under the tutelage of Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame member Tut Coombs along with Tom Settee and Jerry Walker. Tichkowsky represented Canada in the Junior Olympics before his boxing career was cut short due to injury prior to the Olympic Trials in 1976.

    Tichkowsky then focused on forming his own clubs, the Tut Coombs Boxing Club in 1986 assisted by Garth Garipy, followed by the KO Combination Club. In 2010 the boxing club was renamed the Tom Settee Boxing Club in honour of the long time professional fighter and member of the Canadian and PA Sports Halls of Fame, Tom Settee. Through thirty years of coaching whether it be Coombs, Wild Cats, KO Combination or Tom Settee, Bob Tichkowsky has enjoyed working with young athletes, keeping them off the streets and giving them hope, while preaching discipline.

    A National amateur coach since 1992, Tichkowsky has produced top level competitors out of Prince Albert for many years. No less than 8 Golden Gloves champions and 46 Saskatchewan Champions, including 12 in 1989, have trained under Tichkowsky.

    Jason Page, Richard Caron, Benji Campbell and Donnie & Billy Osler are among the top fighters to train under Tichkowsky. Campbell and Donnie Osler took part in the 1992 Canadian Championships in St. John’s, Newfoundland where they were accompanied by their Prince Albert coach. Osler won bronze while Campbell placed fourth.

    Tichkowsky also coached Wayne Caron to the Canadian Championships in 1987 where he fought Chris Johnson, who went on to win a bronze in the 1992 Olympics for Canada.

    Sheldon Tichkowsky, Bob’s son, won a Silver Gloves title in Edmonton in 2008 and has followed in his father’s footsteps as a professional boxing coach.

    Tichkowsky continues as coach of the Settee Club producing up and coming professional boxers like Ian Abbott who won his first professional fight in February, 2016 in Saskatoon, co-coached by Sheldon Tichkowsky.

    Tichkowsky has coached for almost thirty years with Braddock Koch, who was inducted into the Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame in 2015. He also has been assisted by Blake Edwards for over 20 years.

    Bob Tichkowsky has had a tremendous effect on many youth through his coaching of boxing and is a member of the Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame as a builder.

    Bob Tichkowsky – Builder

  • Bruce Vance – Meritorious Service

    Bruce Vance has worn many hats for the hockey and softball communities in Prince Albert, putting the city on the map on the provincial, national and international landscapes while helping develop the sports and the athletes.

    In hockey, Vance was instrumental in bringing a World Junior pre-tournament game to Prince Albert in 2011. Fans enjoyed watching Switzerland and Latvia in advance of the World Juniors in Saskatoon. He also helped bring the ADT Challenge Cup to Prince Albert in 2008 where Team WHL battled Russia. Vance was also awarded the Western Hockey League marketing award in 2007 for his work with the Prince Albert Raiders.

    On the local front Vance was the President of the Crescent Heights Community Club for seven years. During his tenure, it was determined the outdoor rink was in need of an upgrade. An NHL sized outdoor rink was built in 2011 as Vance had in the back of his mind to host an Outdoor Classic game. That dream became reality on January 19, 2013 when the first ever Outdoor Classic in Saskatchewan was hosted by the Crescent Heights rink. He chaired a committee and partnered with the Community Club, City, A & W Bears, Mintos and PA Minor hockey to ensure there were benches, penalty boxes, score clock and seating in place to make that piece of history come alive for Prince Albert.

    Vance and his wife Liane held the position of co-managers for the A & W Bears Midget Girls AAA hockey team from 2012-15. Vance helped to build a successful program that was run on a professional level to make the Bears a sought after organization in female AAA hockey. He also served as hockey chairman for the 2014 Saskatchewan Winter Games committee where he oversaw both male and female hockey.

    In softball he was the co-founder of the Girls Prairie League of Softball (GPLS). The league was founded in 2011 with 21 teams in Albert and Saskatchewan, and has grown to 64 teams in 2015. The GPLS started out as a predominantly Alberta league but as Vance has spread the word other Saskatchewan teams become involved. Prince Albert has been able to host three GPLS tournaments in the city in the first five years of the league’s existence.

    On a grass roots level, Vance was a coach with Prince Albert Minor Softball for 10 years as well as a member of league Executive. On the provincial level, he was an ADFO coach for six years, coaching both boys and girls earning a Western Canadian bronze medal in 2007 with Bantam boys and a provincial silver medal in 2012 with Midget girls. He has also sat on the ADFO coaches’’ selection committee.

    When it comes to hosting major events, Vance was a host committee member of the 2005 Pee Wee Western Canadian boys and girls fastball championships, the 2006 U19 Canadian mens fastball championships and the co-chair of the 2009 U19 Canadian mens fastball championships. He was recognized being named the 2009 Volunteer of the Year by Softball Saskatchewan. Vance will also assist on the committee that will bring the 2018 World Junior Mens Fastball Championships to Prince Albert.

    Vance has been a member of the PA Sports Hall of Fame Board of Directors since 2007. He also co-founded and led the Special Olympics/Raider Education Fund Training for Life Power Breakfast from 2006 to 2016 helping raiser over $100,000.

    Bruce Vance will be inducted for Meritorious Service.

    Bruce Vance – Meritorious Service