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The Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver proudly presents

The 16th Annual JCC Sports Dinner
February 2009

Jack Diamond’s Legacy (1909-2001)

Jack Diamond

JACK DIAMOND was a leader in business, a devoted family man, an inspiring community citizen, and to the world of sports the father of modern-day horse racing in British Columbia. Always full of his trademark energy, Mr. Diamond had been up-front fixture of these dinners. Space doesn’t permit us to tell the complete story of his great life, but here are some highlights.

A leading member of the city’s Jewish community, Jack was a philanthropist, and distinguished himself with several gifts to Simon Fraser University, and a donation of land to the BC Cancer Agency. He was a co-founder of Vancouver’s Variety Club and the BC Heart Foundation, a Chancellor of SFU, a Freeman of the City, and honorary Doctor of Laws, and a Companion of the Order of Canada.


Five Time Olympian and Olympic Silver Medalist CHARMAINE CROOKS represented Canada for close to 20 years in Athletics. As the first Canadian woman to run under two minutes over 800 meters, she won gold medals at the Pan American, Commonwealth, World Cup, and the World Student Games. In 1996, she was named Flag Bearer at the Opening Ceremonies of the 1996 Atlanta Centennial Olympic Games.

She was elected as an International Olympic Committee (IOC) Member (1996 and re-elected as IOC Member 2000-2004), and now serves on the IOC Athletes Commission (1996-present) and the IOC Press Commission (2001-present). She was a member of the IOC Culture/Education Commissions (1996-2004), IOC 2000 Reform Commission and the Athens 2004 Working Group. As a founding member of the independent IOC Ethics Commission, she contributed to developing the current IOC Code of Ethics.

Charmaine is President/Founder of NGU Consultants Inc. (since 1994), a global sports marketing and strategic consulting company. She is also a sought after professional speaker on topics ranging from leadership, team building and the Olympic Movement.

From 2001-2007, she was a member of the Corporate Advisory Board of AIM/Trimark Mutual Funds, and it’s Governance Committee. AIM/Trimark is one of Canada’s largest mutual funds companies.

From 2002-2005, the Federal government appointed her to the Board of Trustees of the Canadian Museum of Nature and in 2007, the BC Government appointed her to the Board of Governors at the University of Northern BC (UNBC).

In 2003, she was elected by her peers to serve on the Executive Board of the international alumni body of Olympians, the World Olympians Association (WOA), and is their current representative to the IOC Athlete’s Commission. In 2007, she was re-elected as Vice President of the WOA and is currently Chair of Olympians Canada, the national alumni body of Olympians. Since 2003, she has been the founding Chair of the PASO (Pan American) Athletes Commission.

As a member of the Executive Board of the Canadian Olympic Committee (re-elected 2005-2009), Charmaine played an integral role in Toronto's 2008 Olympic Bid, and Vancouver’s 2010 Games Bid. She was co-Chair of the successful 2010 “Yes” campaign, which was the first successful Olympic plebiscite. She is currently one of twenty members of the Board of Directors for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games Organising Committee (Vanoc) and is on the Governance and Strategic Communications Committee.

An avid volunteer supporter of sports events staged in Canada, she was the Executive Vice Chair of the 2003 World Weightlifting Championships. This event won the 2003 “Canadian Sport Event of the Year Award”. She was also on the Board of the 2006 Men’s World Ice Hockey Championships and co-Chaired the Protocol and Awards Committee.

Charmaine has also been a freelance Television personality since 1993, and has worked with CBC, TSN, CTV, Fox Sportsnet and European TV as an analyst, host or commentator on a number of sports and variety programs. She was the host of the first national CBC TV show '"Cycle" on recreational cycling, and also co-hosted the nation wide talk show, "In the Company of Women". She continues to host the annual internationally televised award winning "World Athletics" Gala from Monaco. As an executive producer, in 1995, she created the "Comic Relief" style TV special, "No Laughing Matter" which raised awareness for Breast Cancer and aired on the Comedy Network.

Her extensive charitable work includes issues related to children and women’s health and she is an honorary Board member of “Big Sister’s” of the Lower Mainland. As a founding member of the international Board of Directors of “Right to Play”, a global athlete driven humanitarian organization, she Chairs the Governance Committee.

In 2006, she was one of six global sports leaders awarded with the “IOC Women in Sport Trophy” for promoting women in sport by the International Olympic Committee. In March 2004, the National Post selected her as one of the “Top 50 Women of Power” in Canada. In 2005, she was inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame.

Charmaine has a BA in psychology from the University of Texas El Paso (UTEP) where she attended on an Athletic Scholarship, and was the first individual woman inducted into UTEP’s Hall of Fame in 2006.

 
Past Recipients of the Jack Diamond Sports Personality of the year Award
2008

Ron Toigo

President of the Vancouver Giants, Director of the Delta Police Board Foundation and a fundraising member of the Vancouver Children’s Hospital
2007

Steve Nash

BC Native, Phoenix Suns Point Guard and 2 time NBA MVP
2006 Ryan Dempster BC Native and Chicago Cubs Pitcher / Closer
2005 Bob Ackles President and CEO, BC Lions
2004 Jack Poole Chairman and CEO, Vancouver 2010 Olympic Bid Corporation
2003 Stan Smyl Canucks Legend, Manitoba Moose Coach
2002

Bob Lenarduzzi

Vancouver Whitecaps, International Soccer Player & World Cup Olympic Coach
2001 Glen Ringdale Past President of the BC Lions Football Club and VP of the Vancouver Canucks
2000 Greg Moore CART Driver (Champion Auto Racing Team), Moslon Indy
1999 Lui Passaglia Canadian Football Legend & Director of Community Relations for the BC Lions
1998 Trevor Linden Vancouver Canucks Team Captain and NHL star
1997 Arthur Griffiths Community Builder, Vancouver Grizzlies
1996 Jim Robson “Voice of the Vancouver Canucks”
 
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