Canadian Athletes
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Wayne Gretzky, nicknamed "The Great One, " is widely considered the greatest hockey player of all-time. At the time of his retirement at the end of the 1998-99 NHL season he was the NHL's all-time scoring leader in Goals, Assists & Points in both the regular season & Stanley Cup Playoffs. He led the NHL in scoring a record 10 times, was Captain of 4 Stanley Cup Championship teams, and was named the league's MVP a record 9 times. He is the only NHL player ever to score 200 Points in a season, and did so 4 times in the span of 5 years. A great ambassador of pro sports, he was also named the NHL's Most Gentlemanly Player 4 times and received the Order of Canada (their highest civilian honor) in 1998. Upon his retirement in 1999, his trademark jersey No. 99 was retired by the NHL.- Producer
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Steve Nash is a Canadian former professional basketball player who played 18 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was an eight-time NBA All-Star and a seven-time All-NBA selection. Twice, Steve Nash was named the NBA Most Valuable Player while playing for the Phoenix Suns. He served as senior advisor of the Canadian men's national team and as a player development consultant for the Golden State Warriors.
Steve Nash graduated from Santa Clara as the team's all-time leader in assists and was taken as the 15th pick in the 1996 NBA draft by the Phoenix Suns. He made minimal impact and was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in 1998. By his fourth season with the Mavericks, he was voted to his first NBA All-Star Game and had earned his first All-NBA selection. Together with Dirk Nowitzki and Michael Finley, Nash led the Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals the following season. After the 2003-04 season he returned to the Phoenix Suns. In the 2004-05 season, Nash led the Suns to the Western Conference Finals and was named the league's MVP. He was named MVP again in the 2005-06 season and was runner-up for a third consecutive MVP to Nowitzki in 2006-07. Named by ESPN in 2006 as the ninth-greatest point guard of all time, Nash led the league in assists and free throw percentage at various points in his career. He is ranked as one of the top players in NBA league history in three-point shooting, free throw shooting, total assists, and assists per game.
In 2006, Nash was named by Time as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. He was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2007 and invested to the order in 2016, and was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws by the University of Victoria in 2008. Nash has been a co-owner of the Vancouver Whitecaps FC of Major League Soccer (MLS) since the team entered the league in 2011. From 2012 to 2019, he served as general manager of the Canadian men's national team, for whom he played from 1991 to 2003, making one Olympic appearance and being twice named FIBA AmeriCup MVP.- Joe Sakic is a Canadian professional ice hockey executive and former player. He played his entire 21-year National Hockey League (NHL) career with the Quebec Nordiques/Colorado Avalanche franchise. Named captain of the team in 1992, Sakic is regarded as one of the greatest team leaders in league history and was able to consistently motivate his team to play at a winning level. Sakic led the Avalanche to Stanley Cup titles in 1996 and 2001, being named the most valuable player of the 1996 playoffs, and honored as the MVP of the NHL in 2001 by the hockey writers and his fellow players. He is one of six players to participate in both of the team's Stanley Cup victories. Sakic was named to play in 13 NHL All-Star Games and selected to the NHL First All-Star Team at center three times.
During the 2002 Winter Olympics, Sakic helped lead Team Canada to its first ice hockey gold medal in 50 years, and was voted as the tournament's most valuable player. He represented the team in six other international competitions, including the 1998 and 2006 Winter Olympics. Sakic also played a part in Canada's triumph in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, where he scored six points in six games.
In 2017, Sakic was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history. - Sidney Crosby was born on 7 August 1987 in Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia, Canada. He is an actor, known for Quest for the Stanley Cup (2016), Boys to the Bigs (2008) and Pittsburgh Penguins Greatest Games DVD Set - Volume 2 (2011).
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Mark Messier is a Canadian former professional ice hockey center of the National Hockey League and former special assistant to the president and general manager of the New York Rangers Hockey Team. He played a quarter of a century in the NHL (1979-2004) with the Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers Hockey Team, and Vancouver Canucks. He played professionally with the World Hockey Association (WHA)'s Indianapolis Racers and Cincinnati Stingers. He was the last former WHA player to be active in professional hockey, and the last active player who had played in the NHL in the 1970s.
Messier is considered one of the greatest ice hockey players of all time. He is second on the all-time career lists for playoff points (295) and regular season games played (1756), and is third for regular season points (1887). He is a six-time Stanley Cup champion - five with the Oilers and one with the Rangers and is the only player to captain two professional teams to championships. His playoff leadership while in New York, which ended a 54-year Stanley Cup drought in 1994, earned him the nickname "The Messiah", a play on his name. He twice won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's most valuable player, in 1990 and 1992, and in 1984 he won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player during the playoffs. He is a 15-time NHL All-Star. In 2007, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, in his first year of eligibility. In 2017 Messier was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.- Mario Lemieux is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played parts of 17 National Hockey League (NHL) seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins from 1984 to 2006, assuming ownership in 1999. Nicknamed "The Magnificent One", as well as "Super Mario", he is widely acknowledged to have been one of the greatest players of all time.
Lemieux led Pittsburgh to consecutive Stanley Cup championships in 1991 and 1992. Under his ownership, the Penguins won additional titles in 2009, 2016, and 2017. He is the only man to have his name on the Cup as both a player and an owner. He led Team Canada to an Olympic gold medal in 2002, a championship at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, and a Canada Cup in 1987. He won the Lester B. Pearson Award as the most outstanding player voted by the players four times, the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player (MVP) during the regular season three times, the Art Ross Trophy as the league's points leader six times, and the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoffs MVP in 1991 and 1992. He is the only player to score one goal in each of the five possible situations in a single NHL game, a feat he accomplished in 1988. At the time of his retirement, he was the NHL's seventh-highest career points scorer with 690 goals and 1,033 assists. He ranks second in NHL history with a 0.754 career goals-per-game average, behind only Mike Bossy (0.762). In 2004, he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame.
The Hockey Hall of Fame inducted Lemieux immediately after his first retirement in 1997, waiving the normal three-year waiting period; upon his return in 2000, he became the third Hall of Famer (after Gordie Howe and Guy Lafleur) to play after being inducted. Lemieux's impact on the NHL has been significant. In 2017, he was named one of the "100 Greatest NHL Players". - Trevor Linden was born on 11 April 1970 in Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada. He has been married to Cristina since 8 July 1995.
- Terrance Stanley "Terry" Fox was born on July 28, 1958 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The son of Betty Fox and Rolly Fox, Terry had three siblings: Older brother Fred Fox, younger sister Judy Alder-Fox, and younger brother Darrell Fox. His father Rolly was a switchman for the Canadian National Railway. The Fox family moved to Surrey, British Columbia in 1966 prior to settling in Port Coquitlam in 1968. A driven and determined athlete from a young age, Terry played baseball, rugby, and soccer while growing up. He later took up long distance running while in high school. Fox was chosen as a member of the starting team of his high school basketball team in 10th grade and was co-winner of his school's Athlete of the Year Award in 12th grade. Following graduation from high school, Terry attended Simon Fraser University, where he studied kinesiology so he could become a physical education teacher and was chosen for the school's junior varsity basketball team.
Fox was diagnosed with bone cancer in 1977 and had to have his right leg amputated fifteen centimeters above the knee. Terry was walking again with the assistance of an artificial prosthetic leg several weeks after the amputation surgery. Fox joined Canadian philanthropist Rick Hansen's wheelchair basketball team in the summer of 1977; he won three national titles as part of the team and was named an all-star by the North American Wheelchair Association in 1980.
However, Terry aspired to do something more in the name of cancer research and cancer awareness. Touched by the pain and suffering he had witnessed from numerous fellow cancer patients during his months of chemotherapy in the wake of the amputation of his right leg and furthered inspired by an article on Dick Traum, who was the first amputee to ever successfully finish the New York City Marathon, Fox decided to run across Canada in order to raise both money and awareness for cancer research. Terry started marathon running training with a special prosthetic leg made specifically for running and competed in a marathon in Prince George, British Columbia in August, 1979.
Fox started his Marathon of Hope on April 12, 1980 in St. John's, Newfoundland. Despite initial tepid coverage by the media, frequent extreme pain, and harsh weather such as heavy rain, gale force winds, and even a snowstorm during the first few days of his run, Terry continued to plug away and soon became a media sensation and national hero as he made his way throughout the provinces of Canada. Fox was greeted by all 10,000 residents of Port aux Basques, Newfoundland with a donation of 10,000 dollars. By the time Terry arrived in Ontario on June 22 his cause had raised over 200,000 dollars in donations. Fox met Governor General Ed Schreyer and Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau upon his arrival in Ottawa. Moreover, Terry performed a ceremonial kickoff in front of sixteen thousand fans at a Canadian Football League game. Fox arrived in Toronto on July 11, where National Hockey League star Darryl Sittler gave Fox his 1980 All-Star Game jersey. In addition, Canadian Hockey Hall of Famer Bobby Orr gave Terry a check for twenty-five thousand dollars.
Fox was forced to stop his marathon on September 1, 1980 because of severe exhaustion and serious chest pains due to the fact that his cancer had spread to his lungs. By the time Terry finished his marathon he had run 3,339 miles over the course of 143 days in which he ran the equivalent of a full marathon on each day and had raised 1,700,000 dollars for cancer research. Fox died at age 22 on June 28, 1981. The first annual Terry Fox Run was held in September of that same year. Moreover, The Terry Fox Foundation has raised hundreds of millions of dollars in the name of cancer research and The Terry Fox Research Institute was founded in 2007. In addition, many schools, roads, parks, and buildings throughout Canada have been named in Fox's honor. - Julia Budd is known for Bellator MMA Live (2013), Strikeforce Challengers (2009) and Professional Fighters League (2018).
- Rick Hansen was born on 26 August 1957 in Port Alberni, British Columbia, Canada. He has been married to Amanda Reid since October 1987. They have three children.