Page 29 - Sports Energy News, Cornwall, Issue No 49

www.sportsenergynews.com Issue #49 DECEMBER 2016 29

“People Pulling Together for you”

613.936.0660 • www.minimaxexpress.com
605 Education Rd. Cornwall, ON, K6H 6C7

Sports Panel
presents

The Greater Cornwall Area has produced many successful Sports Personalities over the years.
Who do you feel are the top two sports personalities and why?

Gilles Gaudet - Sports Enthusiast - Two men immediately come to mind when the question of important Cornwall sports personalities
is raised. These two men, who were polar opposites in stature, not only represented Cornwall well because of their exploits in the
sporting arena, but were heralded because of their strength of character. One was a high school hero, excelling in football, combining
speed and size like few before him. His hard work enabled him to transfer these traits into a professional career in Ottawa, a Grey
Cup champion, a CFL Hall of Famer; the accolades go on and on. The other athlete was idolized by many in Cornwall for his hockey
prowess. His innate ability to control the game from his position on defence was only outdone by his celebrated booming slap shot.
Those qualities helped him dominate the QMJHL; lead the Royals to a Memorial Cup championship, and a tournament MVP award for
himself. Yes, in different eras, Moe Racine and Dave Ezard made us proud to be Cornwallites. We remember their successes fondly,
and keep the memories of their accomplishments alive.

Jake Lapierre - Conditioning Coach - Many athletes have had an historical presence in the community, many have excelled in their
sports career, and others have contributed a great deal to the community after their sports career. I decided to choose the personalities
based on contribution to the community.
The first top sports personality that came to mind is a gentleman who has devoted a lifetime to sports and education; I was quite
surprised to find out this gentleman isn’t in the Cornwall Sports Hall of Fame. He was an original member of the Flying Fathers touring
hockey team, former coach of the Cornwall Royals, renowned junior hockey scout with both the Jr. A Colts and Nepean Raiders,
recipient of the Jacques Richard Memorial Trophy, currently the head scout for the boys’ program at the Ontario Hockey Academy
in Cornwall, lifelong educator, and has helped countless young hockey players extend their careers into academic scholarships with
colleges in Canada and the United States. Mr. William (Bill) Murphy is in my opinion a top sports personality.
This next gentleman was part of the Cornwall Royals famous kid line, played in Oshawa with team mate Bobby Orr and spent several
years as an NHL official. He returned to Cornwall as head coach of the Royals in 1980, winning a second consecutive Memorial Cup
Championship. He also spent several years coaching in Cornwall’s minor system and took two of his teams to the prestigious Quebec
Pee Wee Tournament. He turned his focus on politics and became a Member of Parliament for Stormont / Dundas, acting as the Liberal
Sports Critic. After leaving federal politics he returned to the municipal stage and successfully ran for Mayor in 2006 and served the
community for 8 years. Because of his years devoted to the community, Mr. Bob Kilger is in my opinion a top sports personality.

Jim Riddell - Seaway Karate Club -My choices for the top two sports personalities are a pair of professional athletes who have
excelled at highest level of their chosen sport over an extended period of time. The career of Moe “The Toe” Racine ended in 1974,
thirty- four years before Tony “Lightening” Luis began boxing as a pro, but I have had the good fortune to have seen both perform on
numerous occasions. Moe Racine played seventeen years in the CFL with the Ottawa Rough Riders, holding the team record for most
games played. As an offensive tackle, who for a six year period also handled place kicking duties, Moe won the eastern conference
scoring title once and finished second on three other occasions. He was a member of four Grey Cup winning teams and was a four-time
eastern conference all-star. Moe’s #62 is one of only ten numbers retired by the Rough Riders in the team’s history. He is a member
of the CFL Hall of Fame as well as those of both Ottawa and Cornwall.
Tony Luis had a standout amateur boxing career - a seven time Provincial titleholder, an Eastern New York state Golden Gloves champ,
winner of the Four Nation Cup, where he defeated the champions from Scotland, Ireland, and Wales and was voted top fighter in the
tournament. In his eight years as an amateur, Tony defeated ten Canadian Champions before turning pro in 2008. Two of his twenty-
two pro victories have been against undefeated fighters being showcased on American TV. Wanzell Ellison had twice fought in the
Golden Gloves nationals and had qualified for the Olympics, but was defeated by a fairly wide margin on the scorecards against Luis.
A few months later in Mashantucket Connecticut, live on ESPN Tony was a 7-1 underdog vs Karl Dargan, who was 17-0 at the time
and considered by many to be a future world champion. Tony dropped Dargan to the canvas, winning almost every round enroute to
a lopsided victory. On Nov. 19th at the Hershey Center in Mississauga, Tony fought in Ontario for the first time as a pro. He soundly
defeated Christian Urusquieta of Mexico, a fighter who had not lost a fight in the past six years. Tony Luis has now been fighting for
sixteen years, but at age 28 is right in his prime – more to come.