Mission statement: To honour athletes, coaches, builders and teams from the City of Abbotsford for their outstanding contribution or achievement in sport.
HALL OF FAME
A. SELECTION PROCESS
- There are four main categories for the Hall of Fame: athlete, team, coach/official and community sports builder.
- The nomination deadline shall be February 28th of each year.
- Any individual or association may submit a nomination.
- Nominees must have been involved with a sport that:
- Is physical, competitive and adheres to a specific set of standard rules.
- Has affiliation with a provincial or national sport federation, or is a professional organization.
- Is included in multi-sport events (i.e. Olympics, Pan American Games, Canada Games, Provincial Games, etc.)
- A review of all nominations will be completed in March, successful nominees will be contacted in March and the Awards Banquet will be held in late April.
- Successful nominees will require a 5×7 head and shoulder photograph of the nominee. (Photographs will not be returned.)
B. CATEGORIES
- ATHLETE
- The nominee (able bodied or with a disability) should have attained excellence at a Professional, National or International level of senior competition, in a sport(s) specified in the selection process. The nominee must have performed in a manner to bring special honour and recognition to the City of Abbotsford.
- The nominee must be an individual with substantial connections to Abbotsford for a minimum of eight years.
- TEAM
- Abbotsford teams winning an Open National, International, or World Championship, or reaching the ultimate level of achievement in their sport are eligible for induction into the Abbotsford Sports Hall of Fame.
- Note that in a sport where athletes compete in individual events, the team will not be eligible for a team induction.
- A team is not a team if the team result is derived on the basis of a calculation of individual scores.
- Teams are selected for their achievements in one year, not an era.
- COACH/OFFICIAL
- The nominee must have attained excellence at a National or International level, or professional level, of senior competition and performed in a manner to bring special honour and recognition to the City of Abbotsford.
- The category of Coach/Official shall include coaches, officials, administrators, patrons, media (journalists/broadcasters) and sports medicine practitioners.
- The nominee must have served sport for a period of years, but not necessarily consecutive.
- The nominee must be an individual with substantial connections to Abbotsford for a minimum of eight years.
- The individual inducted as an athlete who then goes on to become an administrator/official in the same sport shall not be inducted as a Coach/Official in the same sport.
- COMMUNITY SPORTS BUILDER
- The category of Community Sports Builder shall include persons who have had long term service to their sport and have made major contributions in building that sport in our community.
- The nominee must have served Abbotsford sport for a significant number of years, not necessarily consecutively. (Usually over twenty years.)
- The nominee must have had a career which will be a credit to the Hall and have made outstanding contributions to the sport or development of sport facilities in Abbotsford.
- The nominee must have attained a continued excellence at the local level in developing athletes and/or facilities which have greatly enhanced the sport’s availability, recognition, access or visibility within the City of Abbotsford.
C. WAITING PERIOD
- Athletes and teams shall generally not be inducted for at least three (3) years after they have finished competing (retired). Exceptions may be approved by the Board of Directors in the case of success at the Olympics, Pan-American Games, Commonwealth Games, and World Championships or in the case of terminal illness or death.
- The three year term would not generally apply to Coach/Officials or Community Sport Builders.
- Teams comprised of the same personnel must wait three (3) years before they are eligible for induction.
- If the person or team is not inducted into the Abbotsford Sports Hall of Fame when they are first nominated, their name(s) will be put forward for up to two years after the person or team has been nominated. If, after this period, the person or team has not been inducted, then the name(s) goes into dormancy for at least two years. After this period of time, the person or team can be nominated again.
Please be very clear how this nominee meets the criteria set out above.
WALL OF FAME
The Abbotsford Sports Hall of Fame has established a yearly Wall of Fame which recognizes and honours junior athletes and teams that have demonstrated a high degree of accomplishment in their particular sport over the previous year (ex. Provincial Champion, National Champion, or named to Provicial/National team). To be eligible, athletes must be between the ages of 14 and 24, and teams must be comprised of athletes within that age bracket.
Athletes are vetted by a sub-committee of the ASHOF Board of Directors, and approved by a vote of the entire board.
Wall of Fame honourees will be recognized at the annual Celebration of Excellence, and will be featured on a plaque which will hang on the wall at the Abbotsford Sports Hall of Fame for a period of one year.
Please be very clear how this athlete/team meets the criteria.
COMMUNITY/SCHOOL COACHING AWARDS
In 2020 the Abbotsford Sports Hall of Fame created a new award to recognize long time coaching at the school or community level.
These awards will recognize and celebrate the outstanding achievements and significant contributions coaches have made to their athletes and their sport through coaching. Selected coaches will be recognized at the annual ASHOF banquet and will be honoured with a plaque on the newly created Coaching Wall of Fame.
A. CATEGORIES
• Community Coach – recognizes coaching excellence and accomplishments in grassroots, recreational and competitive community-based sports, at any age level.
• School Coach – recognizes coaching excellence and accomplishments in school-based sport at the elementary, middle, secondary or tertiary school level.
B. CRITERIA
Nominees must be involved with a sport that:
- Is physical, competitive and adheres to a specific set of standard rules.
- Has affiliation with a provincial or national sport federation.
Nominees should:
- Demonstrate a capacity to inspire and motivate athletes.
- Demonstrate a proven capacity to foster team/athlete advancement in a sport.
- Demonstrate respect for athletes, officials, opponents and embrace the philosophy of fair play.
- Make use of commonly acceptable training theory and practice.
- Long time coaching in our community.
The ASHOF should consider the following when recognizing a coach for these awards:
- Leadership – the coach should display positive, stable and consistent leadership skills by establishing a positive coaching environment
- Effectiveness – the achievements of the athletes/team should be improved through the process of coaching
- Development of the Sport – coaches should contribute to the development of their particular sport in Abbotsford.
- Coaching Development – coaches should show an ongoing commitment to personal development, certification and mentorship.
C. SELECTION PROCESS
Applications will be evaluated by a selection committee which is a Sub-Committee of the Board of Directors of the ASHOF.
The selection subcommittee will assess the eligibility of each nomination in meeting the criteria and recommend recipients of the ASHOF Community/School Coaching Awards.
A maximum of two coaches per coaching category (4 in total) may be recognized annually.