Soccer fans will have the opportunity to celebrate one of Canada’s all-time great strikers at the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Tuesday 16 October at BMO Field. Honoured member Tomasz Radzinski will officially be inducted in his hometown of Toronto at Canada Soccer’s upcoming home international soccer match.
Radzinski will be inducted at half time of the Canada home match, with tickets to the event starting as low as $20 (plus applicable fees) via Ticketmaster.ca or by phone at 1.855.985.5000. Group discounts are available by organising a group of 10 or more tickets, giving fans a discount of up to 30% off the regular price. There is also a special Me+3 ticket offer in Price Category 2 which gives fans four tickets for the price of three.
Radzinski is one of two former National Team Players honoured as part of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame Class of 2018. Candace Chapman was inducted earlier this year at a Women’s National Team home match in Hamilton.
TOMASZ RADZINSKI
Tomasz Radzinski was a star forward with Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Team who made more than 500 appearances at the professional level including UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League. He represented Canada at one Concacaf Gold Cup and in three cycles of FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. He was Canada Soccer’s 1998 Canadian Player of the Year and the first Canadian to reach the Round of 16 in UEFA Champions League in 2000-01.
“I am deeply humbled to be inducted into the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2018 alongside Candace Chapman,” said Tomasz Radzinski. “I would like to thank my teammates and coaches as well as everyone who along the way contributed to making me the best player that I could be.”
At the professional level, he won back-to-back Belgium championships with RSC Anderlecht in 2000 and 2001, also featuring in both UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League during that run. He was also the Top Scorer in Belgium in 2000-01. He then moved to England on a then-Canadian record transfer fee where he made close to 200 appearances in the Premier League with Everton and Fulham.
Radzinski played his youth football in Poland, Germany, and Canada, joining the North York Rockets as a teenager in the Canadian Soccer League. After playing for St. Catharines Wolves, he played in Belgium with Germinal Ekeren and RSC Anderlecht, in England with Everton and Fulham, in Greece with Skoda Xanthi, and again in Belgium with Lierse SK and then Waasland-Beveren in 2012. For Canada, he made 46 international “A” appearances from 1995 to 2009, scoring 10 goals and recording eight assists.
“Playing professional soccer was a dream come true for me. Playing my favourite sport enabled me to discover the world with my clubs and, most notably, with the Men’s National Team. I am sure most players would agree that representing one’s country at the highest level always feels like an incomparable honour.”
CANADA SOCCER HALL of FAME
The Canada Soccer Hall of Fame celebrates the individual and team achievements and traditions in the game of soccer in Canada. Including the Class of 2018, the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame has welcomed 114 players, 13 managers/coaches, 10 officials, and 40 builders as honoured members since 2000. Honoured members, by their achievements and passion, have made a positive impact to soccer in Canada and have left a legacy for the sport in our country and around the world.
The Canada Soccer Hall of Fame recognizes the contributions of soccer to the athletic and cultural institution in Canada, celebrating achievements and preserving and commemorating the history of our game.
The 2018 Canada Soccer awards were celebrated on Saturday 5 May in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories after the Annual Meeting of the Members.
2018 CANADA SOCCER AWARDS
Canada Soccer President’s Award - Norm Odinga
Mr. Norm Odinga was an all-star and national champion in Canadian soccer, winning professional championships with the Edmonton Eagles and Vancouver 86ers as well as an amateur Challenge Trophy title with the Edmonton Ital-Canadians. He represented Canada in FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, a North American Nations Cup, the FIFA Futsal World Cup, and won a gold medal at the 1989 Jeux de la Francophonie.
Along with earning his Canada Soccer Coaching B Licence, he served the Association as Chair of the Canada Soccer Discipline Committee and Chair of the Canada Soccer Appeals Committee. For more than 10 years, he provided valuable expertise in the areas of discipline and appeals to the betterment of soccer in Canada.
Aubrey Sanford Meritorious Service Award - Bob Sawtell
Mr. Bob Sawtell has served the Canadian soccer community for more than 30 years as a national and international referee, instructor, and assessor. A former president of the BC Soccer Referees’ Association, he has served as a member of the Canada Soccer Referees Committee since 2003 and continues today as both a National Referees Instructor and Assessor.
Mr. Sawtell served on the FIFA List of Referees and Assistant Referees from 1990 to 1995 and was appointed to international competitions including the 1991 Concacaf Women’s Championship in Haiti, the FIFA World Youth Championship Portugal 1991, and the 1993 Concacaf Gold Cup in Mexico. At the 1993 Concacaf Gold Cup, he was the referee for the Final Match in front of more than 100,000 fans at the famous Estadio Azteca.
Mr. Sawtell is a Ray Morgan Memorial Award and Canada Soccer International Achievement winner, a BC Soccer Life Member, and an honoured member of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame.
Ray Morgan Memorial Award - Dave Gantar
Mr. Dave Gantar has served on the Canada Soccer Referees List since 2004 and the FIFA List of Referees since 2011. Already a Canada Soccer International Achievement Award recipient, Mr. Gantar becomes the 27th recipient of the Ray Morgan Memorial Award since 1980. An official since age 12 at the Edmonton Minor Soccer Association, he became the first person to referee three Canadian Championship final decisive matches when he took charge of the 2017 final, second leg, in Toronto in June. As part of his duties in professional soccer, he served as the Video Assistant Referee for the 2017 MLS Cup final in December.
Over the years, Mr. Gantar has been appointed to officiate at just about every major competition at the professional, national and international level, including the Concacaf Men’s Under-20 Championship, the Concacaf Gold Cup, FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, and Concacaf Champions League.
Canada Soccer Award of Merit - Michael Doyle, Vivian Hansen, Roger Vail
Coach Michael Doyle has been an important figure in Canada’s north as both a Canada Soccer Competitions Committee member and Northwest Territories Soccer Technical Committee member. As chair of the Northwest Territories Soccer Technical Committee, he has provided leadership in aligning clubs, leagues, and communities in the territory. An NWT Soccer Life Member, he has been, in the words of his association, “dedicated to the development of youth soccer and the promotion of youth soccer in the north.”
For more than 20 years, Vivian Hansen has helped improve the game of soccer in the Northwest Territories. She was a coach, manager, and administrator at the club and territorial level including the Canada Summer Games. A former Northwest Territories Soccer board member, she has, in the words of her association, “been a driving force behind the improvement of the qualify of play in the Northwest Territories by encouraging young players to practice their skills and increase their fitness.”
Roger Vail has been a coach, teacher, mentor and community leader who has served both the Northwest Territories Soccer Association as a President and Canadian Soccer Association as a board member. An important figure in helping NWT Soccer become a member of the Canadian Soccer Association in 1984, he has, in the words of his association, “made a difference in the lives of many young Indigenous athletes, instilling in them a sense of pride in their culture through sport.”
CANADA SOCCER RECOGNITION
As part of the evening, several videos were played featuring highlights from the 2017 Canada Soccer season, notably Canadian Players of the Year Atiba Hutchinson and Kadeisha Buchanan, the Top Moment featuring Toronto FC's treble-winning season, the Order of Canada to Christine Sinclair, and the Bronze Medal Celebration match featuring the retirement of several Women's National Team players.
As part of the Canada Soccer Recognition program, Ms. Francine Mérette was honoured for her 25 years of service to Canada Soccer.
Also noted that evening were the two newest members of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame: Candace Chapman and Tomasz Radzinski. Both Chapman and Radzinski will be honoured later this year at home international matches.
CANADA SOCCER LIFE MEMBERSHIP
Mr. Angus Barrett was bestowed Canada Soccer Life Membership at the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Membres. Canada Soccer will celebrate Mr. Barrett at the 2019 awards dinner. Mr. Mike Traficante and Walter Sieber, meanwhile, were both in attendance to formally accept Canada Soccer Life Membership, bestowed at the 2017 Annual Meeting of the Members.
Mr. Walter Sieber has been a key figure in international sport and soccer for more than 40 years. Serving as Director General of Sports at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montréal, he was a General Coordinator at six FIFA World Cups and two FIFA Women’s World Cups from 1986 to 2006. He was part of Canada Soccer’s bid committee for the 1986/1990 FIFA World Cup, was a vice-president of the Canadian Olympic Committee, and served as a member of the National Organising Committee for the record-breaking FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015. He is a former recipient of the Canada Soccer Award of Merit and President’s Award as well as the Government of Canada’s Queen’s Diamond Jubilee medal.
Mike Traficante has been a player, coach and administrator in Canadian soccer for more than 40 years. As a coach, he led Edmonton Ital-Canadians to Challenge Trophy national titles in 1994 and 1997. He later served as President of the Alberta Soccer Association and was a board member of Canada Soccer. He was also a member of the National Organising Committee for the record-setting FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007 and a Canada Soccer Award of Merit recipient.
Canada Soccer has announced that former National Team stars Candace Chapman and Tomasz Radzinski have been named to the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame. The two Class of 2018 stars were officially announced ahead of the Annual Meeting of the Members in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories and will be formally celebrated later this year at National Team home matches.
“Canada Soccer is honoured to congratulate standouts Candace Chapman and Tomasz Radzinski as part of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame Class of 2018,” said Steven Reed, Canada Soccer President. “Candace and Tomasz were standouts at both the professional and international levels while making a positive impact for Canadian soccer at home and abroad. As a testament to their achievements and passion for the game, they are now both honoured members of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame.”
Candace Chapman was a Concacaf champion and Olympic Games bronze medalist with Canada Soccer’s Women’s National Team. She played in two FIFA Women’s World Cups, two Olympic Football Tournaments, and five Concacaf tournaments. She won five Concacaf medals including gold in 2010 and then won Olympic bronze at London 2012, Canada’s first medal in an Olympic Summer Games team sport in 76 years.
"I am incredibly humbled and honoured to be inducted into the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame along with Tomasz Radzinski as part of the Class of 2018,” said Candace Chapman. “It is quite remarkable for me to think of the incredible women with whom I now share this honour: they were pioneers of the game and some fantastic teammates and friends of mine who have laid the foundation for the Women’s National Team Program.”
At the professional level, Chapman won back-to-back Women’s Professional Soccer championships in 2010 with FC Gold Pride and in 2011 with Western New York Flash. She also enjoyed club success with Burlington Sting at Canada Soccer’s U-19 Cup, with the University of Notre Dame in the 2004 College Cup, and with Vancouver Whitecaps FC in the 2006 USL W-League championship. At the international youth level, she was a tournament all-star when Canada won silver at the FIFA U-19 Women’s World Championship Canada 2002.
Chapman grew up in Ajax, Ontario and played her youth football with Ajax United and Burlington Sting. After stints with Toronto Inferno, Atlanta Silverbacks, and Vancouver Whitecaps, she played in the WPS with the Boston Breakers, FC Gold Pride, and Western New York Flash before rounding out her career in the NWSL with the Washington Spirit in 2013. For Canada, she made 114 international “A” appearances from 2002 to 2012 as both a midfielder and centre back and was named to the All-Time Canada XI as part of Canada Soccer’s centennial celebrations in 2012.
“To my incredible former teammates and forever friends: the bond will always be there. Thank you for challenging me to continually be at my best and, most importantly, for all the laughter and love.”
Tomasz Radzinski was a star forward with Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Team who made more than 500 appearances at the professional level including UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League. He represented Canada at one Concacaf Gold Cup and in three cycles of FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. He was Canada Soccer’s 1998 Canadian Player of the Year and the first Canadian to reach the Round of 16 in UEFA Champions League in 2000-01.
“I am deeply humbled to be inducted into the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2018 alongside Candace Chapman,” said Tomasz Radzinski. “I would like to thank my teammates and coaches as well as everyone who along the way contributed to making me the best player that I could be.”
At the professional level, he won back-to-back Belgium championships with RSC Anderlecht in 2000 and 2001, also featuring in both UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League during that run. He was also the Top Scorer in Belgium in 2000-01. He then moved to England on a Canadian record transfer fee where he made close to 200 appearances in the Premier League with Everton and Fulham.
Radzinski played his youth football in Poland, Germany, and Canada, joining the North York Rockets as a teenager in the Canadian Soccer League. After playing for St. Catharines Wolves, he played in Belgium with Germinal Ekeren and RSC Anderlecht, in England with Everton and Fulham, in Greece with Skoda Xanthi, and again in Belgium with Lierse SK and then Waasland-Beveren in 2012. For Canada, he made 46 international “A” appearances from 1995 to 2009, scoring 10 goals and recording eight assists.
“Playing professional soccer was a dream come true for me. Playing my favourite sport enabled me to discover the world with my clubs and, most notably, with the Men’s National Team. I am sure most players would agree that representing one’s country at the highest level always feels like an incomparable honour.”
CANADA SOCCER HALL of FAME
The Canada Soccer Hall of Fame celebrates the individual and team achievements and traditions in the game of soccer in Canada. Including the Class of 2018, the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame has welcomed 114 players, 13 managers/coaches, 10 officials, and 40 builders as honoured members since 2000. Honoured members, by their achievements and passion, have made a positive impact to soccer in Canada and have left a legacy for the sport in our country and around the world.
This year’s Class of 2018 was selected by the Voting Group for Modern Canadian Players from a list of 16 nominations.
The Canada Soccer Hall of Fame recognizes the contributions of soccer to the athletic and cultural institution in Canada, celebrating achievements and preserving and commemorating the history of our game.
