Cape Breton announcer to be named to Sports Hall of Fame
Dave Leblanc has been the voice inside Cape Breton's main arena since it opened in 1987. He'll soon be inducted into the Cape Breton Sports Hall of Fame. Kyle Moore has the story.
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CBC
23 minutes ago
- CBC
Para boxing helped this N.B. man regain his confidence, now he wants that for others
Social Sharing Andrew Lawlor has spent the past eight months getting ready for his first-ever boxing match. But he isn't like most boxing newcomers. He's 57 years old and has one leg. "When you go from being reasonably able-bodied and you get hurt and a lot of your abilities are taken away, you lose a lot of confidence in your own physicality, your own ability to do things," he said. Lawlor had his left leg amputated above the knee after a car accident in 2018. As a result of the same accident, he also has partial use of one eye, and one arm that "doesn't really work." "But I'm not going to tell you which one because I've got to fight in a week," he joked. WATCH | 'The world's going to tell you that we're lesser physically, and we're not' In this corner, a Fredericton Para boxer aiming to get the sport recognized 2 hours ago Duration 3:04 Andrew Lawlor is ready to get in the ring, but there are few other Para boxers he can compete against. He's fighting an athlete who is not disabled instead. Although he wouldn't have called himself an athlete before the accident, he was a longtime rugby player, so he soon began playing wheelchair rugby. That's where he met a man who would become his mentor: New Brunswick Paralympian Hal Merrill. "He told me something and I will never forget it. He just said, 'It's gonna be OK' and he rolled away," Lawlor said. "And I didn't know what he meant at the time, but I know now. And he's right. It is OK." Merrill passed away in March, but he's still an inspiration to Lawlor. "He helped me believe in myself," he said. Lawlor's wife Lesley has also been a support every step of the way. She said she wasn't surprised when he took up Para boxing. "You can never tell Andrew no for anything," she said. "He just continues to get stronger and stronger and stronger, and he's unstoppable." Getting into the ring As Lawlor began to regain his physical strength, he started taking boxing classes for the cardio workout. He met Dave LeBlanc and Rennie Bradford at Fight 4 Fit 'n Health Fitness Centre in Minto. "I fell in love with the sport, and Dave and Rennie showed some faith in me and my ability to maybe get in the ring," said Lawlor. From there, they started looking for someone who Lawlor could fight against. But there aren't many other Para boxers in the region. So Lawlor's first match, on Saturday, will be against a non-disabled boxer who will use a wheelchair for the fight. "He's half my age. Twice as big. He's got a ton of experience which I don't have, so I've kind of got him right where I want him," Lawlor said with a laugh. LeBlanc said there have been some challenges in training Lawlor, because when a wheelchair boxing match happens, the two chairs are locked together in the centre of the ring. "This is like us going into a whole new realm of boxing that we've never dealt with," LeBlanc explained. "I've always been able to throw a punch, move to the side, roll back, do a couple slips. You can do the slips, but you can't roll back, not when you're tethered together." Now, only days away from the fight, Lawlor is as excited as he is nervous. But the outcome isn't what's important. "I've already won," said Lawlor. Expanding the sport The match is not going to count toward any official standings, because Para boxing isn't an officially recognized sport in New Brunswick. And that's part of the reason why Lawlor isn't fighting another Para boxer. "Because it hasn't been promoted or supported here in New Brunswick, there haven't been many developed," Lawlor said. He and his coaching team are working with Parasport New Brunswick to try to get the sport officially recognized. "We should have the opportunity to play any sport we want, or pick up a guitar or a bass or go sing on stage or act in a play." said LeBlanc. "There shouldn't be any barriers to this life and we're working together to reduce one more." CBC News reached out to Parasport New Brunswick for an interview, but did not receive a response by publication time. There's also a larger push coming from Atlantic Canada to try to get Para boxing recognized by the Paralympics. In Nova Scotia, Aaron Kinch is a Para athlete and coach of two Para boxers. He's hosted several unofficial Para boxing matches. "They're all exhibitions as of right now due to insurance purposes," he said. "No winner, no loser, just like a demonstration." About five years ago, he founded the International Adaptive Boxing Federation, which now has members from 20 countries, including Canada. Kinch said his group hopes to have Para boxing officially recognized in time for the next Paralympics in 2028. "These guys go from not being able to compete in boxing … and then they train, they get in the ring and they have a lot of fun, and that would mean the absolute world to all these guys," he said. Lawlor may not have Olympic aspirations, but he does want to see the sport continue to grow. He's looking to get certified as a coach, so he can be a mentor to others the way Merrill was for him. "I do almost all the things I used to do now, just in a different way, and the toughest one to convince that, was me," he said. "And if I can help someone else shorten that journey, I think this is all worth it."
National Post
39 minutes ago
- National Post
Complainant in hockey players' sex assault trial not credible, defence argues
LONDON, Ont. — A woman accusing five hockey players of sexual assault made up a false narrative because she didn't want to take responsibility for her decisions that night, a defence lawyer for one of the players argued as final submissions in the case began Monday. Article content David Humphrey, who represents Michael McLeod, argued the complainant has presented an 'entirely unbelievable and unreliable' version of what transpired the night of June 18 into the early hours of June 19, 2018, and urged the judge to disregard several aspects of the woman's testimony, including that she acted out of fear. Article content Article content Article content He argued the woman may not have been willing to acknowledge to others and even herself that she had been 'sexually adventurous in a hotel room' with several men she had just met, and created a narrative 'in which she bears no responsibility' for her participation in those acts. Article content She was upset that she had cheated on her boyfriend and felt McLeod and Alex Formenton, another accused player who was his roommate at the hotel, had been rude to her as she left, Humphrey said. Article content When her mother found her in the bathroom at home, looking upset, 'it suited her purposes to present herself as a victim,' the defence lawyer argued. Article content 'But what started as … an understandable white lie shared in private with her mother snowballs beyond her control into a criminal investigation.' Article content McLeod, Formenton, Dillon Dube, Carter Hart and Callan Foote have pleaded not guilty to sexual assault. McLeod has also pleaded not guilty to an additional charge of being a party to the offence of sexual assault. Article content Prosecutors allege McLeod, Hart and Dube obtained oral sex from the woman without her consent, and Dube slapped her buttocks while she was engaged in a sexual act with someone else. Article content Article content Foote is accused of doing the splits over the woman's face and 'grazing' his genitals on it without her consent. Formenton is alleged to have had vaginal sex with the complainant inside the bathroom without her consent. Article content All five of the accused were members of Canada's 2018 world junior hockey team and were in London, Ont., with many of their teammates for a series of events marking their gold medal victory at that year's championship, court has heard. Most of the team ended up at a downtown bar, Jack's, after an open-bar gala hosted by Hockey Canada, court heard. Article content The complainant, who was 20 at the time, was at the bar with some co-workers and eventually left with McLeod to go to his hotel room, where they had sex. That encounter is not part of the trial, which instead focuses on what happened after several other players came into the room.
National Post
39 minutes ago
- National Post
Abbotsford Canucks: How Max Sasson savoured the biggest goal of his career
Max Sasson's heightened level of resolve was already a good story. Article content Undrafted and undaunted to carve out a pro hockey career is a good book of work that includes his first NHL game and then his first goal with the Vancouver Canucks earlier this NHL season. Article content Article content However, the latest chapter is also a must-read. The amiable Abbotsford Canucks centre, who struggled to score in the AHL Western Conference final series, finally found the back of the net when it mattered the most Sunday in Game 6 against the Texas Stars. Article content Sasson snapped a 2-2 draw midway through the final period with a deft deflection of a point shot by Akito Hirose to send the Abbotsford Centre crowd into a frenzy. And when Arshdeep Bains scored his second of the night into an empty net, the Canucks punched their ticket to the best-of-seven Calder Cup final against the Charlotte Checkers. It opens Friday in North Carolina. Article content Sasson's exuberant goal celebration was highlight-reel material because of its impact. Bigger than his first NHL game on Nov. 23, 2024, in which he had an assist, and bigger than his first goal a few weeks later on Dec. 14. How high does Sunday's marker rank? Article content 'It's got to be No. 1,' said the 24-year-old Sasson. 'I've been pretty snake-bitten. I've had a lot of shots and for one to go in at that moment, it felt really, really good. Obviously, a massive goal for the team. When we get a lead in the third we're a really hard team to break down with our structure.' Article content Article content Which, of course, prompted the big fist pump after Sasson's decisive goal. It was his first in seven games and fourth of the post-season. He had 13 goals in 41 regular-season outings because he's adept at tipping pucks. Article content Article content 'I just let it all out,' he said of the celly. 'It felt like the monkey was off my back, and the crowd was insane, just the whole place. I kept on looking around and 'wow'. That was so cool.' Article content Sasson was so caught up in the post-game celebration that he wanted to touch the conference final championship trophy, which of course is a no-no for any team with higher aspirations, so the traditional team photograph had to suffice. Article content 'Chase (captain Wouters) let us know we're not touching it,' laughed Sasson of getting his mitts on the Clarke Trophy. 'But I wanted to touch it pretty bad. I haven't won much and I just pretended to almost touch it just to mock him a little bit. But, yeah, we're looking for the next one (Calder Cup).'
