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Alberta

Olympic Champion Mark Tewksbury unveils new exhibit at Alberta Sports Hall of Fame – The Halftime Report

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New 2SLGBTQIA+ exhibit, ‘True to You in Sport’, unveiled in Hall of Fame Gallery

The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame is thrilled to unveil our newest exhibit, “True to You in Sport”, which examines the journeys and challenges faced by four of our Honoured Members who identify as 2SLGBTQIA+.

Honoured Member Mark Tewksbury and his partner, Rob Mabee, were on hand on July 9th to help us officially unveil the display.

The exhibit features artifacts and stories from Mark as well as fellow Honoured Members Danielle Peers, Keely Brown, and Kessie Stefayk.

“Every person should have the ability to pursue their dreams without fear of discrimination or prejudice based on age, race, religion, gender, or sexual identity. Unfortunately, this is not the case,” says Breanna Suk, Collections and Exhibit Coordinator. “Many athletes have faced, and many still do, discrimination from sport organizations, team management, coaches and even fellow athletes for things they have no control over.”

Located in the Hall of Fame Gallery, “True to You in Sport” is open from 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Monday through Friday, and from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm on weekends and select holidays.

Look who recently stopped by the Hall

Legendary Medicine Hat Tigers announcer Bob Ridley swung by the Hall on July 9 to drop off two mini banners celebrating his call of the 4,000 Tigers game of his career.

One will be added to the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame’s collection, while the other will go to Hockey Alberta’s Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame collection.

Greg Korbutt, son of Alberta Sports Hall of Fame visionary Orest Korbutt, was also by on July 9 to tour the Hall for the first time. Thanks for visiting, Greg!

Save the Date: Induction Banquet now scheduled for October 22 at RDC’s Arts Centre

We are excited to announce that the 2020 Induction Banquet, which was postponed due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, is now scheduled for Friday, October 22 at Red Deer College’s Arts Centre.

More details will be shared in the coming months.

Nominations are also now being accepted for next year’s class of inductees. The deadline for applications is October 29, 2021.

Visit https://www.albertasportshall.ca/nominate for more information.

Exciting changes on Alberta Sports Hall of Fame Board of Directors

The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame is pleased to announce some
exciting changes to our Board of Directors following the Annual General Meeting held on June 29.

We would like to welcome new Board Chair Dale Henwood and new Vice-Chair Leslie Sproule to their new positions. Don Oszli remains Treasurer, and Jack Neumann is staying on as Secretary.

Also joining the Board are Calgary’s Jasen Pratt and Innisfail’s Desmond Bouteiller. Both men come from an extensive sports background, including high development sports coaching.

This newsletter is sponsored by the Peavey Mart.

Honoured Member in Focus: Donald Lovo

Donald Lovo won several Provincial and National Archery Championships.

From 1962 to 1965, he was a member of Canada’s Elite International level team. He served as both Vice President and President of the Federation of Canadian Archers.

In 1968, Donald Lovo became the first Canadian to be recognized as an International Judge of Archery.

He has been awarded the Federation Internationale Target Archers gold and silver plaquettes and was honoured as Air Canada’s Official of the Year in 1984.

Provincial Sport Organization: Archery Alberta

Archery Alberta is the source for target, field, and 3D archery in Alberta.

Archery Alberta, the trade name of the ATAA (Alberta Target Archers Association), is the recognized Provincial Sports Association representing archery in Alberta.

Archery Alberta facilitates the development of the sport of archery by providing accessible opportunities for clubs and archers to participate in a broad range of programs across multiple disciplines to whatever level they choose.

The Olympic Flames light a fire in athletes

The tradition of the Olympic Flame is one that connects the modern Games with their ancient Greek heritage.

The ancient gift of the flame was said to give humanity a start towards civilization.

In the modern Olympic Games, it signifies of that same myth, an ode to the growth of civilization, and the ancient traditions of the Games.

The modern Olympic Flame tradition as we know it today dates to the 1928 Olympic Games when the first Olympic flame was lit.

Honoured Member Keely Brown joins Ringette Canada’s Junior National Team as assistant coach

Honoured Member Keely Brown is moving on up!

Ringette Canada announced on July 6 that Keely was joining the Junior National Team as an assistant coach working with the goalies.

Keely was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in 2018 as a ringette athlete. She played goal with Team Canada from 2000 – 2012 and is the longest-serving goaltender in the team’s history.

Congratulations, Keely!

Are you ready to take your dates to a whole, new level?

Our new Date Night Out Monthly Charity Auction officially gets underway tomorrow.

Head to https://trellis.org/monthly-date-night-auction for this month’s auction item, and check back regularly for new, exciting date options.

Golfers wanted!

We’re looking for sponsors and golfers for the Annual Alberta Sports Hall of Fame Golf Tournament, which tees off on Tuesday, September 14 at the Innisfail Golf Course. This season, we will be partnering with the Innisfail Eagles Hockey Team.

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to support the preservation of Alberta sports by playing at one of the province’s crown jewels.

Call (403) 341-8614 or email programmer@albertasportshall.ca for more information.

Looking for fun and engaging programs for your kids this summer?

We will be hosting two camps this summer:July 19-23, 2021 & August 16-20, 2021. The sessions run from 9:00 am – 5:00 pm daily.

The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame will be hosting two week-long summer camps with daily themed programming ranging from Healthy Active Living to All About Art and everything in between.

Register for a day or the whole week!

$30/ day or $125/week per child, Ages 6-12yrs.

Call 403-341-3814 to register your child today- Space is limited.

**Our decision-making process is based on directives given by the Government of Alberta and Alberta Health Services. As the COVID-19 situation progress over the next two months, so will our plans.**

Leave a legacy

The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame needs your support to continue the ongoing preservation of Alberta’s sports history and the development of museum exhibits. We are grateful and appreciative of the generosity of our supporters and friends. We would be happy to assist you in choosing how your personal legacy will be fulfilled and the many options available. Here is some information on donating shares to ASHFM and the benefits to you as a donor.

Donate

The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame provides a family-friendly, interactive experience. You will be surprised by what you discover inside! Have fun, laugh, play and discover Alberta sports heroes together. The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame is an interactive, hands-on celebration of Alberta's sporting history. Our over 7,000 square feet of exhibit space includes a multisport area with virtual baseball, basketball, football, hockey, and soccer; an adaptive sports area, including a 200 meter wheelchair challenge; a Treadwall climbing wall; the Orest Korbutt Theatre; the Hall of Fame Gallery; an art gallery displaying works by provincial artists, and much more. Our venue boasts a collection of over 17,000 artefacts of Alberta sports history and showcases many of these items in a number of displays. The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame also offers an education program, group activities, and a unique environment to rent for your birthday party, special event, corporate reception or meetings.

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Alberta

ASIRT investigations concluded on fatal officer-involved shooting involving the RCMP.

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Incident investigation report from the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT)

Introduction

On December 22, 2022, the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) was directed pursuant to s. 46.1 of the Police Act to investigate a then non-fatal Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officer-involved shooting. The shooting of the affected person (AP) was reported to have happened during an interaction with him, as a result of him being a suspect in a complaint of a man with a gun.

While AP initially survived, he died of complications from the shooting the following day.

ASIRT’s Investigation

ASIRT’s investigation was comprehensive and thorough, conducted using current investigative protocols and principles relating to Major Case Management. Information from civilian witnesses, the subject and a witness officers, and importantly video recordings provided sufficient information to determine whether the force used by the subject officer during this incident was reasonable.

Circumstances Surrounding the Officer-Involved Shooting

On December 01, 2022, Maskwacis RCMP received a call reporting that a male [AP] had been drinking and left the caller’s house with a gun. AP was shooting the gun in the country (believed to be the area around the residence). Two RCMP officers responded.

Witness officer (WO) located AP walking on the road with a rifle. AP walked toward WO’s marked police vehicle with the rifle pointed at the vehicle/WO, while WO was seated in the driver’s seat. WO then exited his vehicle with his carbine rifle and moved to the rear of his vehicle while AP kept the rifle pointed at the police vehicle. The subject officer (SO) arrived on scene, but came from the opposite direction. AP turned around and walked toward SO with the barrel of the rifle pointed upwards. SO exited his police vehicle with his service pistol drawn and walked toward AP while he
repeatedly provided verbal direction to AP to drop the firearm. AP and SO were walking toward each other; at that time AP still had the barrel of the rifle pointed upward. As SO and AP got within approximately five meters of each other, AP lowered the barrel of the rifle and pointed it directly at SO. SO fired multiple rounds and struck AP with four rounds causing AP to stumble, drop the rifle and fall to the ground. AP initially survived the shooting and was transported to an Edmonton hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery. The following day, AP succumbed to his injuries.

Analysis

The subject officer was lawfully placed and acting in the execution of his duties in dealing with AP as a person who was the subject of a complaint about him being in possession of a firearm and shooting it off.

The Use of Force

Under s. 25 of the Criminal Code, police officers are permitted to use as much force as is necessary for the execution of their duties. Where this force is intended or is likely to cause death or grievous bodily harm, the officer must believe on reasonable grounds that the force is necessary for the self-preservation of the officer or preservation of anyone under that officer’s protection.

A police officer’s use of force is not to be assessed on a standard of perfection nor using the benefit of hindsight.

With the benefit of hindsight, time for detached reflection and knowledge of the ultimate outcome, it is easy to speculate about how things could have been done differently. That is not the standard, however, against which an officer’s conduct is measured. The question is, applying principles of proportionality, necessity, and reasonableness, whether the force used falls into a range of possible reasonable responses.

Proportionate Response

Proportionality requires balancing a use of force with the action to which it responds. Here, the subject officers were faced with an individual that was armed with a gun and pointing it in their direction. As such, the response by the subject officers in using their respective firearms to shoot AP was proportionate to the threat of death or grievous bodily harm that he reasonably posed to both of them.

Reasonably Necessary

As set out previously in this report, AP presented as a lethal threat to both SO and WO given his actions in pointing his rifle at them. While WO did not shoot during this incident that does not impact the analysis of SO’s actions. Under the circumstances as then faced by SO, no other use of force options were reasonably available for attempted use. The use by SO of his firearm to incapacitate this lethal threat was reasonably necessary. Given the above, the defence available to SO under s. 25 of the Criminal Code would apply.

Conclusion

Under s. 25 of the Criminal Code a police officer is justified in doing what he or she is authorized to do and to use as much force as is reasonably necessary where he or she has reasonable grounds to do so. Force intended to cause death or grievous bodily harm is justified if the officer believes, on reasonable grounds, that the force was necessary to prevent the death or grievous bodily harm of the officer and/or any other person. The analysis under s.34 of the Criminal Code leads to a similar finding that subject officer’s actions were lawfully permitted.

After a thorough, independent and objective investigation into the conduct of the subject officers, it is my opinion that they were lawfully placed and acting properly in the execution of their duties. There is no evidence to support any belief that any officer engaged in any unlawful or unreasonable conduct that would give rise to an offence. The force used was proportionate, necessary and reasonable in all the circumstances.

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Alberta

Alberta requests more control over provincial immigration system

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Alberta is requesting more control over its provincial immigration to address its skilled workforce shortage, including increasing Ukrainian evacuee participation in the job market.

Premier Danielle Smith has written a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asking him to re-evaluate his government’s decision limiting the number of allocations for Alberta’s provincial nominee program in 2024. Last week, the federal government informed the province it would only receive 9,750 such allotments – which is the same number of allocations Alberta received in 2023 and is less than the 10,140 for 2024 the federal government had originally allocated.

As of February 2024, Alberta accounts for just under 12 per cent of Canada’s population, but it leads the nation in net employment growth, with 42.8 per cent of the country’s employment gains between January and February 2024. By not providing the requested increase to Alberta’s provincial nominee allocations, the federal government is restricting the province’s ability to keep up with its growing labour market demands, especially as it relates to integrating Ukrainian evacuees into Alberta’s job market.

“Alberta is growing and that is good news. Since January 2023, more than 100,000 new jobs have been created in our province and our employment rate has led the country even longer. At the same time, we continue to experience labour shortages that could be resolved by welcoming skilled workers from around the world, including evacuees from Ukraine, many of whom have the exact skills that our job market most needs. Alberta has long been the economic engine of Canada and we are once again requesting Ottawa respect section 95 of the Constitution and let us welcome the skilled individuals we need into our province on our terms.”

Danielle Smith, Premier

With Alberta’s population growth at levels not seen in four decades, Alberta’s Provincial Nominee Program is best placed to address the province’s unique immigration and economic goals.

Part of Alberta’s population growth has resulted from Russia’s invasion in Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Since that time, Alberta has welcomed a significant number of Ukrainian evacuees to the province. While it is anticipated that many will return to Ukraine following the war, Alberta is also expecting a number of families to apply for permanent residency via the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program. An increase in the number of allocations from the federal government would assist these new Albertans to fill positions in the province’s workforce.

“Immigration is key to Alberta’s ability to address labour shortages and to grow our economy. This limitation imposed by the federal government on our provincial nominee program will be a very difficult pill to swallow, not only for businesses that need this skilled labour but also to the many Ukrainian evacuees who have the skills we need and wish to stay permanently in Alberta.”

Muhammad Yaseen, Minister of Immigration and Multiculturalism

Quick facts

  • The federal government through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada sets provincial immigration nomination limits. It also approves all permanent resident applications.
  • Alberta maximized its 9,750 nomination allocations in 2023, with a total of 10,029 nominations issued within the federal government administrative buffer.

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