Past Lists

Most Influential Women 2004

Dr. Carolyn Bennett, Toronto, ON
The Honourable Dr. Carolyn Bennett, PC, MP, has been a member of Parliament since first being elected to the House of Commons in 1997 to represent the Ontario electoral district of St. Paul’s. Prior to her election, she was a family physician and a founding partner of Bedford Medical Associates in downtown Toronto. She was President of the Medical Staff Association of Women's College Hospital and Assistant Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Toronto. Dr. Bennett served on the Boards of Havergal College, Women's College Hospital, the Ontario Medical Association, and the Medico-Legal Society of Toronto. She was appointed Federal Minister of State (Public Health) in December 2003. In this past year, she has continuously reinforced the link between physical activity and health, and champions the importance of physical activity in most of her public speaking engagements. She is also pursuing the connections between sport, health and physical activity with the Minister of State (Sport) Stephen Owens and is advocating for a solid working relationship that would lead to joint planning and goals, and ultimately result in healthier Canadians.

Guylaine Bernier, Montréal, QC
For years Montreal’s Guylaine Bernier, has chaired the organizing committee for the Rowing Canada Cup – Canada’s annual inter-provincial championship. She has served with distinction on Rowing Canada’s Board, and been president of Québec Rowing. She was recruited by the Fédération Internationale des Sociétés d'Aviron (FISA) to become a member of the Umpiring Commission - overseeing all the technical aspects that are necessary to be in place to ensure a safe, fair competition for the athletes. She is the only Canadian woman to serve in that capacity. Now a very senior and respected international official, she is a talented instructor who trains new umpires. She also operates her own management consultant company Bernier Montminy Inc. In the spring of 2004, she was the FISA Technical Delegate for both the Asian Continental Olympic Rowing Qualification Regatta in China and the one for the American Continental Regatta in El Salvador. She was a FISA delegate as member of the Umpiring Commission at the World Rowing Senior and Junior Championships in Spain. In August she was one of the senior officials for the Rowing venue at the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens. She also helped create Rowing Canada’s adaptive rowing program, and in 2004 Canada’s first adaptive rowing team competed internationally. She is also member of the RCA umpires committee and in charge of the international umpires. Currently, she sits on the Board of Directors of the Montreal National Multisport Center and the Public Administration Institute of Greater Montreal.

Phyllis Berck, Toronto, ON
A lifelong sports enthusiast, feminist, and prominent speaker on equity issues at home and abroad, Phyllis Berck has just completed her two-year term as Chair of the CAAWS’ Board of Directors. Manager of Strategic Issues, Toronto Parks & Recreation for the City of Toronto, she worked with the Calgary Olympic Organizing Committee and also worked on Toronto's Bid for the 2008 Olympic Games. In 2004, she saw two of her long-standing goals for CAAWS come into development. The newly redesigned CAAWS Women and Leadership Program, created for women by women, has been well-received across the country. It now has 18 trained facilitators, has been presented in both French and English, and has been used to train a wide cross-section of both men and women. The Influencing Change session has been presented in Spanish to an international audience at the Pan American Sports Organization Women and Sport Seminar. She also tackled an issue largely ignored by many people in the sports world, homophobia. She opened up dialogue on the topic, holding focus group discussions and then presenting the findings at the Women’s Hockey: Gender Issues On and Off the Ice conference held in conjunction with the 2004 IIHF Women’s World Hockey Championships in Nova Scotia in March.

Charmaine Crooks, Vancouver, BC
One of only three Canadians on the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the only woman, Charmaine Crooks had an impressive track and field career that spanned more than 17 years. She is now President/Founder of NGU Consultants, a sports marketing, promotion and production company that develops and creates entertainment programming, and which provides strategic counsel for companies and athletes on a global basis. In addition to the (IOC) her commitment to sport continues as a member of the executive board of the Canadian Olympic Committee. She also sits on many boards and fulfills numerous speaking engagements both nationally and internationally.Currently, she sits on the Board of Directors of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games Organizing Committee. This past March, she was selected as one of the “Top 50 Women of Power” in Canada.

Linda Cuthbert, Toronto, ON
Linda Cuthbert’s contribution and influence on the Canadian sport system has grown steadily over the years. A National Team Diver for several years, she won a gold medal at the 1978 Commonwealth Games and bronze at the 1975 and 1979 Pan Am Games. As a sport administrator, technical official, volunteer in a multi-sport organization, management consultant, athlete representative, lobbyist, committee member and now President (since 1998) of Diving Canada and of the Aquatic Federations of Canada (since 2003) she has positively affected a variety of people and influenced change and growth in numerous ways.In 2004, she attended every major diving competition at both the national and provincial level in Canada. She conducted a training session for the 2004 COC Mission Staff to encourage teamwork while working in a pressure situation. She represented Canada at international meetings during the 2004 Summer Olympic Games, ensuring Canada’s opinions and suggestions were heard and influenced the decision-making on the international circuit on issues that will affect the future of the sport for many years. As President of the Aquatic Federation of Canada (AFC), she is an ongoing member of the Organizing Committee for the 2005 FINA World Championships in Montréal. Diving Canada, under her leadership, is regarded as a strong sport association, and represented two of Canada’s medals at the 2004 Summer Olympics.

Stephanie Dixon, Toronto, ON & Victoria, BC
Stephanie Dixon, one of Canada’s most successful international swimmers with a disability, is currently pursuing both her swimming career and her studies in psychology at the University of Victoria. Born without her right leg, she not only competed in her second Paralympic Games, she also competed at the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) National Championships against able-bodied athletes.In January at the Canada West Championships, she achieved her dream goal of attaining the CIS qualifying standard in the 200m backstroke. At the CIS Championships, she was awarded an honorary All-Canadian for her performances over the course of the weekend, breaking two world disabled records and narrowly missing a third in the 400m freestyle. At the 2004 Paralympics in Athens, she won six individual medals—one gold, four silver and one bronze – along with two silver relay medals. Now in her second year of university, she is an inspiration to all young athletes to pursue their dreams.

Farida Gabbani, Truro, Nova Scotia
Farida Gabbani has experience at the local, provincial, national and international levels, in a wide range of aspects of education, health, sport, recreation and physical activity. She was an English program consultant with the Chignecto-Central Regional School Board. She was responsible for regional physical education, health, music, art, dance, drama and the Active School Community pilot project. Active School Communities is a component of the Nova Scotia's Active Kids, Healthy Kids Physical Activity Strategy.

As Senior Director, Nova Scotia Sport & Recreation, Office of Health Promotion, she is tackling the issue of inactivity in the province. Her goal is to enhance the quality of life for Nova Scotians, by focusing on healthy lifestyles, and addressing other factors that lead to inactivity, including income, education and environments. She is working across many sectors to minimize the impact and encourage physical activity as a preventive measure for many chronic diseases, including cancer, diabetes, heart disease, or arthritis.

Marion Lay, Vancouver, BC
Although as an athlete Marion Lay won an Olympic medal and set a world record as a swimmer, her significant contributions in a 40-year sport career also include coaching, commentating and policy development. A part of the Vancouver bid to host the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games almost from the inception, Lay Co-Chaired the bid committee for two years, and then became President and CEO of the 2010 LegaciesNow Society. It is the province-wide sport development program introduced by the province as a public-private partnership with the Vancouver 2010 Bid Corp. The program supports sport legacies in the years leading up to the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Marion’s influence is currently being felt throughout her work with 2010 LegaciesNow including support for the 2010 Women’s Sport Inclusion Strategy (which she helped to create) through 2010 LegaciesNow. She serves on the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) which will be responsible for all aspects of planning and organizing the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Nancy Lee, Toronto, ON
The first woman to run the most important sports production and broadcasting operation in Canada, Nancy Lee continues to hold an unmatched commitment to amateur sport and its coverage in the media. She is considered a leader in promoting women in sport, doing it quietly, and without fanfare. She has increased CBC Sports’ programming of both sports involving women and of sports that traditionally appeal to women. She actively promotes the development of women both on the air and behind-the-scenes at CBC Sports. Through her achievements, she has changed corporate culture to foster the advancement and recognition of women in the traditionally male-dominated worlds of sport and sports broadcasting.In 2004, she spearheaded CBC’s coverage of the Summer Olympic Games from Athens, Greece. She ensured coverage of the games presented equitable coverage of women’s sports, and featured many women as announcers and commentators.

Ljiljana (Lilo) Ljubisic, Vancouver, BC
A five-time Paralympic competitor, Ljiljana (Lilo) Ljubisic, is a blind athlete who successfully represented Canada in national team handball and athletics for 20 years. She is a world class discus and shot put thrower with 19 international podium finishes including a gold medal at the 1992 Summer Paralympic Games in Barcelona, Spain. After nearly two decades of competing in Paralympic Sport, Lilo has developed a lifetime commitment to and passion for sport for athletes with a disability. She serves as Chair of the International Paralympic Committee's Athletes Council, as a long standing Athletes Can Board Member and with the 2010 LegaciesNow Society. She spent two months of 2004 in Athens, participating in both the Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games, presenting medals, attending meetings and advocating for athletes at the international level. She also received the International Isabel Ferrer Prize, given by the Valencian Government (Spain) on behalf of the European Commission, in recognition of the 2004 International Year for Education and Sport. The award recognizes women who have contributed to equality between men and women. It is given to women with international and deserved recognition in working in social fields and who have strongly worked in defending human rights.

Dru Marshall, Edmonton, Alberta
Dru Marshall has a doctoral degree in exercise physiology and is the Associate Dean Academic in the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation at the University of Alberta. A National level field hockey player, she has also been a successful coach, working within the national field hockey program for over 20 years, and was the head coach of the national women's field hockey team from 1996 to 2001. Winner of numerous Coach-of-the-Year awards at all levels, she continues to make an outstanding contribution to the development of women’s sport in Canada through teaching and research, mentoring national coaches, and advising the Federal Minister of Sport. She is a scholar in issues of childhood obesity and children’s fitness; coaching and physiological demands of high performance sport; eating attitudes; behaviours and disorders in female athletes.

In 2004 with Sheilagh Croxon, she presented results of a landmark survey they conducted that looked at the coaching contracts of 18 national level coaches. It provided an invaluable snapshot of the state of contracts for coaching positions at the national level of elite amateur sport in Canada. It also identified the need for women coaching at the national level to understand their contracts, what should be included in a contract, and how to negotiate for things that they believe are important in contracts. It will go a long way to supporting women in national coaching positions both now, and in the future.-

Anne Merklinger, Ottawa, ON
An elite athlete for most of her life, Anne Merklinger was one of the top swimmers on Canada's national team in the late 1970s, showing great talent, energy, tenacity, and world-class results. After a distinguished swimming career she focused on curling and since the early 1980's she has competed with distinction at every major event she has entered. A passionate, creative, and inspiring leader, Anne is dedicated to the inclusion of athletes with a disability. She was the driving force and key strategist behind several international initiatives. She is currently Director General of the Canadian Canoe Association (CCA) and sits on many other sport committees including the Canada Games Council and the Sport Matters Group.Her leadership of the CCA ensured the training facilities and preparation of the athletes was of the highest calibre for the 2004 Summer Olympic Games, including securing sponsorships and managing staff and volunteers. This resulted in the best performance ever for the Canadian Canoe and Kayak Team at the Olympics. For the first time since 1948 every member of the Sprint Canoe and Kayak team reached an Olympic final, and athletes won 1 gold medal and 2 bronze. The Canadian Canoe Association was also allocated the highest amount of sport participation money ever from Sport Canada in development for its Aboriginal Initiative. Still competing in curling she continues to skip her team to strong performances.

Lori-Ann Muenzer, Edmonton, AB
Although she may have seemed to come out of nowhere in 2004, Lori Ann Muenzer has been a member of Canada’s national cycling team since 1994. Despite numerous injuries, including a broken collarbone, tendonitis, lung infection, broken hip, and a ruptured appendix, she has been able to stay among the top riders in international cycling. Throughout this 10-year career, she has four world championship medals, three Commonwealth Games medals and several podium finishes at other major events.In 2004 her hard-fought and jubilant victory in the sprint event raised the spirits of the entire Canadian team at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. Her ever-present grin during the post-event media interviews was a joyous expression of dedication, grit, determination and sheer enjoyment of sport. At the age of 38 she was an inspiration to all who watched, especially when it was understood that she had to communicate with her coach Steen Madsen back in Canada by cell phone. Then this full-time Canadian amateur athlete, and Canada’s only female gold medallist, rushed home to get back to her full-time job in a law firm. She was also been named the Canadian Press female athlete of the year for 2004.

Chantal Petitclerc, Montréal, QC
She lost the use of her legs after a childhood accident at the age of 13, but since then Chantal Petitclerc has gone on to become one of Canada’s most decorated athletes. The five-time Paralympian had a remarkable performance at the 2004 Paralympic Games in Athens, breaking three world records, and one Paralympic record on her way to five gold medals. She has achieved celebrity status throughout Quebec for her athletic accomplishments and also appears regularly on television.Well recognized and respected as a competitor, in 2004 she emerged as an advocate for Paralympic athletes. Her quiet refusal to share Athletics Canada’s top track and field award with Perdita Felicien, vaulted her into the spotlight. Although taking a difficult stand, she used the opportunity to highlight the value of Paralympic medals and competitions, and in doing so, became a nationally recognized voice and face of Paralympians that extended well beyond the realm of sport. Her profile was appreciated by many people in the disabled community for bringing such a positive, strong and courageous message to many people. She ended 2004 by being named the Canadian of the Year by Macleans magazine.

Cathy Priestner Allinger, Edmonton, AB & Vancouver, BC
An Olympic medallist in speed skating, Cathy Priestner Allinger has been involved with all aspects of sport and sport management. After her competitive career ended, she was a colour commentator for speed skating on television. She then moved into sport management, and was Managing Director of Sport for the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympic Games, and Managing Director of Games Operations for the 2006 Torino Olympic Winter Games, She is also is an Olympic Order recipient and inductee of the Canadian Hall of Fame and Olympic Hall of Fame.In 2004, she was hired to the position of Senior Vice President of Sport-Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC), the only woman currently hired at that level of the planning team for the 2010 Games. She also wrote a report on the state of winter sport in Canada for the Canadian Olympic Committee and helped create and implement their Own the Podium plan.

Pat Reid, Toronto, ON
Pat Reid's contribution to curling, the Olympic Movement and Canadian sport is outstanding. For over 40 years Pat has been involved in curling as a competitor and volunteer at the club, city, provincial, national and international levels. She has become proficient in virtually every aspect of the sport and continues to find new ways to serve the Canadian sport system. She served as Team Leader for curling at the 1998 Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan. She is a Canadian Olympic Committee Executive Committee Member, representing the Canadian Curling Association on the COC. She remains an active curling coach, working with the sport's world-class athletes as well as beginners. An active chair of the COC's Women in Sport Committee, Pat is continually looking to identify ways in which the COC can be more effective for Canada's athletes, coaches, officials, administrators, volunteers, and sport professionals in both domestic and international milieus. In 2004, Pat has taken that responsibility even further, being named to the Pan American Sport Organizations (PASO) Women's Committee Board.

Jane Roos Leinemann, Toronto, ON
A promising track athlete before an accident ended her athletic career at age of 19, Jane Roos Leinemann has turned her passion for sport into helping amateur athletes. Jane has been a unique force to support Canadian amateur athletes between Olympic games. She understands their need to be able to train and to properly prepare, without having to juggle training with a part-time job. The See You In Sydney Fund was the first of its kind set up that financially assisted 78 of the 311 Canadian athletes who represented our country at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. She continues to be an advocate and fundraiser for amateur sport in Canada as the founder of the See You In... Funds. She was responsible for supporting many of the athletes who competed at the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens. Since 1997, the See You In Fund has raised more than $1.2 million and has assisted many athletes in their dreams of competing for Canada in international winter and summer games. The next goal is to raise money for the See You In Torino Fund, to support athletes at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games.

Deb Sanderson, Toronto, ON
For years Deb Sanderson has been one of the top sports production executives in Canada, and she has also been a trail blazer for women in senior television production positions in Canada. Currently Director of Live Events for Rogers Sportsnet, she oversees production of NHL and Junior Hockey, NBA Basketball, Soccer, Lacrosse, Baseball and many other sports, ensuring over 200 hours of live event programming goes to air flawlessly on Sportsnet's four regional feeds. Her passion for developing sports has raised the profiles of lacrosse and soccer on Canadian television. She lobbied for more coverage of lacrosse and is a major factor in the National Lacrosse League's success. She is an avid supporter of women in sports broadcasting, encouraging and promoting other women to assume visible roles in sports television in Canada. Another of her major projects was the 2001 FIFA Under-19 Women's Soccer Championship, which stood as the highest rated broadcast for Rogers Sportsnet for several years. In 2004, she ensured that the Women’s Under-19 World Soccer Championship was once again available to Canadians, actively championing its broadcast on Rogers Sportsnet.

Marlene Stewart Streit, Unionville, ON
Following an outstanding golfing career that spanned five decades, Marlene Stewart Streit continues to be an influential women in sport in Canada. As an amateur golfer, she came to prominence in 1953 when she won the British Women’s amateur as a 19-year old. She is the only golfer to have won the Canadian, Australian, British, and US Women’s amateur championships. She holds 11 Canadian Ladies Open Amateur titles, 9 Canadian Ladies Close Amateur titles and 3 Canadian Senior Women’s Amateur titles. She won 4 USGA events, including the 1956 Women’s Amateur. She was the named Canadian Press’s female athlete of the year five times between 1952 and 1963. She remained an amateur throughout her distinguished career, and forty years after her first win, she became the oldest person ever to win the US Senior Women’s Amateur, winning it for the third time in 2003.Already a member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame, in 2004 she became the first Canadian to ever be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Dr. Elinor Wilson, Ottawa, ON
For three decades, Dr. Elinor Wilson has gained national and international recognition as a leader in public health, particularly in health promotion, chronic disease prevention and tobacco control. She has extensive training in nursing, management and health sciences and her broad experience spans the voluntary sector, government, professional organizations, and academia. She served as Chief Science Officer for the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada for five years where she worked with granting agencies, the academic research community, and national/international liaisons. In December of 2003, she became the Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA), based in Ottawa.In one short year, Dr. Wilson has brought her coalition and network building skills to this role. She has actively championed the Healthy Living Strategy, in conjunction with the Chronic Disease Prevention Association of Canada (CDPAC). Her leadership and involvement in both organizations has seen strong plans and goals for public health in Canada that will result in cessation, prevention and protection from tobacco and tobacco smoke, and practising regular physical activity and healthy eating.