Tara Walton - Staff Photographer - @Taralynwalton
Stella enjoys a warm May afternoon laying on the front lawn of their east end Toronto home, with both her Mommies and her brother Sam, May 30, 2012. At two years old Stella was diagnosed with a inoperable brain tumour, doctors had given her three months to live. More on Stella here.
Steve Russell - Staff Photographer - @RussellPhotos
Sometimes people compliment me on my creativity, I'm flattered but the truth is I'm at the mercy of the creativity of the people that I photograph.
That was true last summer when we were visiting the cottage of a friend and their super creative seven-year old.
I was chilling when Fynn cut in on my summer reading by presenting me with a Lego me.
The glasses, hair, smile, square-ish body with a round head! It was an incredible likeness of me!
I tried to get back to my book, but Fynn's imagination tore me from the pages of the book and into a world I was more familiar with. My career in Lego.
Lego me and real me look a lot alike, real me is less yellow.
November featured a lot of football, but here is what happened off the gridiron first.
ANDREW FRANCIS WALLACE - Canadian geese follow a golfer as he walks the 18th fairway at Lakeview Golf Course in Mississauga, November 11, 2012.
Continue reading "Football, Football, Football and other pictures from November!" »
Steve Russell - Staff Photographer - @RussellPhotos
Here is the Hall of Fame line on Mats Sundin,
1346 NHL games, 564 goals, 785 assists, 1349 points and 1886 pictures in the Toronto Star photo archive.
Add to this 91 play-off games with 38 goals and 44 assists.
A search of the Toronto Star Archive for Mats + Sundin gives us 1886 hits, here is a selection of 47 of our favourites.
Inductee Mats Sundin shows off his Hall of Fame ring November 12, 2012. Tonight, he and three other NHL greats will be officially inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. -RICK MADONIK
Carlos Osorio (@carlososorio) & Steve Russell (@RussellPhotos)
STEVE RUSSELL - Not everyone had picked up theur season credential as the Toronto Raptors open their 2012-13 season against the Indiana Pacers at Air Canada Centre.
Continue reading "The Toronto Raptors come up a bucket short in opener" »
Steve Russell - Staff Photographer - @RussellPhotos
In August I was in London at the Olympics surrounded by great athletes with great inspirational stories.
Paula Finlay with low iron levels gutting out a last place finish in the triathlon, Rosie MacLennan emerging as an Olympic Champion, Brent Hayden finally cracking the podium, Alexander Despatie competing after scalping himself months earlier in a training accident and the women's Soccer team winning bronze.
When August ended I thought that the athlete stories would too, or a least slow down.
October taught me different.
October presented to me another group of athletes with stories that were more inspiring than those the Olympics presented.
Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon
The race also featured a half-marathon and a 5K, it is in the 5K that two athletes emerged.
It took seven year-old Owen Derby two hours and 17 minutes to cover the 5K route to City Hall from the Exhibition grounds. He battled the weather and pulled his walker over then entire distance turning down offers from his mother and father to take a break and sit in a stroller with his younger brother.
Seven year-old Owen Derby, who has cerebal palsy, crosses the finish line.
Continue reading "Four inspirational athletes surprise me in October." »
Steve Russell - Staff Photographer - @RussellPhotos
I haven't seen fans wearing paper bags on their heads since, well, since the Leafs last spring.
I can almost see MLSE starting manufacture bags to sell the fans for their teams to make up for all that lost play-off revenue.
Upset TFC fans wear bags on their heads as Toronto FC play D.C. United at BMO Field.
Continue reading "Toronto FC's season in the bag, even though there are a couple games left." »
RICHARD LAUTENS - Devontae Thomas plays in the park before his second birthday party, he was wounded in the Danzig Street shooting earlier in the summer.
RICHARD LAUTENS - Devontae holds hands with a couple of party-goers just before the party starts with his scar on his head clearly visible.
Steve Russell - Staff Photographer - @RussellPhotos
Every photographer seems to have an event they love to cover and they would love to cover it every year.
With some it is TIFF, others the Indy, others Rogers Cup Tennis, others fashion week, and etcetera.
With me, it is also a guilty pleasure, it is the annual pizza eating contest up in Barrie.
It has been going on for three years and features one of the best eaters in the world, Takeru Kobayashi.
It is amazing to watch a 140 pound man pack away 10 pizzas in 12 minutes, incredible!
Staff at Pie Wood Fired Pizza Joint prepare 75 Margherita pizzas for the competion. On the menu the pizza is called the Kobi 43 in honor of the 43 slices he ate in competition the previous year.
Steve Russell - Staff Photographer - @RussellPhotos
First off, I'd like to thank all the volunteers. The volunteers were wonderful, I never had a major issue with any of them. I'm sure when they volunteered that they thought they might be doing something other than looking for a number 4 and the word all on a badge at a lonely elevator, but they took it in stride and would greet you with a smile. Thanks! Olympics wouldn't be possible without these great people.
Smoke stacks representing the industrial revolution rise in the Stadium during the opening ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium in London. More from the Opening.
Canada's Christine Sinclair strips the ball from Japan's Mizuho Sakaguchi as Canada loses 2-1 to Japan in their Olympic Soccer opener. More on getting to this soccer game.
Kaylyn Kyle gets head and hair on the ball in front of France's Camille Abily as Canada wins the bronze medal beating France 1-0.
Team Canada celebrates the Bronze medal winning goal.
Jennifer Abel exits the pool during practice as swimmers and divers train at the Aquatic Centre.
Jennifer Abel readies herself for her fourth dive. She finished sixth in the three metre springboard final.
Émilie Heymans and Jennifer Abel win bronze for Canada in the three metre synchronized springboard final. Hetmans won a medal in each of the last four summer Olympiads.
The Canadian women's synchro team spins out of the water. They would finish fourth in the final.
Japan's opening move wasn't enough to get them to the podium in pairs synchronized swimming, or even overtake Canada in fourth.
Ryan Cochrane wins the silver medal in the 1500 metre freestyle.
Brent Hayden finally gets that elusive Olympic podium winning the bronze medal in the 100 metre freestyle swimming. More on Hayden and "Jubo"
Kim Smith, the human jubo machine, celebrates three of her 20 points as Team Canada nearly upsets heavily favoured Russia in their opening game.
Tamara Tatham has patriotic nails.
Tamara Tatham loses the handle on the ball as Canada plays Great Britain .
Shona Thorburn gets an arm to the face from Austraila's Kristi Harrower.
Canada's Milos Raonic and his big serve defeat Tatsuma Ito 6-3 6-4 in first round action in the Olympic Tennis tournament at Wimbledon. More on the "courts"
Serena Williams yells "Come on" encouragement to herself after missing a point.
A fan watches Roder Federer through a little usher's window on Centre Court.
Daniel Nestor serves, he and doubles partner Vasek Pospisil won their first riound match defeating a Romanian team 6-3 7-6 in the Olympic Tennis.
Victoria Moors .competes on the uneven bars as Canada earns a fifth place finish, their best all time, in the Artistic Gymnastics team competition. More on our Gymnasts.
Coxswain Brian Price celebrates as the Canadian men's Eight win a silver medal in rowing.
Michele Li lays on the court after missing a return. She and partner Alex Bruce lose to a doubles pair from Japan in the semi final 2 sets to 1. The Canadians will play Russia for the Bronze medal. The pair were in the group where four teams were disqualified opening up a shot at a medal. More on shooting badminton.
Jessica Zelinka fails on her second chance at 1.68. Zelinka would fail on all three attempts at 1.68 metres scoring a disappointing 830 points in the high jump.
Canadian Heptathlete Jessica Zelinka reacts to failing on her three attempts at 1.68 metres scoring a disappointing 830 points in the high jump.
Ducks in the in the Serpentine River in Hyde Park share the water with fifty-six women during the women's triathlon.
Paula Findlay already well back of the lead group battles on the bike during the women's triathlon. More on the triathlon.
Simon Whitfield's wife consoles their two daughters after he crashed and would withdraw from the race during the men's triathlon.
Adam Van Koeverden heads to the starts line to begin his Olympic run with the 1000 metre kayak event.
Rosannagh MacLennan qualifies for the final, where she would win Canada's first and only gold of the games with her performance in Trampoline.
Mary Spencer leaves the ring after dropping her quarter final match 17-14 to Jenzi Li in the 75 kg weight class in boxing. More on boxing.
Germany's Helena Fromm beat Vietnam's Hoang Dieu Linh Chu in Taekwondo.
Carol Huynh takes down Isabelle Sambou from Senegal to win the bronze medal.
Haislan Veranes Garcia beats Zalimkhan Yusupov from Tajikistan in 66kg freestyle wrestling.
American Jordan Burroughs goes into the stands to hug his mother stops to pose with fans after winning the gold medal match against Iranian Sadegh Saeed Goudarzi in wrestling's 74 kg weight class.
Canadian sprinter Justyn Warner and Jared Connaughton celebrate thinking they had won bronze.
Canadian sprinter Oluseyi Smith buries his face in the flag as Justyn Warner and Gavin Smellie sit on the track after Canada was disqualified for the bronze medal.
Canadian sprinter Justyn Warner is consoled by his fiance Nikkita Holder after Canada was disqualified for the bronze medal. More on the heartbreak
Canadian distance runner Cameron Levins, fifth from left, runs the 5,000 at the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Olympic Stadium.
The final numbers,
Alexandre Despatie in the men's three metre springboard.
And one more.....
Thanks to everyone that took time during the games to visit this blog!
