A High School Sports Year Mixed with Rewards and Regrets

It's the end of June - and the end of another high school sports year.

No shortage of highlights, be they individual or team accomplishments and how about the pile of championships, especially the titles that have been a long time coming?

There were many contentious matters, controversial if you prefer that word, and some decisions made by OFSAA that drew criticism in more ways than one. Some that even involved the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal. Even a few bizarre moments that left people scratching their heads and muttering frivolous things.

With apologies to those I may have missed, here are some highlights from my world of high school sports in the past 10 months.

Let's start with the individual highlights. Aaron Brown, from Birchmount Park, who ran the 100 metres in 10.36 seconds - but just missed out on a Canadian interscholastic record because it was wind-aided. That's quicker than Carlton Chambers, Desai Williams and Hugh Spooner - who went on to compete for Canada internationally. Brown, also a great football player, ignored play calls from his coach twice - and got away with it scoring touchdowns in a Metro Bowl playoff win.

Take note of Andre Ford-Azonwanaa. Only 14, this kid proved he could be the quickest for his age in Canada, timed in 10.89 seconds over 100 metres. The Cardinal McGuigan sprinter went on to win three Ontario high school gold medals on the track.

Rachel Rennick, from Lawrence Park in Toronto, won the Ontario high school slalom and giant slalom ski races despite fracturing an elbow in a toboggan accident a week before the finals. Jonathon Babulall, from Turner/Fenton in Brampton, won his fourth consecutive Ontario wrestling gold medal and has been undefeated in three years. Ryan Dixon, from Wilson in Oshawa, scored six touchdowns and piled up 471 yards on 44 carries in the Ontario Regional junior football final. Shanice McKoy came out of surgery to repair a collapsed lung to play basketball at Pope John Paul II in Toronto and is now on her way to Texas on a U.S. scholarship.

Let's not forget Thea Imbrogno, a Toronto Star hockey all-star the past several years, and she scored the winning goal in OT as St. Basil The Great became the first Toronto school to win back-to-back Ontario gold medals. Oh yes, Julian Clarke. The Oakwood Collegiate basketball star, now athlete of the year, nailed five consecutive three-point baskets and late in a boring OFSAA gold medal basketball game for the Barons' biggest provincial win in 17 years.

On the subject of teams, Oakwood being one of them, Pickering won back-to-back Ontario track and field titles - and coach Cyril Sahadath predicted it too. How about St. Marcellinus from Mississauga, the hockey team that won everything but its last game - the OFSAA gold medal game. In volleyball, the girls' team at St. Ignatius of Loyola in Oakville was the first school from the GTA in the 33-year history of the Ontario Catholic Classic to win the prestigious crown. And Birchmount Park, a perfect 39-match run bolstered a 73-0 streak the past two years to win the OFSAA boys' voilleyball title.

There was the story of 500 free tickets to the NFL game at the Rogers Centre between Buffalo and the New York Jets handed out by OFSAA to coaches, players, volunteers and not sure who else. And OFSAA got the jitters about a possible battle, one it was advised by its lawyers it would likely not win, with the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal. The subject: gender equity. Now, a girl can play on a boys' team - if she makes the cut. OFSAA wanted boys on boys teams and girls' playing on girls teams.

Gymnastics could be going the way of the dinosaurs and, it appears, the same for cheerleaders. Following a steroids incident that saw a university football team get pulled for a year, people started asking questions about whether high schools could be centres for some students taking performance enhancing drugs and human growth hormone. No money for testing and denials from many people. Seemed like the goal was to try sweep this topic under the carpet quickly. And dozens of students continue to pick U.S. universities, and even high schools, over what is offered in Canada. And many of them are coming home too.

And to some other eye-poppers. On-ice racial slurs by several hockey players led the Principal at Thomas A. Blakelock High in Oakville to pull the plug on the boys' hockey team at his school. Turns out that beer and baseball don't mix - for under-age players. An Ottawa school, competing at the Prentice Cup playdowns, packed up and went home after the coach forced several of his suspended players caught with alcohol to watch others on their team play a meaningless game. There was also the ridiculous move by several football players at Chaminade College in Toronto to see what would happen when they put feces in a microwave oven while on a team trip to Michigan.

One of the saddest stories of the year,  a freak accident that shattered the dreams of Anthony Lue. The former Pickering High multi-sport athlete, who aspired to be a major league baseball player, was crushed inside a car at a recycling facility. He's now in a wheelchair. And we continue to pray that Wesley Jorisch, a 16-year old at Marshall McLuhan, miraculously recovers from severe injuries suffered in a rugby game.

What a year - and just barely scraped through some of the stories.

Decisions - and More Decisions

The end of the school year and with it brings the closure of another sports season - but things aren't entirely quiet.

There is the annual shuffle of teachers, many who happen to be coaches, transferring to other schools. Lots of chatter that some schools are talking about curtailing inter-school sports, even intramural ones too.

This is the time of the year when coaches have been gathering for annual meetings too - where they get an opportunity to bid their farewells to those retiring or whatever, get praise for their voluntary time with students, sample the school politics and even get to snoop around and see what changes are coming.

Some of those meetings are about as exciting as watching glue dry. Others, well, just a bit better. At the Toronto District School Board coaches association gathering, one of the hot topics was the annual discussion of age classifications for sports competition. Coaches voted to keep things status quo, which is different from OFSAA. A big concern is not penalizing students who are new to the country or have been held back for significant issues.

In Durham, could be some fireworks that might have a huge impact on school sports. For instance, the athletic association wants all games to start after 2 p.m. because of concerns over teacher coverage. Yet, some teachers are already complaining about late return times.

People in the Durham Catholic Board are also sending a few strong messages. Here's one: that it may not pay for supply teachers while other teachers are supervising teams at tournament and exhibtion games. A suggestion - get ready for this - passing the cost of about $220 a day per teacher on to the players. Parents might have a few choice words about that.

And, there's more.

It appears that buses are the way for transportation for all Durham Catholic students. Liability is the big word. As explained to me, all teams must travel by bus - even a golf team with four players. If a parent is available, that parent can only drive his/her kid. Students may not drive other students. Coaches can not drive students. And I haven't even got to the athletic associations in Peel, York or Halton.

Why Not Randomly Drug Test High School Athletes?

With all the commotion at the University of Waterloo and the drug problem that led to the Warriors football season being suspended for one year, there was quite a significant buzz in the high school world of sports on Monday too.

Some people who I spoke to claim there is a ticking time bomb waiting to explode in high schools. When it does, people will scatter, point fingers at everyone and look puzzled.

I must have heard it said 20 times in the span of an hour from teachers, coaches and parents. They claim there is an increase in the number of high school athletes who take performance enhancing drugs -- and nothing is done to deal with the problem. Now, I don't know if that is poppycock or fact.

Apparently, the money spent on public education on this topic has had little effect. Paul Melia, from the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sports, said on radio on Monday that now is the time to be focussing on high schools. A fact: there is no system to randomly test high school athletes. Boards of Education don't believe kids use drugs to cheat in sports. In Ontario, schools have money to send Principals on conferences, but have to scrounge up coins to just keep school sports alive. Forget about testing for drugs.

To have finances for testing athletes, and hoping to get to the problem early, no way. Some administrators have also told me that steroid use in Toronto schools is highly exaggerated.

Athletic associations, and even OFSAA, have no rules or policies or even penalties in place on their websites to deal with students who are caught cheating by taking performance-enhancing drugs in sports. I can't believe every student that I have watched with bulging muscles and, you know what I mean, gets that strictly from training. If so, I must be from Mars.

In April of this year, Det. Constable Jerome Codrington of the Waterloo Regional Police told our sister paper in Kitchener that performance-enhancing drugs are more prevalent in schools.  So, I would assume a bigger city like Toronto just might have a problem.

Should kids be signing a pledge to not use steroids at the start of a school sports year?

I think so.

Should teachers and coaches and administrators, at the pre-season meeting for school sports teams, clearly articulate anti-drug use in sports along with messages about penalties, behaviour, practices and rules of eligiblity?

I think so.

Should every Board of Education, sports group, athletic association and even OFSAA have received a kick in the butt, after the Waterloo scandal broke, to finally get serious about this problem rather than put it off and focus more on the up-coming summer recess?

I think so.

High schools need to produce policies and rules to deal with students who cheat. They need to have penalties prepared and clearly communicated too. Students who use steroids and human growth hormone to give them an advantage over others need to be booted off teams and sent to proper authorities for assistance -- before they start asking questions about heart attacks, diabetes and more.

The Waiting Game - Sports or No Sports?

So, the end of a school year is just days away, and I figure things are rather quiet these days at high schools around the city.

Apparently, not so. School administrators and teachers are packing up - and on the move.

This is the time of year when they play the shuffle game and move off to other schools. Every Board of Education likes to move some of those six-figure salary senior administrators either for a shake-up or for promotions or to get some strong leadership in certain schools.

It can also be because they, just like teachers, want a change in scenery. Some teachers tell me they have had enough with colleagues and administrations in certain schools and, yes there are personality clashes, and they have to make a move for professional and emotional reasons.

Sadly, many of the younger teachers also won't have full time work in the fall. They've been declared surplus while some, who could retire, are still hanging around - but often don't coach.

I have been getting an unusually large number of calls and e-mail from parents and students -- and even teachers -- concerned about whether schools will offer inter-school sports in the fall. The way it works, if teachers don't coach, the likelihood of sports is not good. For liability and behavioural reasons, a teacher needs to coach or stand around for supervision at a game, even if a non-teacher is doing the coaching.

Remember, coaches are not paid. It can be time consuming and also very challenging - especially when some students pick and choose what practices they show up for and what games they play. Some students still believe that it's a right, not a priviledge, to play for their school. I'll leave that topic for another time.

I know one school in Toronto where two teachers are surplus and a head of physical education, after 10 years, had to re-apply for his job and didn't get it. Hmm. Could there be a problem? He's off to a better job and school - but, unless those coaches are replaced, four teams are no more.

This leaves students, especially those in their graduating years wanting to play sports and impress colleges and universities in Canada and the United States, with a problem. As they pack up in June after exams, students have no idea on whether the same school will have a team in the fall.

It's also tough switching schools now with transfer rules and politics to contend with at various levels.

So, it's now a waiting game. 

All-stars and Athletes of the Year Cap School Sports Year

So, people have been asking me, with all the high school sports championships finished, the school year coming to a close - what do I do?

Well, just remember what Yogi Berra said: "It's not over til it's over."

We're not finished just yet. The Prentice Cup baseball final still has to be played - at Toronto's Connorvale Park instead of the Rogers Centre, because a suitable date could not be sealed by the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations from those provided by the Toronto Blue Jays. So, the kids play in the local park rather than where the pros call home.

After that, time to roll out the Star's annual high school all-star baseball team - a group of very talented young players. Yes, some could be drafted this week. Others are off to university in the fall. And they'll also be recognized on the field at the Rogers Centre on June 23 - just before the Blue Jays play St. Louis.

There's more. Probably the most detailed project of the year. I think it is, since every Public, Private and Catholic high school in the Greater Toronto Area - from the city north to York Region, east to Durham Region and west to Halton Region, has to be contacted.

It's the Star's 30th annual salute to high school "athletes of the year". These are the top athletes, chosen by their respective schools, who are recognized for their success in sports this past school year. Some schools have different criteria in their selection process. Some schools also don't even choose an athlete of the year.

So, lots to do and we hope schools - who were sent letters and reminded by athletic associations - get their information to us so these impressive teenagers are not left off a list that has grown to well over 600 girls and boys.

Some great high school stories, pictures and profiles still to come in the Star's Sports pages and on the website before we close the book on another interesting, controversial and rewarding school sports year.

Covering the OFSAA track and field finals

It has been an intersting few days here in London at these provincial high school track and field finals hosted by the University of Western Ontario.

Lots of excellent performances by teenage athletes from the Greater Toronto Area, some records, some personal bests and some disappointments. Lots of coaches, parents, friends showing their support - but the crowds have been smaller than in previous years.

Maybe the downpour on Thursday - and it was quite the electrical storm mixed with thunder that sent athletes running for cover - scared people away. The long and triple jump pits were flooded while pockets of the track looked like wading pools. Friday was fine, but the skies are overcast again Saturday for this final day.

More records set to be challenged. Some could also fall - if the wind levels remain low and the rain stays away.

But observing things other than just the athletes, I was thinking that if there were awards for non-athletes, my vote goes to the grounds staff, security and therapists.

Yes, the championship started more than one hour late because of the inclement weather, but the UWO people were out in force along with a wave of support staff to get things cleaned up. They don't get much credit because people just want to see athletes perform.

And helping to get some athletes ready were a group of massage therapists. At tables beside the grandstand, I counted seven trained therapists working non-stop (and I didn't see anyone charging) working on leg and arm muscles. Looked tempting, but I didn't ask them if they had 15 minutes for me at the end of the day.

I also wouldn't want to be a security guard. These guys, regardless of some of them looking like bouncers, took so much abuse from fans. All they were trying to do was keep the front of the stands clear so people could watch, and yet they were continuously harrassed, called in-appropriate names and, well, you get the idea. 

Some parents wanted a quick snap on the camera of their children. Fair. But some fans decided it would be nice to stand up and move forward just as the 100 metre final started blocking the view. They did it for other events as well. Others were just obnoxious to the guys trying to do their job so everyone could watch. 

 Gold medals, from me, to the grounds staff, the security and the massage therapists.

Coach Wins, Some Players Lose

You have likely heard the expression many times - boys will be boys.

At Sir Robert Borden High School in Nepean, a suburb of Ottawa, that expression might have a new meaning. I am sure it will be tossed around for awhile, maybe even later this month at Commencement.

It has to do with the manner in which several members of the Bengals baseball team, apparently, decided that it would be alright to try some alcoholic beverages the night before the start of the Prentice Cup baseball playoffs in Oshawa. Some of the players, not thinking about their teammates or even themselves, likely assumed no one would see, things would be quiet and, well, they were away from home.

First off, a violation of the student code of conduct. Also, some players were underage. We can continue, but you get the message.

School principal Barb Gage would only tell reporters in Ottawa that something occurred - but wouldn't elaborate. It would be nice if these officials would admit the truth, protect the names of minors and then explain the course of action taken to ensure there are no repeat incidents.

I can hardly wait until the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations, responsible for this provincial playoff, weigh in - or will they just let things wash off? Maybe OFSAA will leave possible sanctions to their brothers and sisters in the National Capital athletic association or the school or just treat this as a case of - boys will be boys.

Hidden in this embarrassment, and taking away from a well-run event by regional organizer Geoff Whent from Sinclair Secondary in Whitby, was the role taken by school coach Jean Lefebvre. Turns out that I am not the only one who believes the Borden coach should be up for a medal or some form of citation for how he dealt with this mess.

When Lefebvre found out, he spoke with the players, benched and later removed the offenders from the team. Also, he decided to play a game with the remaining roster players allowing them a chance to experience a playoff game.

Borden, with only eight active players, beat Belleville Centennial - but Lefebvre had already determined the game would be a forfeit with a restricted roster. He did the same for the next one against Innisdale from Barrie, withdrew the team from the tournament. Kudos to the coach. I Know there will always be critics questioning why the coach, and his assistants, weren't supervising 24 hours of the day. There has to be some form of student ownership for their habits. Lesson to players: stick to the rules.

Must have been a quiet bus ride home.