On a May evening in Halifax, 530 people gathered at the city’s Convention Centre to celebrate some of the many athletes, coaches, officials and volunteers who make amateur sport tick in Nova Scotia. Organized by Sport Nova Scotia, the 2026 Support4Sport Awards distributed 250 honours across the amateur sport landscape, serving as another great reminder that the province continues to produce and inspire more than its share of athletic talent.
While senior athlete of the year winners Nathan MacKinnon and Blayre Turnbull were unable to attend, the talent filling the room made a compelling case that Nova Scotia’s sporting future is in very good hands.
Junior Male Athlete of the Year – Ronan Sinclair
Fall River’s Ronan Sinclair, who took home Junior Male Athlete of the Year in taekwondo, went 13–0 in 2025 – winning his fifth straight Canadian championship in addition to Pan American gold. This performance was remarkable on its own. But what made Ronan’s feat extraordinary was that six months earlier he tore his meniscus.
“There were times I doubted, times I thought about giving up,” he says. “But I always remembered my why and the dream I had as a little kid. I never felt better than at that tournament.”
Ronan started the sport at four years old and told his coach early on that he was going to the Olympics. He’s still on track.
“It’s 90 per cent mental,” he says. “You can be the greatest athletically, but if you can’t get past adversity and adapt to little changes, you can’t win.”
Junior Female Athlete of the Year – Julia Snelgrove
Dartmouth’s Julia Snelgrove earned Junior Female Athlete of the Year in speed skating after her third consecutive Canadian Junior Long Track Championship, collecting gold in the 500m and Mass Start events while adding silver in three other events. A nationally competitive cyclist as well, Julia found speed skating after watching a family friend compete at the Special Olympics. And the former ringette player discovered another talent she didn’t know she had once she tried it.
She highlighted the importance of the support she has received to continue her schooling and hopes to see more support for travelling athletes.
“Without the Ignite program, I wouldn’t have been able to do high school,” she says. “A lot of athletes need support while they’re travelling and want to do well in school, but it’s really difficult.”
The Canadian Sport Institute Atlantic’s Ignite program offers flexible scheduling, with students residing in Nova Scotia attending local schools and completing core classes for graduation and university preparation through personalized plans built around their sport and education requirements. The model allows student-athletes greater flexibility to study, train and compete.
Sport Makes a Difference Award – Surfing Association of Nova Scotia
Adam Talbot Tory, a leading volunteer with the organization, has made a significant impact over the past year as president of the Surfing Association of Nova Scotia (SANS). The association has been committed to equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility, working closely with organizations such as Autism Nova Scotia, ISANS, Alnaas, SHYFT House, Life Rolls On and the Tri-County Women’s Centre. SANS has been at the forefront of creating new opportunities for neurodivergent participants and other equity-deserving groups, including African Nova Scotian and Mi’kmaw youth.
“The goal is to create an environment where beginners and newcomers feel welcome, and athletes who want to go to the next level can feel safe and supported to do so,” says Talbot Tory.
A junior girls and non-binary youth surf program brought rural youth together for skill-building and bronze star certification while ten new surf judges were also certified through the International Surf Association. Off the water, SANS partnered with Canadian Women & Sport, developed a formal gender equity policy and overhauled its full policy suite to strengthen safe sport practices and governance.
Sport Makes a Difference Award – Truro Rolling Aces
The Truro Rolling Aces wheelchair tennis program is a prime example of how sport can positively impact a community. Three years ago, a one-off introduction of wheelchair tennis at the Truro Tennis Club has since expanded into a year-round program. As a result, the club has gone from having no wheelchair-accessible infrastructure to a fully accessible clubhouse. With funding for a fleet of five sport wheelchairs, the Rolling Aces have grown to six regular participants and several volunteers; the epitome of what can result from removing barriers and fostering inclusivity.
Sport Makes a Difference Award – Atlantic Challenger Baseball All-Star Series
Randy Crouse of the Atlantic Challenger Baseball All-Stars drove into downtown Halifax from Antigonish with his son to attend the Support4Sport Awards. For Challenger Baseball, which serves athletes with disabilities, success goes beyond wins and losses.
The program now runs 22 initiatives across Atlantic Canada, including 12 in Nova Scotia, supported by hundreds of volunteers and thousands of family members. Crouse’s own son came to the program as a “buddy” – paired with a player – and Crouse has watched his son’s social confidence grow as a result.
“It’s not about competition,” Crouse says. “We have 130 programs, 20,000-plus athletes. You’re not trying to compete with other people, you’re working together. That’s a really special thing.”
Official of the Year – Shauna Neary
Shauna Neary didn’t set out to become a trailblazer. But when the Herring Cove resident started coaching female hockey, she noticed something missing.
“I could count on one hand how many female officials I’d see around the rinks,” Neary says. “So I saw another opportunity to give back to the game of hockey.”
She fell in love with officiating, and it showed. Neary earned Official of the Year honours in hockey after calling PWHL games and earning a spot among just 10 officials selected for women’s hockey at the 2026 Milano-Cortina Olympic Games.
Now she’s watching the PWHL and women’s hockey bloom.
“The product’s there, we just need to get it out there more,” Neary says. “More people are watching women’s sports: soccer, basketball, hockey, everything is growing. Women need equal airtime too.”
Team of the Year – Georgia and Antonia Lewin-LaFrance
Chester’s Georgia and Antonia Lewin-LaFrance claimed Team of the Year honours in sailing, after winning gold at the 2025 European Championships, cementing their status as Canada’s top sailing duo. Four-time winners of Nova Scotia’s Sailors of the Year Award, the pair now have their sights set on the LA 2028 Olympic Games.
What makes them work, Georgia says, is exactly what might seem like a liability:
“We’re completely opposite personalities, but because we’re sisters, we can basically never quit on each other. We’re always going to be sisters at the end of the day. Because of our differences, we have this fire that two people who aren’t related might not bring out of each other.”
Coach of the Year – David Kikuchi
Very few athletes have represented Nova Scotia the way Ellie Black has. A finalist for Senior Female Athlete of the Year, Black received her Order of Canada in 2025; an honour she says still hasn’t fully sunk in.
“I think it does speak to the people who have helped support me and raise me and guide me through sport,” she says. “It’s not always about the medal results, but about the impact you have and who you are as a person.”
The awards night offered Black a chance to honour one of those people: her long-time coach, David Kikuchi, who earned Coach of the Year.
After competing at the 2004 Athens and 2008 Beijing Olympics, Kikuchi transitioned into coaching, and eventually into a partnership with Black that has redefined what’s possible for gymnastics in Nova Scotia.
“She’s the most amazing gymnast in Canadian history,” Kikuchi says. “The longest lasting at the highest level. It’s been a really big honour to work with her.”
Black became the first female gymnast from Nova Scotia to reach the Olympics, then the first Canadian woman to win a World Championship all-around medal, earning a silver in Montreal in 2017. She has since competed at four Olympic Games and is pursuing a fifth.
Kikuchi has watched her grow in ways that go beyond results:
“Bars were her weakest event for a long time, kind of her nemesis,” he says. “She kept working at it, got braver, tried different things. She’s been a world finalist on bars and has a skill named after her in the code of points.”
For Black, Kikuchi’s value extends beyond technical development.
“He sees us all as humans,” she says. “We don’t all fit into one box. He’s really great at helping every individual pursue their dreams, reminding us that sport is supposed to be fun.”
After the ceremony, Black left for Oshawa and the Canadian Championships the next morning. Before heading out, she offered a final thought on the meaning of the Support4Sport Awards:
“We’re a smaller province, but we’re pretty mighty. We’ve all started from the same spot: a small town or city, with a dream and support from Nova Scotia that has given us the opportunities we’ve had. No matter what level you’re at, everyone’s journey is so inspiring.”
The awards would not be possible without the support of title sponsor Support4Sport. Established in 2006 by Nova Scotia Gaming, the program has helped raise more than $68.6 million and is the largest source of funding for amateur sport in Nova Scotia.
Support4Sport Finalists & Winners ★= Winner
Support4Sport Official of the Year
Curling – Paul Hawkes (Amherst)
Hockey – Shauna Neary (Herring Cove) ★
Soccer – Marie-Soleil Beaudoin (Halifax)
Support4Sport Coach of the Year
Athletics – Jodi Langley (Halifax)
Curling – Stuart MacLean (Halifax)
Gymnastics & Trampoline – David Kikuchi (Fall River) ★
Support4Sport Team of the Year
Curling – Team Allyson MacNutt
Sailing – Georgia & Antonia Lewin-LaFrance ★
Soccer – Suburban FC U17 Academy Boys
Support4Sport Junior Male Athlete of the Year
Kayak – Tate Levy (Fall River)
Curling – Christopher McCurdy (Truro)
Taekwondo – Ronan Sinclair (Fall River) ★
Support4Sport Junior Female Athlete of the Year
Karate – Emmi German (Dartmouth)
Soccer – Bridget Mutipula (Halifax)
Speed Skating – Julia Snelgrove (Dartmouth) ★
Support4Sport Senior Male Athlete of the Year
Basketball – Keevan Veinot (Wolfville)
Boxing – Logan Walsh (New Glasgow)
Hockey – Nathan MacKinnon (Cole Harbour) ★
Support4Sport Senior Female Athlete of the Year
Athletics – Katie Pegg (Halifax)
Gymnastics & Trampoline – Ellie Black (Halifax)
Hockey – Blayre Turnbull (Stellarton) ★
Sport Nova Scotia Chair Award Basketball – Paul MacIsaac (Truro)
