Bobby Gaul Memorial Trophy
Bobby Gaul passed away at the age of 24 just before UBC opened for the 1935-36 session. His rugby and track teammates, deeply touched by this person of special qualities, immediately created a UBC award bearing his name - an award to the graduating male athlete who best combines the qualities of leadership and sportsmanship, attributes that made Bobby loved by everyone to whom he was known.
Past Winners
1936 George Pringle, Basketball
1938 Dave Carey, Rugby & Cricket
1939 Rann Matthisen, Basketball
1940 Howie McPhee, Rugby and Track
1941 Pat Flynn, Basketball
1943 Art Barton, Basketball
1944 James Morton, Soccer
1945 Jack McKercher, Rugby
1946 Don Petrie, Soccer
1947 John Wheeler, Rugby
1948 Pat McGeer, Basketball
1949 Reid Mitchell, Basketball and Bud Spiers, Rugby
1950 Les Hempsall, Rugby
1951 Bobby Moulds, Soccer
1952 Dave MacFarlane, Football
1953 Bob Hindmarch, Football, Baseball, & Basketball
1954 Dan Zaharko, Basketball
1955 Bill Whyte, Rugby & Baseball
1956 John McLeod, Basketball
1957 Ted Hunt, Rugby
1958 Ed Wild, Basketball
1959 Frank Sealy, Soccer and Cricket
1960 Jack Henwood, Football
1961 Ken Winslade, Basketball
1962 Donald Arnold, Rowing
1963 Ray Wickland, Football and Rugby
1964 Marc Lemieux, Rowing and Dave Way, Basketball
1965 Dick Hayes, Rugby
1966 Ken Broderick, Ice Hockey
1967 Eldon Worobieff, Rowing
1968 John Haar, Soccer and Baseball
1969 Mickey McDowell, Ice Hockey
1970 Sam Vandermeulen, Track
1971 Jack Moores, Ice Hockey
1972 Ron Thorsen, Basketball
1973 Rod Bell-Irving, Rowing and Spencer McTavish, Rugby
1974 Ken Elmer, Track & Soccer
1975 George Smith, Swimming
1976 Kelvin Wood, Field Hockey
1977 Preston Wiley, Rugby
1978 Gary Warner, Volleyball
1979 Alan Hobkirk, Field Hockey
1980 Kevin Konar, Football and Tim Hirose, Judo
1981 Robin Russell, Rugby and Jim McLaughlin, Ice Hockey and Golf
1982 Rob Forsyth, Basketball
1983 Martin Gleave, Wrestling
1984 Paul Thiessen, Volleyball
1985 Bill Holowaty, Ice Hockey and Glenn Steele, Football
1986 Simon Hoogewerf, Track
1987 Brian Kennedy, Soccer
1988 Roy Radu, Rugby
1989 Perrie Scarlett, Basketball
1990 Tom Vlasic, Football
1991 Jim Yeganagi, Rugby
1992 J.D. Jackson, Basketball
1993 Tom Kim, Soccer
1994 Conrad Leinemann, Volleyball
1995 Ken Morris, Basketball
1996 Jeff Schiebler, Cross Country
1997 Bob Beveridge, Football
1998 Mark Nohra, Football
1999 Mike Dalziel, Volleyball
2000 Guy Davis, Volleyball
2001 Mark Versfeld, Swimming
2002 Jeff Francis, Baseball
2003 Javier Glatt, Football and Kyle Russell, Basketball
2004 Aaron Richer, Soccer
2005 Nathan Beveridge, Football
2006 Ben Rutledge, Rowing
2007 Casey Archibald, Basketball
2008 Michael Elliot, Soccer and Anthony Wright, Field Hockey
2009 Chris Dyck, Basketball and Callum Ng, Swimming
2010 Cory Renfrew, Golf
2011 Blair Bann, Volleyball
2012 Andrew Robb, Golf
2013 Billy Greene, Football
2014 Andrew Firth, Baseball
2015 Luc Bruchet, Track & Field
2016 Brandon Deschamps, Football
2017 Alex Webb, Baseball
2018 Phil Jalalpoor, Basketball
2019 Michael O'Connor, Football
2020 Michael Smith, Rugby
2021 Markus Thormeyer, Swimming
2022 Diego Alatorre, Football
2023 Ty Penner, Baseball
2024 Theo Benedet, Football and Rowan Hamilton, Track & Field
2025 Garrett Rooker, Football
Bus Phillips Memorial Trophy
Created to honour UBC's top male athlete of the year, the R.J. "Bus" Phillips Memorial Trophy is named after the elder statesman of the UBC Athletic Department who passed away at the age of 91 in 2006. The builder of athletic opportunity and tradition at UBC, "Bus" served as Director of Men's Athletics for 27 years, helping the athletic department become one of the strongest in the country and setting the stage for today's success. One of the founding fathers of both the modern Canada West Conference and the CIAU (now CIS), he raised the profile of Canadian university athletics and of UBC.
Past Winners
2007 Brian Johns, Swimming
2008 Mike Mason, Track and Field
2009 Cory Renfrew, Golf
2010 Josh Whyte, Basketball
2011 Inaki Gomez, Track and Field
2012 Billy Greene, Football and Tommy Gossland, Swimming
2013 Gagan Dosanjh, Soccer
2014 Luc Bruchet, Track & Field
2015 Coleman Allen, Swimming and Connor Lillis-White, Baseball
2016 Michael O'Connor, Football and Ben Thorne, Track & Field
2017 Yuri Kisil, Swimming
2018 Byron Keturakis, Volleyball and John Gay, Track & Field
2019 Markus Thormeyer, Swimming
2020 Kieran Lumb, Cross Country and Track & Field
2021 award not presented
2022 Rylan Toth, Hockey
2023 Theo Benedet, Football
2024 Garrett Rooker, Football
2025 Finlay Knox, Swimming
Marilyn Pomfret Trophy
Awarded to the year's female athlete who has distinguished herself in university, national or international competition, exhibited sportsmanship and who, according to her peers, has contributed significantly to her team. This trophy, formerly the Sparling Trophy, was re-named The Marilyn Pomfret Trophy in 1984, in honour of the popular UBC athlete, teacher, coach and Director of Women's Athletics.
Past Winners
1970 Sandra Hartley, Gymnastics
1971 Shirley Cazalet, Swimming
1972 Penny May, Track and Field
1973 Karen James, Swimming, and Maureen Fishleigh, Volleyball
1974 Thelma Wright, Track and Field
1975 Carol Turney, Basketball
1976 Shelley Winter, Field Hockey
1977 Anne Mackie-Morelli, Track and Field
1978 Janet Livingston, Volleyball
1978 Dorothy Schwaiger, Volleyball
1978 Melanie Slade, Field Hockey
1979 Nancy Moore, Field Hockey
1980 Patti Sakaki, Gymnastics
1981 Patti Sakaki, Gymnastics
1982 Ronda Thomasson, Swimming
1983 Allison Palmer, Field Hockey
1983 Patti Sakaki, Gymnastics
1984 Cathy Bultitude, Basketball
1985 Nancy Bonham, Diving
1985 Jeannie Cockcroft, Track and Field
1986 Jody Blaxland, Field Hockey
1986 Barb McBain, Swimming
1987 Joanne Gaspard, Track and Field
1988 Melanie Slade, Field Hockey
1988 Jeannie Cockcroft, Track and Field
1988 Dorothy Schwaiger, Volleyball
1989 Melanie Slade, Field Hockey
1990 Mitch Ring, Soccer
1991 Darcy Vogel, Field Hockey
1992 Lori Durward, Track and Field
1993 Anne Barnes, Swimming
1993 Andrea Neil, Soccer
1994 Sam Le Riche, Field Hockey
1995 Adair Duncan, Basketball
1995 Sarah Evanetz, Swimming
1996 Sarah Evanetz, Swimming
1997 Jenny Rauh, Volleyball
1998 Sarah Evanetz, Swimming
1999 Joanne Ross, Volleyball
2000 Jessica Mills, Basketball
2001 Jen Dowdeswell, Field Hockey
2002 Stephanie Hume, Field Hockey and Jessica Deglau, Swimming
2003 Kristine Jack, Soccer
2004 Carrie Watson, Basketball and Rosalyn Hicks, Soccer
2005 Emily Cordonier, Volleyball, and Stephanie Jameson, Field Hockey
2006 Kelsey Blair, Basketball, and Kelly Stefanyshyn, Swimming
2007 Erica McGuinness, Basketball
2008 Annamay Pierse, Swimming
2009 Annamay Pierse, Swimming
2010 Liz Cordonier, Volleyball
2011 Shanice Marcelle, Volleyball
2012 Robyn Pendleton, Field Hockey and Kylie Barros, Golf
2013 Kris Young, Basketball
2014 Lisa Barclay, Volleyball
2015 Maria Bernard, Cross Country & Track & Field
2016 Hannah Haughn, Field Hockey
2017 Danielle Brisebois, Volleyball
2018 Kat Kennedy, Golf
2019 Emily Overholt, Swimming, and Kiera Van Ryk, Volleyball
2020 Keylyn Filewich, Basketball
2021 award not presented
2022 Rylind MacKinnon, Hockey
2023 Glynis Sim, Track & Field/Cross Country
2024 Katalin Tolnai, Soccer
2025 Grace Elliott, Hockey
May Brown Trophy
A UBC coach, teacher and supporter of athletics, May Brown was an advocate and force in the UBC sporting world, most notably with women's field hockey and synchronized swimming. In the later decades, through her career as a politician, she found time to serve Athletics in an advisory capacity. Among her honours include the Order of British Columbia and the Order of Canada. Created in 2007, this award honours UBC's outstanding graduating female athlete, taking into consideration career achievement and contribution at UBC, in addition to performance during the current season.
Past Winners
2007 Amy Bobb, Soccer
2008 Erica McGuinness, Basketball
2009 Marisa Field, Volleyball
2010 Liz Cordonier
2011 Liz Gleadle, Track and Field and Jen Hinze, Volleyball
2012 Martha McCabe, Swimming and Kyla RIchey, Volleyball
2013 Shanice Marcelle, Volleyball
2014 Kylie Barros, Golf
2015 Kris Young, Basketball and Savannah King, Swimming
2016 Danielle Dube, Hockey and Maria Bernard, Track & Field
2017 Hannah Haughn, Field Hockey
2018 Erika Seltenreich-Hodgson, Swimming
2019 Maia Brundage, Swimming
2020 Julia Lindsay, Rowing
2021 Margaret Pham, Field Hockey
2022 Emily Moore, Soccer
2023 Danielle Steer, Soccer
2024 Kacey Jost, Volleyball
2025 Savannah Bauder, Rugby
Thunderbird Rookies of the Year
Since 2007, Thunderbird rookies have earned some of the spotlight at the Big Block Banquet with both a men and women's Thunderbird Rookie of the Year being recognized for their outstanding achievements in sport.
Past Winners
2007 Matt Hawes, Swimming and Caitlin Davie, Soccer
2008 Jorge Angel-Mira, Soccer and Natalie Hirayama, Soccer
2009 Spencer Betts, Football and Matt Pepe, Hockey and Shanice Marcelle, Volleyball
2010 Luc Bruchet, Cross Country and Abigail Raye, Field Hockey
2011 Gagan Dosanjh, Soccer and Kylie Barros, Golf and Savannah King, Swimming
2012 Jarrid Ireland, Volleyball and Tera Van Beilen, Swimming
2013 Neil Manning, Hockey and Hannah Haughn, Field Hockey
2014 Jon Brown, Swimming and Erika Seltenreich-Hodgson, Swimming
2015 Marcus Davis, Football and Lauren Logush, Field Hockey
2016 Michael O'Connor, Football and Jessica Hanson, Basketball
2017 Markus Thormeyer, Swimming and Ingrid Willm, Swimming
2018 Kiera Van Ryk, Volleyball and Grant Shephard, Basketball
2019 Rori Wood, Rugby, and Thomas Gardner, Soccer
2020 Esther Lee, Golf, and Jake Kryski, Hockey
2021 awards not presented
2022 Emma O'Croinin, Swimming and Garrett Rooker, Football
2023 Eric Lajeunesse, Soccer and Cassidy Rhodes, Hockey
2024 Jessica Ng, Golf and Brennen Fuerst, Soccer
2025 Henri Godbout, Soccer and Keira Daly, Basketball
Du Vivier Team of the Year Award
presented by: Freedom 55 Financial
The du Vivier Trophy, whose donor remains anonymous, is awarded to the outstanding UBC team(s) of the year based on performance, sportsmanship and deportment. These were especially important qualities in the eyes of the donor of this award. Until 1991, this award was in the context of women's teams only. From 1998-2006, the award recognized all UBC national champions.
Past Winners
1974 Women's Volleyball
1975 Women's Basketball
1976 Women's Cross Country/Track and Field
1977 Women's Volleyball
1978 Women's Volleyball
1979 Women's Field Hockey
1980 Women's Gymnastics
1981 Women's Field Hockey
1982 Women's Swimming and Diving
1983 Women's Gymnastics
1984 Women's Field Hockey
1985 Women's Swimming and Diving
1986 Women's Swimming and Diving
1987 Women's Soccer
1988 Women's Soccer
1989 Women's Field Hockey
1990 Women's Field Hockey
1991 Women's Field Hockey and Men's Soccer
1992 Men's Soccer
1993 Men's Soccer
1994 Women's Soccer and Men's Cross Country
1995 Women's Swimming and Men's Soccer
1996 Women's Swimming
1997 Women's Volleyball and Men's Skiing
1998-2006 All UBC national champions
2007 Men's Swimming
2008 Women's Volleyball
2009 Men's Golf
2010 Women's Volleyball
2011 Women's Volleyball and Women's Golf
2012 Women's Swimming
2013 Women's Ice Hockey
2014 Women's Cross Country and Men's Soccer
2015 Women's Cross Country and Men's Swimming
2016 Football
2017 Men's Rugby
2018 Men's Volleyball and Men's Track & Field
2019 Women's Volleyball
2020 Women's Golf
2021 award not presented
2022 Women's Rowing
2023 Women's Golf and Women's Volleyball
2024 Women's Cross Country
2025 Women's Soccer
Kay Brearley Service Award
This award, donated by Kay Brearley, who taught in the French department at UBC, is given to the student or non-student whose service to the Women's Athletic program is judged to be exceptional. Dr. Brearley was both a member and Chair of the Women's Athletic Committee for many years and had a genuine interest in students. She was also committed to encouraging student involvement and leadership.
Past Winners
1974 Anne Taggart
1975 Pam Aiken
1976 award not presented
1977 Louisa Zerbe
1978 award not presented
1979 Amanjit Dhillon
1980 Doramy Ehling and Cindy Thompson
1981 Kathy Armstrong and Georgina Gray
1982 Irena Jarosinski
1983 Brenda Chinn
1984 Terri Drain and Michelle Jensen
1985 Brenda Chinn and Ken Radford
1986 Brenda Chinn
1987 Leigh Anne Merlo
1988 Linda Diano
1989 Laura Farres and Robyn McCreery
1990 Mitch Ring
1991 Harj Sandhu
1992 Penny Cooper
1993 Harj Sandhu
1994 Sheena Scott
1995 Laura Bennion
1996 Heather Andrews
1997 Rob Traynor
1998 award not presented
1999 Fred Hume
2000 Sandy Silver
2001 Sean Rollo
2002 award not presented
2003 Dana Mersich
2004 Cathy L'Orsa
2005 Jim Day
2006 Mary Campbell
2007 Jonathan Figueroa
2008 Chrissie Arnold
2009 Tiana Blouin
2010 award not presented
2011 award not presented
2012 award not presented
2013 John Foster
2014 award not presented
2015 Jennifer Schutz
2016 award not presented
2017 Ines Serka
2018 Marilyn Pomfret
2019 Shiayli Toni
2020 Mikayla Ogrodniczuk
2021 award not presented
2022 Madison Gold
2023 Sydney Neustaeter
2024 Gord Collings
2025 Julie Smulders
Arthur W. Delamont Service Award
This award, commemorating the well-known Vancouver musician, teacher, and band leader Arthur Delamont, is awarded to the individual or group emulating the perennial freshman spirit that was exhibited by this man, who for 40 years, was the leader of the University Pep Band. Those who exemplify Delamont's contribution of service, goodwill and cheerfulness to students and athletes are eligible for this award.
Past Winners
1979 Engineering Undergraduate Society
1980 Music Education Students
1981 Thunderbird ice Hockey Alumni
1982 Steve Campbell and Scott McDonald
1983 CiTR Radio
1984 UBC Swimming Team
1985 Thunderbird Cheerleaders
1986 UBC Pep Band
1987 CiTR Radio and UBC Pep Band
1988 UBC Big Block Club
1989 Thunderbird Ice Hockey Team
1990 award not presented
1991 Paul "Thunderbird" Buckley
1992 Paul "Thunderbird" Buckley
1993 Tony Ivancic
1994 Buzz Moore
1995 Thunder Productions
1996 Tailgators Booster Club
1997 Dave Thomson
1998 Wolf Depner and Richard Lam
1999 Casey Smith
2000 Bruce Arthur
2001 Darrell Yip
2002 Janice Hanan and Kyle Bangen
2003 Scott Locke
2004 Tyler Kuntz and Amber Hunt
2005 Joel O'Gorman and Darren Karpluk
2006 award not presented
2007 Robin Leuty
2008 Shawn McIsaac and Dan Cooper
2009 Claudia Richard
2010 Tuesday Knights
2011 Ben Millar
2012 Kevin Johns
2013 Alexandra Leask and Elizabeth Pratt
2014 Max Bogard
2015 Steve Tuckwood
2016 Ken Li
2017 Don Wells
2018 Ian Robertson
2019 Leo Iizuka
2020 Bruce and Patricia Kiloh
2021 award not presented
2022 Amanda Jones
2023 award not presented
2024 Alancia Jeffrey
2025 award not presented
Carolyn Dobie-Smith Award
This award is in recognition of Carolyn Dobie-Smith, the student trainer for the Women's Varsity Volleyball team from September 1989 to April 1990, who died suddenly in the summer of 1992. Carolyn displayed an exemplary level of dedication and commitment to the athletes with whom she worked, both as a trainer and a friend. She willingly shared her knowledge and expertise with less experienced student trainers, providing an excellent role model. This award will be presented annually, as appropriate, to a student trainer who best exemplifies Carolyn Dobie-Smith.
Past Winners
1993 Yvette Vienneau
1994 Sharon Spinder
1995 Craig Goodmurphy
1996 award not presented
1997 Teresa Lui
1998 award not presented
1999 Brent Neeve
2000 Faye Leung
2001 D'Arcy Boulton
2002 Amanda Nichol
2003 Rohan Roy
2004 Kathleen Jeanes
2005 Behrad Honarbakhsh
2006 Nicole Sullivan
2007 award not presented
2008 Krisi Serwa and Daniel Schultes
2009 Mischa Harris
2010 Karl Sundin
2011 Jayne Blank
2012 Claire Toffelmire
2013 Mark Arlou
2014 Macklin Loveland
2015 Nathan Wong and Beth Rizzardo
2016 Leo Iizuka and Gevorg Eginyan
2017 Lhoda Kim
2018 Devan Hawes
2019 Christian Mustapich and Walee Malik
2020 Luisa Ribeiro
2021 Lief Olsen
2022 Alyssa Juma
2023 Olivia Austin
2024 Stanley Lee
2025 Cristina Capitanio
Jama Mahlalela Award
The Jama Mahlalela Award is for exemplary contribution to athletics by a student-athlete. It’s an award with a foundation built in selfless dedication, leadership, and spirit as a student-athlete and citizen of UBC. The award is named after former men’s basketball player Jama Mahlalela, who set the bar for giving back to the UBC Community. His passion for his school, his sport, and his fellow student-athletes was second to none.
Past Winners
2004 Jama Mahlalela (Men's Basketball)
2008 Claire Hanna (Women's Volleyball)
2014 Laura Thompson (Women's Swimming)
2019 Kristina Walker (Women's Rowing)
2020 Michael Smith (Men's Rugby)
2023 Chris Hansen-Barkun (Men's Soccer)
JV Patry-Smith Memorial Award
The JV Patry-Smith Memorial Award is given to someone who goes out of their way to check in on their teammates, who supports those around them and helps end the stigma surrounding mental health challenges. Named in honour JV Patry-Smith, a UBC alumna and a Track and Field athlete from 2018-2022, she took home two NAIA team championships, and was an Academic All-Canadian. As impressive as JV was athletically and academically, she will be remembered for much more - an incredible friend and passionate teammate.
Past Winners
2025 Olivia Lundman (Track & Field)
Thunderbird Athletes Council Buzz Moore Leadership Award
This leadership award was established in 1995-96 by the Thunderbird Athletic Council. The award is unique, in that it represents peer recognition for outstanding qualities and achievements in individuals. It is meant to represent UBC student athletes who would otherwise remain too often unrecognized. The award is meant to acknowledge students at UBC who are outstanding athletes, leaders, contributors and, above all, outstanding people.
Past Winners
1996 Lisa Archer (Women's Soccer), Brady Ibbetson (Men's Basketball)
1997 Jen Keefer (Track and Field), James Prescott (Men's Soccer)
1998 Jen Dowdeswell (Women's Field Hockey), Jason Singer (Men's Swimming)
1999 Ann Harada (Women's Field Hockey), Alex Charles (Football)
2000 Sarah Cunningham (Women's Soccer), Nick Seddon (Men's Soccer)
2001 Sabrina Celms (Women's Rugby), Chad Grimm (Men's Volleyball)
2002 Sherie Salie (Women's Ice Hockey), Kevin Johns (Men's Swimming)
2003 Stephanie Rodenkirchen (Alpine Skiing), Darrell Yip (Men's Field Hockey)
2004 Carrie Watson (Women's Basketball), Leon Denenfeld (Football)
2005 Kristin Carpenter (Track), Anthony Wright (Men's Field Hockey)
2006 Cloe Hewitt (Track), Dave Wong (Men's Soccer)
2007 Eric Wilson (Men's Rubgy), Barbara Lelj (Women's Rugby), Claire Hanna (Women's Volleyball)
2008 Mike McMillan (Nordic Skiing), Henry McQueen (Men's Rugby), Stuart Allester (Track)
2009 Antoni Kindler (Men' Field Hockey), Ben Millar (Alpine Skiing)
2010 Dannie Richards (Women's Volleyball), Mariah Bruinsma (Women's Volleyball)
2011 Nicole Schuurman (Rowing), Jen Wilson (Rugby)
2012 Hayley Pipher (Women's Swimming), Alexandra Leask (Women's Rowing)
2013 Evan Cheng (Rowing), Rob Ragotte (Nordic Skiing)
2014 Bailey Komishke (Women's Rugby), David Slade (Track & Field)
2015 Ian Perry (Men's Volleyball), Colleen Nesbitt (Women's Swimming and Women's Rowing)
2016 Katherine Tourigny (Women's Track & Field) and Rebecca Terejko (Women's Swimming)
2017 Sandra Kilmartin (Women's Track & Field) and Stephanie McKinnon (Women's Rugby)
2018 Sophie Jones (Women's Field Hockey) and Isabella Cina (Women's Rowing)
2019 Arielle Sadaka (Women's Track and Field)
2020 Laura Worsley (Women's Volleyball) and Mikayla Ogrodniczuk (Women's Hockey)
2021 Kendra Roberts (Women's Rugby) and Ethan De Graaf (Men's Golf)
2022 Sara Godon (Women's Swimming)
2023 Mackenzie Campbell (Women's Track & Field/Cross Country)
2024 Rylind MacKinnon (Women's Hockey) and Kacey Jost (Women's Volleyball)
2025 Trent Lenihan (Baseball) and Claire Hallett (Women's Rowing)
Thunderbird Athletes Council Performance Award
The Thunderbird Athletes Council Performance Award was established in 2006 to recognize the best single performance of the year, as voted by the TAC team representatives. Each of the TAC Athlete of the Week winners throughout the year are nominated for this award. The TAC votes on the best performance of the year at their final meeting, and the winner is decided by majority.
Past Winners
2007 Brian Johns (Men's Swimming)
2009 Annamay Pierse (Women's Swimming)
2010 Martha McCabe (Women's Swimming)
2011 Blair Bann (Men's Volleyball)
2012 Savannah King (Women's Swimming)
2013 Kelly Aspinall (Men's Swimming)
2014 Maxwell Lattimer (Men's Rowing)
2015 Coleman Allen (Men's Swimming)
2016 Keegan Zanatta (Men's Swimming)
2017 Irvan Brar (Men's Volleyball)
2018 John Gay (Men's Track & Field)
2019 Keylyn Filewich (Women's Basketball)
