Standardbred Canada is pleased to announce the finalists for the 2023 Media Excellence Awards, which will be presented at the O’Brien Awards Gala on Saturday, Feb. 3, 2024, at the Delta by Marriott Prince Edwards in Charlottetown, P.E.I.
Now in its 16th year, the Media Excellence Awards program honours those who have, through one piece of exceptional work, covered Canadian harness racing extraordinarily and of broad national appeal.
Ontario Racing is sponsoring the Media Excellence Awards for the eighth consecutive year.
The finalists in the Outstanding Written Work category are Chris Lomon and Nicholas Barnsdale.
Chris Lomon is a 2023 finalist for his feature, “Felix Marion, Farrier to the Stars." The story, which was published in the January edition of TROT Magazine highlights the passion, meticulous craftsmanship and dedication to the craft Felix Marion has as a farrier.
Nicholas Barnsdale is a finalist for his article, “Jeff Hunt: From the batter’s box to the bike.” The story, originally published in March of 2023 on the Harnesslink website, tells of the personal journey of someone who diverged from and then returned to the Canadian harness racing industry, and the competitive and resilient nature as it relates to life.
The finalists in the Outstanding Video, Film, or Broadcast category are Woodbine Entertainment Group and Cujo Entertainment.
Ontario-based Woodbine Entertainment Group is a finalist for its excerpt of "Pepsi North America Cup,” which aired on TSN on Saturday, June 17, 2023. This one-hour special broadcast of the $1 million Pepsi North America Cup aired in high definition and featured live race coverage of the main event. Commentary was provided by hosts Laura Diakun, Greg Blanchard and Mark McKelvie of Woodbine Entertainment with the race call provided by Woodbine’s Ken Middleton.
Ontario-based Cujo Entertainment is a finalist for its excerpt of “CBS Hambletonian Show," a one-hour broadcast covering the 98th edition of the Hambletonian from The Meadowlands. The broadcast was produced and executed by a talented and dedicated team of only nine individuals, including producer Curtis MacDonald, technical producer Cameron Chick, co-producer/director Luke Van Belkom and hosted by the dynamic trio of Greg Blanchard, Emily Gaskin and Michael Carter.
The finalists in the Outstanding Photography category are Clive Cohen and Wendy Doggett.
Defending champion and seven-time winner Clive Cohen is a finalist in 2023 for his photograph, “The Rainbow." The photo was taken on July 20, 2023 at Woodbine Mohawk Park and published on the track's social media feeds.
Published in the 2023 January issue of TROT Magazine, horseman Brent MacGrath and his star pacer, Beach Glass, were captured by photographer Wendy Doggett in “Here’s Lookin’ at You Kid.”
The six finalists were the top two point-earners in their respective categories. The winners will be announced at the 35th O’Brien Awards.
Standardbred Canada would like to extend its thanks and appreciation to everyone who submitted entries for the Media Excellence Awards and to all the volunteer judges and Ontario Racing for its continued support and sponsorship of the program.
Judges in the Outstanding Written Work category included Michelle Staples, author and horse safety specialist; Curtis Stock, former sportswriter with the Edmonton Journal and author of "The Turcottes: The Remarkable Story of a Horse Racing Dynasty;" and Kathy Wade Vlaar, communications consultant and a director of the Bill Galvin Racing Alliance.
The judges for the Outstanding Video, Film or Broadcast category were veteran broadcaster Al Craig, sports information officer at Mohawk College and past colour commentator for the Hamilton Bulldogs; Toronto sportscaster Claude Feig; and Randy Steinman, former sportscaster with NewsRadio and CTV.
The submissions for the Outstanding Photography category were scored by Skip Dickstein, a past Eclipse Award winner and staff photographer at the Albany Times Union; Brandon Hall, executive assistant with the Ontario Equine Federation; and Shawn Hamilton, owner of CLiX Photography whose passion for photographing horses has landed her photos on the covers and inside magazines such as Corinthian Horse Sport magazine, The Canadian Horsemen, Horse Canada and Equus.
To see a list of past winners of the Media Excellence Awards, click here.
(Standardbred Canada)