A historic sporting event in which Brock University played a decisive role in hosting has won a pair of national awards.

The Niagara 2022 Canada Games was named the Canadian Sport Event of the Year Award and Sport Event Legacy of the Year Award during Sport Tourism Canada’s (STC) 15th annual PRESTIGE Awards Gala in Richmond, B.C., on Thursday, June 8.

In August 2022, more than 5,000 athletes and coaches converged on the Niagara region to compete in 20 sports.

Brock, which contributed a parcel of land for the central site of Canada Games Park, was home to the Athletes’ Village and four sports: swimming, cycling, women’s rugby sevens and diving across its various facilities.

Professor of Sport Management and Director of the Centre for Sport Capacity Julie Stevens, who in the lead up to and during the Games held the role of Special Advisor to the President — Canada Games, said the Games were a phenomenon, connecting art, culture, communication, marketing and sport.

“Congratulations to the Niagara 2022 Canada Summer Games Host Society for their STC PRESTIGE Sport Event of the Year and Sport Event Legacy of the Year awards,” she said. “I’m proud of how the unique partnership between Brock University and the Games made such a positive impact upon sport and culture in the Niagara community. The innovative research, teaching and student engagement initiatives that emerged from the Games will continue to shape our academic opportunities well into the future.”

The Canada Games ignited campus-wide engagement and was a success from an academic standpoint through teaching, research and community engagement.

The Canadian Sport Event of the Year Award recognizes the success of an outstanding single-sport, multi-sport or collegiate event held in Canada between 2020-22.

The Sport Event Legacy of the Year Award acknowledges the outstanding achievements or contributions by individuals, companies or organizations that have helped advance sustainable and environmental stewardship within a Canadian Sport Event held between 2020-22 and have left a demonstrable legacy to the community.