Media releases

• Brock event to recount ‘worst gambling scandal in NHL history’

  Wednesday, November 15, 2023 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: November 15 2023 – R0108

  An upcoming book launch and talk featuring sport historian and author Fred Addis will explore the life and hardships of Don Gallinger, a teenage hockey star from Port Colborne who rocketed to fame in the 1940s before his career was ended by scandal.

  Organized by Brock’s Centre for Sport Capacity and the Sport Oral History Archive, the public event takes place Wednesday, Nov. 22 from 7 to 9 p.m. in Pond Inlet at Brock’s main campus.

  Addis will speak about his new book, Gallinger, A Life Suspended, which tells the story of the gifted young hockey player’s rise to fame, jumping from Junior B level hockey in his hometown of Port Colborne to the National Hockey League’s (NHL) Boston Bruins at the age of 17.

  During his professional hockey career, Gallinger scored two overtime goals in the Stanley Cup playoffs and led the Bruins in scoring records after returning home from the Second World War.

  But his career in the NHL ended abruptly in 1948 when he became embroiled in a Detroit betting ring. He was suspended from the NHL for life for betting on league games. As a result, Gallinger struggled to make a home for himself and his family, ultimately leaving his life and health in shambles.

  “We are excited to host this unique book event that connects sport history to a very current and serious controversy: sport gambling,” said Brock Sport Management Professor Julie Stevens, Co-Director of the Sport Oral History Archive alongside Associate Professor of History Elizabeth Vlossak. “It’s a local story that touches upon a global issue facing those who play and lead sport.”

  As past president of the Society for International Hockey Research and a contributor to the Hockey Hall of Fame’s Legends magazine and Total Hockey: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Hockey League, Addis will share his expertise in hockey history offering insight into the world of sport.

  Guests will also have the opportunity to speak with Addis, who lived in Port Colborne for several years and knew Gallinger personally.

  More information about the event is available on the Centre for Sport Capacity website

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews: 

  * Doug Hunt, Communications and Media Relations Specialist, Brock University dhunt2@brocku.ca or 905-941-6209 

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  Categories: Media releases

• Safe sport in Canada: Brock forum to discuss crisis of athlete abuse, maltreatment

  Monday, November 13, 2023 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: November 13 2023 – R0107

  A group of Canadian sport researchers, experts and advocates will address Canada’s safe sport crisis of athlete abuse and maltreatment at an upcoming forum organized by Brock University’s Centre for Sport Capacity.

  Set to take place in person and online Friday, Nov. 17 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Safe Sport Forum: Can Sport Regulate Itself? will focus on the structure and governance design of the sport system. Discussions will include policy and rule development, monitoring and enforcement, self-regulation, athlete experiences with safe sport mechanisms and the changes needed to ensure safe environments for all participants.

  Speakers include former Canadian Olympic skier Allison Forsyth; Brock Sport Management Associate Professor Curtis Fogel; viaSport CEO Charlene Krepiakevich; University of Ottawa Associate Professor Eric MacIntosh; University of Toronto Professor Emeritus Peter Donnelly; and sport law experts Marcus Mazzucco and Hilary Findlay.

  Findlay, who is a retired Brock Sport Management Associate Professor and current member of the Centre for Sport Capacity, said initiatives like the Safe Sport Forum are crucial in continuing to highlight the issues of abuse in sport and to discuss ways in which sport organizations can address systemic factors contributing to incidents.

  “Maltreatment and abuse in sport is not new — it has been an open secret of sport for decades,” she said. “What has become clear is that the sport system itself is broken and the prevalence of maltreatment is symptomatic of system-wide issues.

  “Certain characteristics of sport organizations can create an environment prone to maltreatment and also actively enable and perpetuate such treatment,” Findlay said. “This is not to diminish the damage done by an individual perpetrator, but rather to recognize the power of the organization in shaping the conduct of those in positions of authority and the culture operating within the organization.”

  Unfortunately, sport organizations have not been able to address these systemic issues from within their current self-governing framework, she said.

  “We need a big rethink of how sport is governed to fully address the issue. Some of this work has begun both at the provincial/territorial level and national level of sport and will be highlighted as part of the forum’s agenda.”

  Everyone is welcome to attend the hybrid Safe Sport Forum. Registration includes on-demand, anytime access to recorded presentations and resources.

  More information, including registration, speaker topics, in-person event location and online access, can be found on the Centre for Sport Capacity website.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Doug Hunt, Communications and Media Relations Specialist, Brock University dhunt2@brocku.ca or 905-941-6209 

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  Categories: Media releases