Keane, Heighton, Johnson lead nine inductees
into Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame
By Scott Taylor, Photos courtesy Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Brandon Sun
Mike Keane won three Stanley Cups with three different
teams. Jim heighton was not only a 13-year CFL player, he’s
still one of the best masters track and field athletes in the
country. And it’s unlikely there was ever a better wheelchair
basketball player than Joey Johnson.
Keane, Heighton and Johnson will lead nine athletes,
builders and teams into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame
this fall.
In fact, on Nov. 5, five athletes, two builders and two teams
will be inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame at
the 37th Annual Induction Ceremony at the Victoria Inn in
Winnipeg.
The 2016 inductees are:
• Dr. Cal Botterill, Sport Medicine/Builder
• Jim Heighton, All Round, Athlete
• Alanna (Yakiwchuk) Hinrichsen, Athletics, Athlete
Cal BOTTERILL Sport Medicine/
Builder: Dr. Cal Botterill is a worldrenowned and well-published pioneer
of sport psychology. He has worked with
elite athletes at 10 Olympic games, with
five NHL teams and countless athletes
at the national, university and provincial
levels in everything from hockey, figure skating, speed
skating, biathlon, curling, bobsleigh, skeleton, volleyball,
cycling, rowing, field hockey and basketball. He joins his
wife Doreen (McCannell) in the Hall of Fame, who was
inducted as a speed-skating athlete in 1995.
Mike KEANE Hockey/Athlete:
Born in Winnipeg, Keane played
junior in the MJHL with the
Winnipeg South Blues, and
in the WEHL with the Moose
Jaw Warriors. He represented
Canada at the 1987 World
Juniors in Czechoslovakia.
Signing as a free agent with
in 1988-89
Montreal, he broke into the NHL
3 Stanley Cup
199
and was part of the Canadiens’
l. His second
trea
Mon
during his eight seasons in
he in 1996, and
lanc
Ava
o
orad
Cup came with the Col
Dallas Stars.
the
with
9
199
in
his final Cup was won
es Keane had 470
In 1161 NHL regular season gam
220 play-off games.
points, along with 74 points in his
ons with the
He finished his career with five seas
club raising his
the
Manitoba Moose in the AHL, with
#12 jersey to the rafters.
30 / sportslife
• Joey Johnson, Wheelchair Basketball, Athlete
• Mike Keane, Hockey, Athlete
• Rhiannon Leier-Blacher, Swimming, Athlete
• John Reilly, Rugby, Builder
• 1971-74 University of Winnipeg Wesmen, Volleyball, Team
• 1985 Bob Ursel Team, Curling, Team
“These nine recipients join our exclusive group of
Honoured Members who represent Manitoba’s finest in
sport,” said Jamie Kraemer, President of the Hall of Fame’s
Board of Directors. “This is an exceptional and welldeserving slate, as these inductees personify the type of
excellence and achievement we strive to celebrate, showcase
and preserve at the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame.”
Tickets for the Induction Dinner go on sale Sept 1, 2016.
Let’s meet the inductees (Biographies courtesy of the
Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame):
Jim HEIGHTON All Round/
Athlete: Born in Vancouver BC,
Heighton came to play for the
Winnipeg Blue Bombers from
1970-78 and made Manitoba
his home. In addition to his
13 year CFL career, he was an
all-star baseball player as a
catcher, outfielder and third
baseman with several senior
championship squads. In
basketball, he was a senior men’s champion power
forward in the 1980’s, and in soccer he has played
defense from 1981 to the present. An accomplished
Masters athlete in track and field specializing in weight
throw, hammer throw, shot put and pentathlon,
Heighton has won gold on eight occasions at the
national level. Truly an all-round athlete, he now
resides in St. Francois-Xavier.
1985 Bob Ursel Team Curling
/Team
In March of 1985, skip Bob Ursel
led a team from the
Granite Curling Club to Manitob
a’s first World Junior
Curling Championship. After win
ning the Canadian Junior
Men’s in 1984, Uresl, third Brent
Mendella, second Gerald
Chick and lead Mike Ursel were
off the following year to
Perth Scotland for the World Jun
ior Championships. They
went 8-1 in the round robin, and
avenged their lone loss
in the semis with an 11-2 win ove
r Norway. In the final,
they defeated Switzerland 6-5 to
claim the title of world
champions, while skip Bob Ursel
and third Brent Mendella
were named All-Stars. In 2001, the
team was inducted into
the Manitoba Curling hall of Fam
e.