Posted: December 12, 2005

Athletics: Deadline for ORW/NCRA Athletic Awards is December 31, 2005

Aspiring athletes in the Ottawa area are encouraged to apply for The Ottawa Race Weekend/National Capital Runners’ Association’s 2006 ORW/NCRA Athletic Award.

The top male and female applicants will each receive an award of $1,000. Athletes must be residents of the National Capital region, and must expect their earnings from all sources in 2005 will be under $30,000 for non-students or $20,000 for students. They also must have participated in a 2005 event held by the Ottawa Race Weekend AND a National Capital Runners’ Association race. Applicants will be judged based on their athletic accomplishments, athletic potential, running/community contributions and financial need.

Run by a volunteer board of directors, the Ottawa Race Weekend in 2005 had over 26,000 participants in nine races, including the ING Ottawa Marathon and the MDS Nordion 10K. The National Capital Runners’ Association is a running club that is dedicated to promoting running as both a recreational option and a competitive alternative for men and women in Canada’s National Capital Region.

All the previous winners of the award have been accomplished members of the Ottawa running community. The 2005 winners were Katie Engel, who was the Ontario Provincial Champion and the second-ranked Canadian juvenile for the 800m and the 1500m in 2003, and Joseph Nsengiyumva, who had first place finishes in the 2003 Hamilton Around the Bay Race and the 2004 HBC Canada Day 10K Race in Ottawa. He’s also an avid volunteer with the Ottawa Lions Track & Field Club. The first winners, when the award was introduced, were Mike Woods and Lisa McVicar, who in 2003 was named the Ottawa Road Running Series 2003 champion in her age group by the NCRA. Woods, then a grade 12 student at Hillcrest High School, used the scholarship to fund his trip to the 2004 World Junior Cross-Country Championships in Belgium. MacVicar planned to use the scholarship money for her tuition to Queen’s University to study Science and Physical & Health Education.

Prospective applicants are encouraged to submit applications to:

ORW-NCRA Athletic Award
P.O. Box 426, Station A
Ottawa, ON Canada
K1N 8V5

Applications must be received by Dec 31st, 2005 in order to be considered. The award winners will be notified by Feb 13th, 2006. You’ll find the application form at the Ottawa Race Weekend website at: www.ncm.ca.