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OTTAWA – Athletics Canada is proud to announce that Jessica Zelinka from London, Ont. was named Canadian Interuniversity Sport’s (CIS) top female athlete for the 2006-2007 season at the 15th annual BLG Awards last night.
Zelinka who trains in Calgary, Alb. has a season to remember on the CIS circuit capped off with five gold medals and one silver at the CIS Championships. Her gold medal haul is a new CIS record. She also set a CIS record in the pentathlon and was named CIS female athlete of the year (field events), was a first-team all-Canadian, named CIS Championships MVP and was the Canada West MVP.
Her 2006 season also included a new Canadian record in the heptathlon, which had held for 13 years. Zelinka would better the record a few weeks later. She finished 4th at the 2006 Commonwealth Games and finished the season ranked 6th in the heptathlon by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). Zelinka’s goal is to be on the podium at the World Championships this summer in Osaka, Japan and again in 2008 at the Olympic Games in Beijing, China. Zelinka would say after receiving the award; “I always wanted to compete. I always wanted to compete for Canada. I always wanted to compete for Canada at the Olympics. I always wanted to compete for Canada at the Olympics and win a medal…. and now it's kind of hurtling towards me. The countdown is on.''
Since 1993, BLG Calgary has hosted the BLG Awards to honour the top university athletes in the country and promote post-graduate studies at Canadian universities. Each of the 52 CIS universities select a male and female athlete of the year from which a male and female nominee are chosen to represent Atlantic Canada, Canada West, Ontario and Quebec. The Awards honour the top CIS Male and Female Athletes of the Year based on their athletic accomplishment, outstanding sportsmanship, demonstrated leadership and academic excellence. Winners are selected by the Canadian Athletic Foundation .
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