Canada's Sports HOF Inducts 11 New Members For The Class Of 2023

Summary

• Figure-skating duo Scott Moir and Tessa Virtue are among those inducted to Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame. 
• The 2023 Sports Hall of Fame features nine athletes and two builders. 
• Team Ferbey and indigenous softball player Phyllis Bomberry are also among the inductees. 

The figure skating duo Scott Moir and Tessa Virtue, along with Georges St-Pierre (GSP), the former UFC welterweight champ; Danielle Peers, the wheelchair basketball athlete; and Phyllis Bomberry, the indigenous softball player, were among the Sports Hall of Fame Canada inductees which were announced in September were finally honoured on Oct 19, 2023, in Gatineau, Quebec.

The 2023 class of inductees also includes Team Ferbey (Randy Ferbey, David Nedohin, Scott Pfeifer and Marcel Rocque); Oreon Lyons, the indigenous lacrosse advocate; and Hiroshi Nakamura, the high-performance judo coach, who were also present at the event. 

Cheryl Bernard, the winner of an Olympic medal in curling and CEO and president of the Sports Hall of Fame Canada since 2018, and MP Adam van Koeverden, the winner of an Olympic medal for kayaking, spoke at the event. 

In a video message recorded especially for the inductees of 2023, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said they are at the event because they are Canadian legends. 

Moir and Virtue Share Their Experiences 

Moir and Virtue spoke about the chemistry between them, their shared passion for figure skating, and successful career. 

The most popular ice dancing duos in the history of figure skating, Moir and Virtue walked into the Sports Hall of Fame after a rewarding career, during which they won Olympic gold at Vancouver 2010 and Pyeongchang 2018.

The duo joined forces in 1997, following which they won three world championships and eight national titles. They had announced they would retire from sports after winning their gold medal in Pyeongchang. 

Rewarding Careers and Impressive Titles 

Former UFC fighter GSP has won titles in the welterweight and middleweight divisions. He was inducted to the UFC Hall of Fame in 2020. He began his journey when he was a teenager, after watching the first UFC event in sports history. 

The Ferbey team has won four national championships and three world titles. Ferbey’s rink uses innovative strategies that create a lasting impression on competitive curling. 

Nakamura has helped dozens of Canadians to earn international fame. He says he aims to make judo as popular as sports like hockey in Canada. 

Bomberry, who died in 2019, was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame Canada posthumously. The nation remembers her for her impressive softball career.