Year Inducted: 1986
More about Matthew Leyden:
Matt Leyden made an indelible mark on the Oshawa sporting scene after arriving from his birthplace of Hawick, Scotland in 1914 at the age of 10. Matt managed the Oshawa Generals from 1928-1953, during which time the Generals won seven consecutive Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) championships (1943-44) and three Memorial Cups (1939, 1940 and 1944). Matt also managed Oshawa to the 1929 Mann Cup lacrosse title, award to the Canadian senior champions, and was an active member of the Oshawa Green Gaels Junior lacrosse club from 1964 - 1971. Awarded a life membership by the OHA in 1972, Matt served as that Association's president from 1965-67. Matt also served on the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) executive and received an Achievement Award from the Ontariio Government in 1971 for his involvement in amateur sports. In 1975, the East Division of the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League was renamed the Leyden Division in his honour.
Year Inducted: 1990
Home Town: Oshawa
More about Michael Edward Keenan:
Mike's interest in hockey began in 1957 when he played for Oshawa's C.Y.O. League. In 1965, he played Jr. 'B' for Whitby, and in 1967-68 for the Oshawa Crushmen. He became Oshawa's coach in 1977-78 and 1978-79, winning two consecutive Metro Jr. 'B' League Championships. While coaching the Peterborough Petes in 1979-80, they won the OHL championship and went to the Memorial Cup finals. In 1982-83, he guided the Rochester Americans to the Calder Cup Championship. In 1983-84, Mike coached the University of Toronto Varsity Blues to the Canadian Collegiate Championship. Named head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers on May 7.24, 1984, they won the Patrick Division for the third consecutive year, and made a second trip to the Stanley Cup finals while under his tenure.He recorded his 150th win as coach on March 22, 1987, faster than any coach in NHL history. He was also the first coach in league history to record 40-plus wins in each of his first three seasons. In 1984-85, he was named Coach of the Year by the NHL, Sporting News and Hockey News. One of his greatest coaching victories was leading Team Canada in Copps Coliseum, Hamilton during the Canada Cup in 1987.
Year Inducted: 2005
Home Town: Wales, Great Britain
More about Michelle Qurrey:
A native of Wales, Great Britain, Michelle moved to Oshawa in 1980 at the age of twelve. Her dominance of the Girl's Canadian table tennis scene began shortly thereafter. The former Paul Dwyer High School student captured numerous championships at the provincial and national levels during the early 1980's.
Her stretch of titles began in 1981, when she won the Canadian Championship in the under 13 category, and in 1982 followed that up by winning the under 15 Canadian Championship.
In 1983, she captured the under 15 Gold Medal at the Canadian Winter Games in Chicoutimi, Quebec, and later that year won the Canadian Under 15 Championship again in Burnaby, British Columbia. A terrific year was capped by her being named the 1983 most outstanding Canadian female junior for her sport.
In 1984, she was named to the five member Canadian National Junior Team, of whom only two hailed from Ontario. By capturing the under 17 Gold Medal at the 1985 Ontario Winter Games, she ended a five year run that included six Canadian Championships and six outstanding achievement awards.
Because of her remarkable table tennis accomplishments, Michelle brought enormous pride to the City of Oshawa and is a worthy inductee into the Oshawa Sports Hall of Fame.
Year Inducted: 1992
Home Town: Hungary
More about Miklos (Nick) Springer:.jpg)
A native Hungarian, Miklos (Nick) Springer's arrival in Oshawa in 1958 marked the beginning of a most dynamic soccer career as a leader, a coach, and a builder of the Oshawa Turul Youth Soccer Club.
His skills as a leader of youth are unquestionable. Many of his very competitive teams won sportsmanship awards and became famous for their fine play from Brazil, Latin America, United States to Europe. They were sportsmen par excellence and Goodwill Ambassadors for soccer in Canada.
A highlight of his coaching career occurred in Brazil in 1985 when the Oshawa Turul under 19 team won the Sao Paulo Cup defeating the favoured French team in the final 3-1. The 1978 under 12 and the 1989 under 17 teams brought National Cups back to Oshawa.
Among many National, Provincial and Tournament Championships, very notable is the winning of the Robbie International Tournament. He was recognized with the 1987 Olympic Celebration Medal as a coach.
As a builder, (Nick) was the founder of the Oshawa Turul Club and has made the organization famous in the International Soccer community. Ontario has recognized his organizational abilities and granted him three outstanding National Achievement Awards.
Year Inducted: 1986
Home Town: Oshawa
More about Nancy Lorraine Higgins Jones:
At the age of 22, Nancy helped Canada's Women's Eights crew to a fourth place finish in rowing competition at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal. A year later, Higgins was a member of the Coxed Eights crew which won bronze medals at the 1977 World Championships in Amsterdam, Holland. Nancy had a fine year in 1975, finishing second in the Ontario championships, third at the Canadian finals and helping the University of Western Ontario win the Ontario Universities Women's Eights title. With Nancy playing a big part, Western repeated its QUAA Women's Eights success in 1976 and 1977. Higgins, born in Oshawa, graduated to the coaching ranks and became the first female to coach a Henley Regatta champion when she accomplished the feat in 1984.
Year Inducted: 1986
More about Nancy Murrall MacKay:
Born in Smethwick, England, Nancy arrived in Oshawa in 1926 at the age of four. Nancy represented Canada at the 1948 Olympics in London, England and helped the women's 400-metre relay team to a bronze medal performance, the only track and field medal-winning effort by Canadian athletes at the XIV Olympiad. From 1936-41, Nancy won six gold medals, and one silver at the Canadian track championships. She helped set two Canadian relay records. Nancy also set a record for the intermediate (ages 16-17) 75-yard dash with a time of 8.8 seconds at a meet in 1939. At the provincial level, Nancy was three times a gold medalist, won three silver medals and captured one bronze. Again, she was a member of two record-setting relay quartets. Nancy also won three gold medals, one silver and one bronze at the United States Track and Field Championships from 1944-47.
Year Inducted: 2024
Home Town: Oshawa
More about Nick Kolodzie:
Lifelong Oshawa resident Nick Kolodzie is a local high teacher and decorated triathlete. Nick has represented Canada eight times at the age group world triathlon championships, beginning in 2006 in Switzerland and most recently twice in 2023 — in the sprint distance in Germany and the Olympic distance in Spain. He has won two national age group championships in the Olympic distance, which involves a 1,500-metre swim, 40-kilometre bike ride and 10-K run and was named the 2015 Triathlon Ontario masters short course triathlete of the year. At the 2023 world championships in Spain, Nick was the top Canadian and placed 10th overall in the 50-54 age group in the Olympic distance. As a teacher at Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School in Ajax for 22 years, Nick has also coached over 50 LOSSA championship teams in cross country, Nordic skiing and track and field, and helped many athletes earn scholarships. He served as a convener for LOSSA cross country for 15 years and was a member of the OFSAA track and field organizing committee when the event was held in Oshawa in 2013. For his many successes, Nick Kolodzie is a most worthy addition to the Oshawa Sports Hall of Fame.
Year Inducted: 2015
Home Town: Sault Ste. Marie
More about Norm Schmidt:
Born in Sault Ste. Marie, Norm played hockey from the time he could walk, with the hope of one day playing alongside the all-stars he watched while growing up in his hometown. In his early years he was also involved in soccer and baseball. He soon realized however, that hockey was his passion.As he continued to play hockey, he graduated through the elite levels of the hockey system from Pee Wee to the time he played as an under age defenceman with the Soo Grayhounds. He was drafted by the Oshawa Generals in 1980 from the NOHA championship team, the Soo Thunderbirds. Norm played a total of three years with the Generals during which time he won the Mothersill award as most valuable defenceman in 1981-1982. In 1983 he was named to the OHL 2nd Team All Stars. Norm was a very valuable member of the Oshawa Generals in their journey to the Memorial Cup Finals in Portland in 1983.Norm was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1981 and was a member of the team from 1984 - 1988. In his pro career he played 125 games with the Penguins scoring 23 goals and 56 points. Norm was forced into early retirement due to a serious back injury in 1987 which ended a very promising career.Norm returned to live in Oshawa in 1988 and he became very involved in the community teaching hockey skills to young players in Oshawa and the Durham Region. In 2010 and 2011, he assisted in the coaching of the Whitby Girls' Bantam AA Wolves to the Provincial Championships winning Gold in 2010.Dave Molinari, a writer for Hockey Life News, gave Norm a well-deserved compliment as he left the NHL in February of 1988. He commented on Norm's career and praised his skill and spirit as a hockey player and an excellent role model for young players.
Year Inducted: 1986
Home Town: Oshawa
More about Normie Bagnell:
One of the finest softball / fastball pitchers Canada has ever seen, Normie Bagnell was the most valuable player at the 1958 International Softball Congress World Championships in New Bedford, Illionois while playing for Oshawa Tony's. Earlier, he averaged 20 strikeouts a game for Oshawa Pedlars when he was thought to be at the peak of his fine career. He played in three world championships in a 32-year career, and beat the famous three-man touring team, Eddie Feigner's "King and His Court", 3 - 1. Feigner later called Bagnell the finest Canadian pitcher he had ever encountered, and the only one to beat him. In his career, Bagnell compiled over 1,000 victories, 6,000 strikeouts, 235 shutouts, 54 no-hitters, and 26 perfect games. He carried a .300 lifetime batting average, once struck out 32 batters in one game, and once held the opposition scoreless for a 39-inning stretch. He is a member of the Canadian Softball Hall of Fame.
Year Inducted: 2014
Birth Date: May 27, 1961
Home Town: Oshawa
More about Northern Dancer:
Born on May 27, 1961 at Windfields Farm, Oshawa, Northern Dancer (by Neartic - Natalma by Native Dancer) ran his way into the hearts of Canadians with his prowess on the racetrack and then took the world of thoroughbred horse racing by storm with his unmatched success as a sire. Northern Dancer had distinguished himself on the racetracks of North America winning such prestigious graded stakes races as the Flamingo, The Florida Derby, The Bluegrass Stakes, The Kentucky Derby, The Preakness, and The Queen\'s Plate. Owned by E.P. Taylor\'s Windfields Farm and trained by Horatio Luro, he was voted both Best Three Year Old of the Year and Horse of the Year in 1964.Following his retirement from racing, Northern Dancer went on to a stud career first back in Windfields, Oshawa and then Windfields Farm, Maryland. And, it is as a stallion that his international fame and place in history were established. Siring 635 foals, a full 80% (or 511) per cent became racehorses themselves - and winners of races. Of that number, 146 were stakes winners and a further 26 became champions in Great Britain, Ireland, France, Italy and North America. The list of Northern Dancer Champions includes names revered in racing history, names such as Nijinsky II, The Minstrel, El Gran Senior, Secreto, Stormbird, Nureyev, Try My Best and Sadlers Wells. By the turn of the twenty first century, Northern Dancer\'s bloodlines accounted for roughly 70% of the world\'s thoroughbreds.Northern Dancer died at the Maryland Farm on November 16, 1990. His body was vanned back \"home\" to Windfields, Oshawa where he now rests.
Use any combination of Year, Sport category and/or Name to refine the display.