CALGARY (CIS) – Kylie Masse, a swimmer from the University of Toronto, is the BLG Award winner as Canadian Interuniversity Sport female athlete of the year for the 2015-16 season.
 
Official BLG Awards website: www.blg.com/blgawards
CIS website: www.cis-sic.ca
Photos of nominees (photos of awards show available later tonight): DROPBOX
 
The recipients of the 24th annual BLG Awards were announced Monday night at the Martha Cohen Theatre in Calgary. The awards show will air nationally later in May on Sportsnet.
 
All eight nominees – one female and one male from each of the four CIS regional associations - received a commemorative gold ring from Jostens and a watch from Timex, the official suppliers of CIS. Masse and Buckley were also presented with a trophy and a $10,000 scholarship to attend a Canadian University graduate school.


 
Masse, a LaSalle, Ont. native who was only in her second year of CIS eligibility, merited the Jim Thompson Trophy presented annually to the female winner. She became the fourth BLG Award recipient – all women - from the Varsity Blues program, joining swimmer Elizabeth Warden (2002), track and field standout Foy Williams (1998) and basketball player Justine Ellison (1996).
 
In only her second campaign with the Varsity Blues, Masse put together one of the best seasons in Canadian university swimming history. A memorable year that got that much better on April 6, when the 20-year-old qualified for her first Olympic Games thanks to a record time of 59.06 seconds in the 100-metre backstroke at the national trials.
 
Of course, close observers of the Canadian swimming scene are not surprised by her success. After all, the kinesiology student had already made plenty of waves a year ago when she was named the OUA female swimmer of the year as a freshman, before claiming seven medals in as many events in her first CIS championship appearance.
 
A few months later in South Korea, Masse served notice that she was ready for the world stage by winning Summer Universiade gold in her specialty event.
 
This university season, the new Olympian proved virtually unstoppable, posting 18 individual victories in six conference competitions before setting six OUA records and a pair of Canadian short-course marks at the OUA championships. And then she kept the best for last.
 
In late February, Masse reached the CIS podium in each of her seven events for the second straight year en route to female-MVP honours. She finished the national meet with four gold and three silver medals, including a sweep of the three backstroke finals, all in championship-record times. In the 50 back, she lowered her own Canadian short-course standard in the preliminaries (26.72) before shattering the long-course record in the final (27.84). Her performance helped the U of T women capture their first CIS team banner since 1997.
 
"Swimming has been a huge part of my life and I'm so thankful to have had the opportunity to pursue it while getting my education at the University of Toronto. Coaches Byron (MacDonald) and Linda (Kiefer) and my teammates have truly helped me develop not only as a swimmer but as a student-athlete," says Masse. "This has been a whirlwind of a season since last summer. I'm so grateful for everything this year."
 
In his 37 seasons at the helm, Varsity Blues head coach Byron MacDonald has mentored his fair share of world-class swimmers, including Elizabeth Warden, the 2002 BLG Award winner and 2004 Olympian. 
 
"Kylie's improvement arch since coming to U of T has been remarkable. She went from being ranked 200th in the world to top 10 in just two years. Her hard work has certainly paid off. She loves swimming, loves her team, and is the most unassuming world-class athlete you will ever meet."
 
The other female finalists for this season were Acadia University basketball player Paloma Anderson of Phoenix, Arizona; McGill University hockey player Mélodie Daoust of Valleyfield, Que.; and Thompson Rivers University volleyball player Iuliia Pakhomenko of Donetsk, Ukraine. 
 
The winners were once again selected by the Canadian Athletic Foundation, a not-for-profit Board established for the purpose of administering the BLG Awards and protecting the integrity of the selection process. For the second straight year, the general public was also invited to vote online (votes that didn't count towards the official result) and a remarkable 112,499 votes were casted over a two-week period.
 
"On behalf of BLG and the Canadian Athletic Foundation trustees, I would like to congratulate Kylie Masse and Andrew Buckley, the winners of the 24th annual BLG Awards," said Doug Mitchell, national co-chair of BLG. "The eight student-athletes who were nominated are all outstanding in their sport. I congratulate all the nominees for their great accomplishments."
 
"BLG is proud to support the Canadian Interuniversity Sport's top athletes and to be the founding sponsor of the annual BLG Awards," said Sean Weir, BLG's national managing partner and CEO. "Excelling in sports requires unwavering commitment and a strong team ethic. That's what sports and business have in common – the kind of leadership where, to succeed, the needs of the team are put ahead of the individual."
 
"The BLG Awards represent the highest honour for our student-athletes. This year's national nominees are not only exceptional athletes, they are also tremendous ambassadors for the entire CIS membership and our universities," said Graham Brown, chief executive officer of CIS. "On behalf of CIS, I also wish to extend our sincere appreciation to our long-standing partners at BLG for their ongoing support and belief in university sport in Canada."
 
ALL-TIME BLG AWARD WINNERS:
 
2015-16: Kylie Masse – Toronto (swimming) / Andrew Buckley – Calgary (football)
2014-15: Korissa Williams – Windsor (basketball) / Ross Proudfoot – Guelph (c country & T&F)
2013-14: Justine Colley – Saint Mary's (basketball) / Philip Scrubb – Carleton (basketball)
2012-13: Shanice Marcelle - UBC (volleyball) / Kyle Quinlan - McMaster (football)
2011-12: Ann-Sophie Bettez - McGill (hockey) / Marc-André Dorion - McGill (hockey)
2010-11: Jessica Clemençon - Windsor (basketball) / Tyson Hinz - Carleton (basketball)
2009-10: Liz Cordonier - UBC (volleyball) / Erik Glavic - Calgary (football)
2008-09: Annamay Pierse - UBC (swimming) / Joel Schmuland - Alberta (volleyball)
2007-08: Laetitia Tchoualack - Montreal (volleyball) / Rob Hennigar - UNB (hockey)
2006-07: Jessica Zelinka - Calgary (track & field) / Josh Howatson - Trinity Western (volleyball)
2005-06: Marylène Laplante - Laval (volleyball) / Osvaldo Jeanty - Carleton (basketball)
2004-05: Adrienne Power - Dalhousie (track & field) / Jesse Lumsden - McMaster (football)
2003-04: Joanna Niemczewska - Calgary (volleyball) / Adam Ens - Saskatchewan (volleyball)
2002-03: Kim St-Pierre - McGill (hockey) / Ryan McKenzie - Windsor (cross country & T&F)
2001-02: Elizabeth Warden - Toronto (swimming) / Brian Johns - UBC (swimming)
2000-01: Leighann Doan - Calgary (basketball) / Kojo Aidoo - McMaster (football)
1999-00: Jenny Cartmell - Alberta (volleyball) / Michael Potts - Western (soccer)
1998-99: Corinne Swirsky - Concordia (hockey) / Alexandre Marchand - Sherbrooke (T&F)
1997-98: Foy Williams - Toronto (track & field) / Titus Channer - McMaster (basketball)
1996-97: Terri-Lee Johannesson - Manitoba (basketball) / Curtis Myden - Calgary (swimming)
1995-96: Justine Ellison - Toronto (basketball) / Don Blair - Calgary (football)
1994-95: Linda Thyer - McGill (track & field) / Bill Kubas - Wilfrid Laurier (football)
1993-94: Sandra Carroll - Winnipeg (basketball) / Tim Tindale - Western (football)
1992-93: Diane Scott - Winnipeg (volleyball) / Andy Cameron - Calgary (volleyball)
 
About the BLG Awards
 
The BLG Awards were established in 1993 to recognize the top female and male athletes from universities affiliated with Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS). The Awards are based on athletic accomplishments, outstanding sportsmanship and leadership. Each of the 56 CIS schools nominates one female and one male athlete of the year. From these nominees, one female and one male athlete are chosen within each of the four regional associations: Atlantic University Sport (AUS), Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ), Ontario University Athletics (OUA) and Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CWUAA). To be eligible, a student-athlete must have competed in a CIS sport for a minimum of two years and cannot be a previous recipient of a BLG Award.
 
All nominees receive a commemorative gold ring and a watch from Timex – the official supplier of CIS - and winners are presented with a trophy and a $10,000 scholarship to attend a Canadian university graduate school. Winners are selected by the Canadian Athletic Foundation (CAF), a not-for-profit board established for the purpose of administering the BLG Awards and protecting the integrity of the selection process. The CAF Board of Trustees consists of 19 members from five Canadian cities representing major corporations from across the country who are committed to ensuring that Canadian university athletes receive the recognition they deserve.
 

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About Canadian Interuniversity Sport

 
Canadian Interuniversity Sport is the national governing body of university sport in Canada. Every year, over 12,000 student-athletes and 700 coaches from 56 universities and four regional associations vie for 21 national championships in 12 different sports. CIS also provides high performance international opportunities for Canadian student-athletes at Winter and Summer Universiades, as well as numerous world university championships. For further information, visit www.cis-sic.ca or follow us on:
 
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For further information, please contact:
 
Michel Bélanger        
Communications & Media Relations
Canadian Interuniversity Sport
T: 613-562-5670 ext. 25
C: 613-447-6334
E: belanger@universitysport.ca
 
Peter Watts
Media Officer
BLG Awards
T: (403) 444-4377
C: (403) 862-2919
E: peter.watts@corusent.com