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February 12, 2009 - Vancouver athletes receive provincial recognition
Three Vancouver athletes recently received Premier's Athletic Awards.All three - Stephanie Ko of South Vancouver, Alvin Lau of Killarney and Melody Liang of Collingwood - are members of the badminton team at Douglas College.
While they share a similar history in the sport - each has been playing for about 15 years - they all bring different elements to the team, says coach Al Mawani.
"Alvin is the ultimate team leader. He's disciplined, has a great work ethic and a good attitude both on and off the court," says Mawani. Receiving the award was a three-peat accomplishment for Lau. He was also named the Male Athlete of the Year Across All CCAA Sports by the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association (CCAA) last year.
Liang is a past recipient of the Female Athlete of the Year in Badminton on behalf of the CCAA and the BCCAA. This is her first time receiving the Premier's Athletic Award.
The honour is well-deserved pay-off for her newfound easy-going mindset, says her coach. "Melody's court skills have always been really high. Lately, she has worked hard on her mental preparation and it's paying off," says Mawani.
For Ko, the recognition is particularly exhilarating, having moved to BC from Toronto 18 months ago. It was the first award of this stature for her.
"I was quite surprised when I found out I received the award because I have only been in BC for a short amount of time. I had to read and re-read the email to make sure I had read it correctly," says Ko.
"I would say Stephanie was the most improved on the team this year. For her to win this award, it's the icing on the cake," says Mawani.
The players will not be resting to bask in their latest accomplishment. Ko, Lau and Liang are training for the provincials this weekend. March 3-8, the Douglas badminton team will be vying for its fourth straight national title in Toronto.
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