Athletics Ontario is excited to announce the 2020 Inductees into the AO Hall of Fame. This year we will induct five elite individuals into the honorable Athletics Ontario Hall of Fame. We are extremely proud of the accomplishments of each individual and recognize the impact they have made on the Ontario track and field community.
Congratulations to the following builders and athletes who will be inducted into the Athletics Ontario Hall of Fame as the class of 2020:
BUILDERS’ CATEGORY:
Al Sokol
Al Sokol was an accomplished sports writer who received several awards recognizing his talents. In 1967 he won a National Newspaper Award for sports writing while at the Toronto Telegram. In 1985 he won the Sports Federation of Canada Award for Excellence in Amateur Sports Writing. Al Sokol was a fixture at track and field and cross country races around Ontario covering these events for the Toronto Star… Read More.
Jim Griffin
Jim Griffin built his life around his 29 years of coaching experience, primarily at the High School and Ontario Legion Level. He is a level 5 official in the areas of throws, Referee, and Jury of Appeal, and a level 3 official in the areas of Starting, Scoring and Recording. Jim officiated at some notable meets including 1976 Montreal Olympics, 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, and throws referee at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria… Read More.
Ron Wallingford
Wallingford is being inducted to both the Builders AND Athlete categories.
Ron Wallingford, a native of Ottawa born in 1933, captained the track team that won the Big Ten Championship at the University of Michigan. Ron held the prestigious positions of the Canadian Track and Field Technical Coordinator, the Technical Director of CTFA, and director of the 1976 Montreal Olympic Marathon race.
For more than 20 years Ron competed at Canada’s highest levels in events ranging from 1500 m to the marathon. He held Canada’s 3000m steeplechase record. He represented Canada at the 1966 Commonwealth Games, placing 6th. He also competed in three Pan Am Games – Chicago (1959), Winnipeg (1967), and Cali (1971)… Read More.
ATHLETES’ CATEGORY:
Kyle Pettey
Kyle Pettey has competed at four Paralympic Games representing Canada, collecting three medals. Pettey won a silver medal in the shot put and discus at the 2000 Paralympics in Sydney. He added a shot put bronze in 2008 in Beijing. In addition, he is a three-time world record holder… Read More.
Jessica Zelinka
Jessica Zelinka is a two-time Olympian who competed in both the heptathlon and the open 100m hurdles. Prior to her Olympic debut, Zelinka was a gold medalist at the 2007 Pan American games scoring 6343 points and setting a Canadian record. At the Beijing Olympics in 2008, she earned a fifth place finish with 6490, breaking her own Canadian record. In 2010 she earned a silver medal in the heptathlon at the Commonwealth Games, followed by a third place finish at Talence and 5th place finish at the Gotzis heptathlon… Read More.
