A dozen nominees have been announced for the award honouring the top athlete in Waterloo Region.

Athlete of the Year nominees were revealed Tuesday. The winner will be announced May 16 at a gala dinner in Kitchener.

This year’s nominees, who were selected based on their 2017 accomplishments, are:

  • Dan Benvenuti, an ultimate Frisbee athlete who won gold medals provincially and nationally, and captained Canada to a silver medal at the World Championship Beach Ultimate
  • Alec Elliot, a para-swimmer who won national titles in several disciplines
  • Chris Ernst, a high school-age cyclist who finished in first place in two junior national championship race and captured the Ontario Cup in road racing
  • Tim Grant, an adventure racer who won races in both Canada and the U.S.
  • Brandon Horn, a softball player who led his team in home runs, runs and RBI and helped Canada to a bronze medal at the World Softball Championship
  • Boris Katchouk, who scored eight points for Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championship and captains the OHL’s Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds
  • Alyssa Lagonia, who helped lead the Swiss soccer team FC Neunkirch to their first-ever league championship
  • Jamal Murray, a basketball player who now averages more than 30 minutes of floor time per game for the NBA’s Denver Nuggets
  • Paige Nosal, a ringette athlete who captained the Cambridge Turbos to a national championship and helped Canada earn a silver medal at the World Ringette Championship
  • Jaimie Phelan, a track athlete at the University of Michigan who won an NCAA championship in the 1500 metres
  • Mike Poulin, who won a championship with the Georgia Swarm and was runner-up for the National Lacrosse League’s goaltender of the year award
  • Garrett Rank, who became Canada’s top-ranked amateur golfer and played in two PGA events while also working 70 NHL games as a referee

The Athlete of the Year award is presented by the Kitchener Sports Association and sponsored by Civitan Sports Waterloo Region. Last year’s winner was Winnipeg Jets forward Mark Scheifele.