That's right, this year's top male athlete is from Lively

After accumulating an impressive collection of medals and records over the course of his post-secondary career, Lively native Ross Proudfoot had the highest honour bestowed upon him May 4 as he was named the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) Male Athlete of the Year.

He was joined by Korissa Williams, a basketball player from the University of Windsor, who was named the CIS Female Athlete of the Year.

All eight nominees – one female and one male from each of the four CIS regional associations — received a commemorative gold ring and a watch from Timex, the official supplier of CIS. Proudfoot and Williams were also presented with a trophy and a $10,000 scholarship to attend a Canadian University graduate school.

The winners were 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 first time, the general public was also encouraged to vote as part of an online pilot project — more than 10,000 votes were cast over a 12-day period.

“The BLG Awards are amongst the most prestigious awards an athlete can attain,” said Thérèse Quigley, president of CIS. “To be one of eight amongst 11,500 student-athletes across Canada is an extraordinary honour.”

In an era when the depth of talent was at an all-time high in his respective sports, Proudfoot emerged as the best-of-the-best. He ended his extraordinary varsity career as a nine-time All-Canadian in cross-country running and track and field and a six-time national champion, with 19 CIS medals to his name (10 team and nine individual).

Last November, despite windy, hail-like conditions in St. John’s, Nfld., Proudfoot captured individual gold at the CIS cross-country championships while leading the Gryphon men to their remarkable ninth straight team title. In the process, he was named a first-team All-Canadian in the sport for a fifth consecutive season, becoming just the third athlete in CIS history to accomplish the feat, and the first to combine that achievement with five team banners.

In March, he was named the most outstanding male athlete at the CIS track and field championships in Windsor, where he prevailed in his two events (1,500-m and 3,000-m), came one-hundredth of a second short of matching an 18-year-old meet record in the 3,000-m race and guided Guelph to second place in the men’s team standings.

Aside from going undefeated against CIS competition on the track in 2014-15, Proudfoot also impressed at several of the most prestigious events south of the border this winter, including a third-place finish in the elite men’s one-mile run at the New Balance Games in New York City and second place at Notre Dame’s famed Meyo Invitational, where he narrowly missed out on breaking the four-minute mile (4:00.68). Then on Valentine’s Day in Geneva, Ohio, he became the fastest ever CIS runner over 3,000 metres to win the Spire NCAA Division 1 Invitational.

Not to be lost in all of this is the fact Proudfoot has achieved these results while also pursuing his Master’s in Human Kinetics. The 22-year-old, who reached the 1,500-m final at the 2013 World University Games in Russia, is now working toward qualifying for this summer’s Pan Am Games in Toronto, as well as the 2015 IAAF world championships and the 2016 Summer Olympics.

“Ross competes with a sense of teamship that elevates the performance of his teammates to new levels,” said Guelph head coach Dave Scott-Thomas. “I’ve been fortunate to work with some of Canada’s best endurance athletes, including those on the Olympic stage, and there is no doubt in my mind that Ross breathes in that same air. It’s a gift to be able to work with him.”

Proudfoot is the first University of Guelph athlete to receive the award.