WHAT DOES THE SELECTION COMMITTEE DO?
The Selections Committee is an esteemed group of Canadian sports business leaders who select the 5 to Watch award winners in the context of award eligibility and criteria. The committee is sensitive to the diversity of all candidates in determining the 5 to Watch award winners via the voting process.
Honourary Co-Chairs
ALYSON WALKER
Honourary Co-Chair
Chief Commerical Officer
Overactive Media Group
Learn more about Alyson
Alyson Walker is the Senior Vice President of Business at OverActive Media, a global esports company focused on building winning franchises and creating unrivalled fan experiences. Alyson is responsible for driving business and audience growth through Global Partnerships, Marketing, Content, PR & Events.
Alyson has extensive experience in the sports & entertainment industries and a proven track record for success and leadership as demonstrated in her previous roles. Alyson was the Vice President of Brand Partnerships & Client Strategy at Bell Media focused on developing content and data solutions for advertisers across Canada’s leading media properties and platforms. Previous to Bell Media, she led the network & broadcast teams at Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors and Toronto FC. Prior to working in professional sport, she enjoyed immersing herself in Canadian amateur sport at the Canadian Olympic Committee leading sponsorship sales and service, merchandise licensing and commercial rights management. Alyson was part of the team that brought the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games to Canadians in her role leading digital sales and brand partnerships with Canada’s Olympic Broadcast Consortium.
Alyson holds an MBA from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto and a BSc from McGill University. She is a proud WISE (Women in Sport and Events) Toronto board member, a member of the Ryerson MBA in Sport Business Advisory Board, a selection committee member with the Sponsorship Marketing Awards, the Honorary Co-Chair of the 2020 5 to Watch Awards and a ReachUp board member - a non-profit organization focused on using sport to build confidence and inspire healthy lifestyles in Indigenous children and youth. Alyson is a passionate mentor with a number of organizations including The Future Sport Lab, SMCC and GEM (Girls E-Mentorship).
TYLER MAZEREEUW
Honourary Co-Chair
Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer
Canadian Football League
Learn more about Tyler
Tyler Mazereeuw is the Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer at the Canadian Football League, one of Canada’s preeminent national sports and entertainment properties that include nine world-class teams and the iconic Grey Cup. His robust portfolio of executive responsibilities includes partnerships, licensing, broadcast, brand, digital, and content. Tyler joined the sports and entertainment industry after graduating from George Brown’s Sport and Event post-graduate program in 2001, and never looked back. He’s found success through his creative and relationship-first mindset in roles with RBC, Toronto International Film Festival, Molson, IMG and the CFL. Tyler has been an active speaker and advocates for sharing best practices on sponsorshipalliance.com, industry collaboration and finding time for the next generation of talent through the SMCC since 2011, serving as a board member, speaker, judge and the national chairman from 2015-2017, where he founded the industry’s first mentorship program – SMCC Activate, that partners industry-leading executives with aspiring leaders of tomorrow. In 2015, Tyler was recognized by his peers as one of Canada’s ‘5 to Watch’ and is honoured and grateful to serve as the honourary co-chair of the 2020 Awards.
Selection Committee Members

Matt Afinec
President & COO
Hamilton Tiger-Cats Football Club

Andrew Argo
Senior Director, Corporate Sponsorship & Business Development
New York Jets

Chris Armstrong
Executive Vice President, Talent & Innovation
Wasserman Media Group

Adam Ashton
Advisor
Canada Games Council

Ian Austin
Dean, Centre for Business
George Brown College

Andrew Baker
VP International Relations and Public Affairs
Canadian Olympic Committee

Brian Baker
Country Business Manager - Canada
Dyla Brands

Brent Barootes
President and CEO
Partnership Group

Yvonne Bergmann
Vice President, Business
Western Hockey League

Lyne Bessette
Board Member
Canadian Olympic Committee

Cheri Bradish
Loretta Rogers Research Chair in Sport Marketing
Ryerson University

Maria-Leena Clarke
Executive Director
Canada Basketball Foundation

Nathalie Cook
Executive Advisor

Ward Dilse
Ontario Music Office
Ontario Creates

Patrice Drouin
Executive Consultant
PDR Management

Josh Epstein
Senior Vice President
Oakview Group

Kelly Fawcett
Director, Corporate Communications
TELUS

Julian Franklin
Vice President
Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE)

Sam Galet
Senior Vice President, Managing Director
IMG Canada

Kevin Gilmore
Founder & President
4Sport Consulting Inc

Bart Given
Managing Director
TORQUE Strategies

Sandra Gage
Chief Marketing Officer
Canada Soccer Association

Jean Gosselin
Director, Communication and Marketing
Institut national du sport du Québec

Catherine Gosselin-Despres
Executive Director, Sport
Canadian Paralympic Committee

Gord Grace
President and CEO
Ontario University Athletics

Andrew Greenlaw
Vice President, Community & Client
CIBC

Mark Harrison
Founder - The T1 Agency
Founder - Black Talent Initiative
Chairperson of the Board - BBBS of Toronto

Gord Hendren
Managing Director
YouGov

Shannon Hosford
Chief Marketing Officer
Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE)

Theresa Howland
Vice President, Sponsorship, Marketing & Employee Services
Calgary Stampede

Sean Humphrey
Vice President of Marketing
The Globe and Mail

Colin Jarvis
Director, Corporate Partnerships
VIFF

Nicol Kalman
Founder & President
API Connect

Sophie Kotsopoulos
Vice President of Integrated Marketing
National Hockey League

Jim Kozak
SVP and Group Head, Mediacom - Group M
Sports, Entertainment & Culture, Canada

Rachel Lewis
Chief Operating Officer
Vancouver Whitecaps

Steven Lewis
Co-Founder and President
XMC

Matthew Logue
Co-Founder
The Greater Agency

Dan MacKenzie
President
Canadian Hockey League (CHL)

Heather MacLean
President
ProSpeakers.com

Leah MacNab
Managing Director
NBA Canada

Ian Malcolm
President and CEO
Lumency

Tim Maloney
Executive Director - Varsity Athletics
Dalhousie University

Patrick McEleney
Executive Vice President & Partner
XMC

Garnet Nelson
Co-Founder & Managing Director
Unite Partnerships

Norm O'Reilly
Dean, Graduate School of Business
University of Maine

Atila Ozkaplan
VP, Production Operations
NBC Olympics

Sébastien Paradis
President & General Manager
Brassuers du Nord - Bière Borealé

Eric Pilote
Sports Consultant
Province of Quebec

Craig Reynolds
President & CEO
Saskatchewan Roughriders

Bill Robinson
Past CEO
Nova Scotia Sports Hall of Fame

Roy Roedger
President & CEO
SDI Marketing

Michael Rossi
President & Founder
Voce Leadership

Gavin Roth
Founder & Managing Director
Gavin Roth & Associates Revenue Consultants

Jacquie Ryan
CEO, Canadian Olympic Foundation
Chief Brand and Commerical Officer, Canadian Olympic Committee

Mark Sabourin
Coach
The Sponsorship Collective

Adrian Sciarra
President
Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG)

Vijay Setlur
Marketing Instructor, Schulich School of Business, York University
Marketing Instructor, Professional Football Development, Concacaf

Chris Shewfelt
Vice President, Business Operations - Toronto Argonauts & Toronto FC
MLSE

Tim Shipton
Executive Vice President, Communications, Public Affairs & Gaming
Oilers Entertainment Group

Mark Silver
Founder and CEO
Parleh Media Group

Bob Stellick
President
Stellick Marketing Communications Inc

Rob Swann
Chief Commerical Officer
Tennis Canada

Laurel Walzak
Associate Professor
Ryerson University

Trevor Whiffen
Partner
Dickinson Wright LLP Lawyers
John Wiggins
Vice President, Organizational Culture and Inclusion
Toronto Raptors