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Last week, we had the honour of attending the Greater Victoria Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony, celebrating the remarkable Class of 2024. Congratulations to each inductee on your well-deserved recognition for contributions to the sports community. Your dedication and achievements continue to inspire athletes, builders, and fans throughout Greater Victoria and beyond. A special shout out to the emcee, Jordan Cunningham, who even without his notes kept it all together. 🎤🤓👏 Somehow, even got a nice Brent Dobbie mention into the monologue. Well played. Hall of Fame Inductees:
Thank you for your lasting impact on the Greater Victoria and Canadian sports scene!
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What an incredible day at the Greater Victoria Sports Tourism Summit! 🎉 DMG Managing Director, Mark deFrias, had the privilege of moderating the Sponsorship & Fundraising panel, where there was some fantastic discussions with panelists Paul Beirne (Pacific FC), Amanda Wilson (Spark Strategic Group), Samantha Wilson (Wilson's Group of Companies) and Jennifer Loo (Fairway Markets). We explored what truly makes sponsorships work, how to build meaningful partnerships, and what brands look for in pitches—focusing on what really resonates. We also talked about leveraging events not just for visibility but as opportunities for hosting and employee engagement as part of overall partnership offerings. A huge thank you to the Greater Victoria Sports Tourism Commission team, especially Keith Wells and Koben Meausette, for organizing such an impactful event, and to all the other panelists and moderators who provided insights in their area of expertise. Clint Flood, Charles Parkinson, Brianna Waldman, Tami Tate, Cathy Noel, Robert Bettauer, Brenda MacFarlane, MBA. It was a great day. Special shout out as well to Paul Nursey ICD.D and the team at Destination Greater Victoria for their continued support of the sports industry. 🙌 We're looking forward to more opportunities to collaborate and help drive sports tourism in Victoria forward! Joining our DMG team is Hayato Matsuba! Welcome, Hayato 👋 Hayato, a Camosun College Sports Management student, is a passionate soccer (ahem football) fan and player. Hayato also moonlights as the starting goalkeeper for Gorge FC Division 1 in the local Vancouver Island Soccer League. Hayato, born and raised in Matsusaka, Japan, grew up in a sports family and his passion for sport brought him to Canada to pursue an education and career in Sports. If you haven't heard about the Camosun College Sports Management program, please search it out. There are some amazing, talented students coming out of that program each and every year and they need opportunities.  Exciting times ahead as Touchdown Pacific is only a month away! 🏈🎉 This week BC Lions held a press event in Victoria, BC to outline the plans around the Touchdown Pacific event occuring on August 31. If you haven't heard the news, the BC Lions Football Club are bringing the Canadian Football League to play against the Ottawa Redblacks in a CFL regular season match. Royal Athletic Park will be transformed from approx. 5,000 seats to 14,000, and will have all the game day entertainment, bells and whistles, you'd be accustomed to seeing at a match in BC Place. DMG Managing Director, Mark deFrias, is participating in the Touchdown Pacific Steering Committee. The anticipation is palpable in the city as the event sold out in less than 50 minutes. If you didn't purchase your tickets there will be other opportunities to participate in Touchdown Pacific. The Lions are hosting a ticketed watch party at Central Park on Aug. 31 where upwards of 2,500 people can watch live feeds of the game, or you can take in the free two-day festival at Ship Point on Aug. 29 and 30 with food, entertainment, and meet-and-greet sessions with CFL players to celebrate all things football. Wow, what an incredible and busy summer at deFrias Management Group! 🎉 We’re pumped to share some highlights from this amazing summer, packed with fantastic projects for some amazing clients. 🏃♂️ Victoria Track Classic powered by Runsport Victoria Society (June 12, 2024): This event was off the charts! Top athletes brought their A-game, lighting up the track with talent and determination. Many athletes using this event as an opportunity to gain points towards their Olympic dreams in Paris 2024. Big thanks to our awesome clients at RunSport and sponsors 94Forward, Nohra Thai Food, Times Colonist (Victoria), and BC Athletics for making this event so special. 🏀 W'Hoop It Up: Canada vs Portugal presented by Rifflandia Festival (June 26, 2024): We shattered the women's national team attendance record with 5,015 fans! The Save-On-Foods Arena was buzzing as Canada Basketball prepped for the Paris 2024 Olympics with a thrilling match against Portugal. Huge shout out to all the amazing fans and special thanks to Peninsula Co-op's Lindsay Gaudette and Brandi Natarelli for their Half-Time Show support. Future stars, we see you! ⚽️ Wrexham and Sponsors Visit for the Spectrum School Turf Project (July 26, 2024): Spectrum High School rocked with a special event celebrating the Spectrum Turf Project funding. As part of Wrexham AFC's, we worked closely with "Wrex Coast Tour" to Keep Things Juicy in Victoria. A BBQ, food, and drinks for the local youth, thanks to Johnsonville (Marc Bennett, Carly Nusser) SharkNinja (Sara Kalman, Arpita G., Meghan Yuri Young) and Grill Dads (all current partners of Wrexham AFC). Special thanks to John Deschner, Humphrey Kers and the entire Wrexham team for the visit! Special Shout Out: It's super important we give a shout out to those in government who assist us in making these events and projects come together. A massive thank you to Greater Victoria Sport Tourism Commission (Paul Nursey ICD.D, Keith Wells and Koben Meausette), Government of BC (Lana Popham, Melissa Farrance, et al) City of Victoria BC (Matt Dell, Chris Coleman, Colleen Mycroft, et al) and University of Victoria (Michelle Peterson, et al) for their incredible support. #Events #EventManagement #Summer2024 #VictoriaTrackClassic #CanadavsPortugal #Wrexham #SpectrumSchool #ThankYou Another hugely successful Golf FORE KidSport Charity Tournament supporting KidSport Greater Victoria. Thank you to Jill Shaw, board members and volunteers who make this event happen each and every year. We are very proud to be a hole sponsor for this community event. We've been told that the event raised roughly $25,000 for KidSport Greater Victoria. This translates to a season of sport for approximately 70 local kids in financial need, helping them access the sports they love. Thanks to Golf FORE KidSport, around 1400 kids will be off the sidelines and onto the playing fields. A big shout out to KidSport and to all the other community partners! 🙌❤️ Today, on International Women's Day, we are honoring the incredible women who make a difference in sports and beyond. We want to take a moment to highlight one of our own, Mariah Kelly. As the Operations Director for the TC10K and Head Coach of the RunSport Training Clinics, Mariah's dedication and expertise shine through in everything she does. Her commitment to excellence sets the standard for our team. Thank you, Mariah, for your outstanding contributions and for inspiring us all. Your leadership is invaluable, and we are proud to have you with us at deFrias Management Group.  deFrias Management Group is proud to support the TWD Cup, an incredible initiative by Train w Dukes that will unite Edmonton's soccer community with a Charity All-Star soccer game. 🌟⚽ Household Canadian soccer names like Alphonso Davies, Elijah Adekugbe, William Akio, and Ali Musse to name only a few. The TWD Cup proceeds will benefit FreePlay for Kids, Overflowing Rivers Ministries, and the Archbishop O'Leary soccer program. It is more than just a game; it is a powerful drive to make a positive impact in the Canadian Soccer community and we are proud to be involved. 🙌  Last week, we had the honor of attending the Opening Ceremony of the Parkland Secondary School Track! 🏟️ Although it faced budgetary challenges and many ups and downs, the collective determination of the #community has now turned this vision into a reality. This incredible achievement was made possible by the collaborative efforts of Parkland Secondary School, Saanich School District, Memorial Park Society, the District of North Saanich, the Town of Sidney, and generous local businesses and citizens. 🤝 The ceremony was marked by speeches from esteemed guests and a symbolic ribbon-cutting. Thank you to everyone who contributed to making this valuable athletic facility a reality for our community. 🙏 This past week, our team at had the privilege of attending some remarkable sports events that showcased the power of community, collaboration, and the rich sporting heritage of British Columbia. Thanks to the team at BC Sports Hall of Fame, Tom Mayenknecht and Michelle Kitchen, as well as many others for putting on a great conference. 🌟 Thursday: We were honored to be a part of the Sport BC Community Hero Awards, kicking off the BC Sports Hall of Fame 2023 Annual Summit. It was an inspiring evening where we joined Sport BC in recognizing the invaluable contributions of BC Sport volunteers. 🗣️ Friday Morning: The General Meeting of the BC Sports Hall Network provided a platform for insightful discussions on the development of local, regional, and sport-specific sports halls, museums, galleries, and exhibits in our beautiful province. 🍽️ Friday Lunch: The Defining Moments Luncheon, powered by the Canadian Sport Institute Pacific was a heartwarming tribute to the defining moments in British Columbia and Greater Victoria's sports history. It was an opportunity to connect with leaders who have left an indelible mark on our sporting community. We're grateful for the opportunity to be a part of these events and look forward to contributing further to the vibrant sports landscape of British Columbia. 🇨🇦🥇 |
