Saugeen Track & Field club co-founder posthumously inducted to Wall of Fame

Earl Farrell has posthumously been inducted into the Kincardine Sports Wall of fame.

Farrell, who died in 2019, spent countless hours teaching and coaching track and field and athletes says that he had a gift for bringing out the best in those he mentored, at every level, regardless of ability. Those he coached learned that hard work, sacrifice and grit were essential to success.

Farrell and wife Geordie, were honoured at the Ontario Sports Award banquet with the Syl Apps Award for Achievement in the Sport of Athletics in 2008 and were also inducted into the Saugeen Shores Hall of Fame in 2017 with the “Builder Award”.

    Earl and Geordie Farrell          Saugeen Times File Photo

The Farrells were selected for the ‘Builder Award’ for their commitment to youth in the area of Track and Field sports for many years.  Husband and wife were both teachers with a specialty in physical and health education and were coaches in their respective schools prior to their marriage.

When they moved to Port Elgin in 1980, they found that there was no Track and Field team and volunteered to coach the high school team at Saugeen District Secondary School (SDSS).  At the end of the year, the athletes wanted to continue their training and the Saugeen Track and Field Club was born. To this day, it is one of the top developmental track and field organizations in Canada, if not North America.

Both have received many coaching honours and awards in addition to coaching many athletes who have gone on to win scholarships and international recognition. The couple has coached more than 30 athletes who came first on National teams and competed at the PanAm Games American Championships, World Championships and the Olympics. 

One athlete is a Rhodes Scholar and more than 60 earned full academic athletic scholarships in Canada and the United States.  Some of the athletes today continue to hold national records, U.S. record and a World record.

Earl Farrell held many positions, including at the Provincial and National levels, and received many awards:

  • Provincial Coach for Canada Summer Games 1989/1993
  • National Coach for PanAm Jr. Championships in Chile in 1995
  • Head Coach for Jr. Athletes in 1996
  • Board of Directors Athletics Canada 1998 – 2003
  • President of Ontario Association of Track and Field
  • Athletics Canada Competition Committee 2003/04
  • Sil Apps Award; Glen Peach Award; Herb Young Memorial and many more

The Kincardine Wall of Fame is located at the Davidson Centre and it is expected that an Awards Banquet may be held in the Fall if Covid-19 restrictions are lifted.