News Feed
Vikings Honour The Past
by Curtis J. Phillips, ACAC Sports Writer
“The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will.”
~ Vince Lombardi
09/17/2012...Camrose, Alberta - It is that knowledge, perhaps, of what will power may lead to that found Dr. Garry Gibson, Karel Lunde (posthumously) Clarence Servold, Irvin Servold, Dr. Yvonne Visser and the 1974-1975 championship Vikings hockey team to be inducted into the inaugural Vikings Wall of Fame recently at the University of Alberta—Augustana campus in Camrose.
Augustana Dean Allen Berger said in an interview with the Camrose Canadian newspaper, that the induction dinner and ceremony, which was organized by the Augustana Viking athletics department with nearly 250 attending, was long overdue.
“The new tradition that we are establishing tonight, a wall of fame, is arguably long overdue. But then so was last year’s ACAC hockey championship (3-2 double overtime against the NAIT Ooks),” joked Berger of the fact that the last time the Vikings won an ACAC men’s hockey title was with the 1974-75 team being honoured September 8, 2012.
“It seems to me that there are two reasons for a program like this. The first is because it is right to celebrate individuals whose accomplishments stand out in our history and in our record books. The standards they set are without a doubt deserving of lasting recognition. Second, in honouring these individuals and their athletic accomplishments, we are drawing attention too – and I hope reinforcing- some of our core institutional values: performance excellence, school spirit and teamwork to name three.”
Dean Berger also presented each inductee a special commemorative plaque. The physical part of the Vikings Wall of Fame will be located adjacent to the athletic department.
The night also featured a silent auction of hockey memorabilia with proceeds going towards Viking Athletics and scholarship funds. Official fundraising totals for the weekend were not available at this time.
"It was difficult to choose who to honour the first year, mostly because there were so many athletes from which to choose," said Augustana athletics director Greg Ryan and member of the Augustana athletic advisory board, which made the final selections in an newspaper interview. ""We had some very interesting discussions."
Vikings Athletic Services Coordinator Jay Shanahan in an interview with acac.ab.ca said it was an honour for the school to host the event. "The school was definitely honoured to have these individuals and the hockey team for our inaugural induction The idea was that we wanted to make this the premiere sport in the community.
“I think each and every one of them was definitely honoured and we had a video of each of them talking about the time spent here and how humbling it was to be selected. They really took it to heart. We are now taking it to a new level where we are not only recognized out current student athletes but past athletes.”
Guest speakers at the event were NHL Legends Craig SImpson and Bryan Trottier.
Below are brief profiles of each inductee as written in the Camrose Canadian.
Dr. Garry Gibson
Dr. Garry Gibson and his wife, Dorothy, have served Augustana for over 30 years. Their motto has been, through outdoor leadership and athletics, to lead young people to a greater awareness of the natural world, themselves, others and ultimately, their God. They continue to be involved with Augustana, church and sports. Based on his Ph.D. research in 1976, Dr. Gibson designed the Outdoor Leadership program at Augustana. In 1973, with a $5,000 grant for ski equipment from the Rotary Club of Camrose, he was able to start a cross country ski program, which he coached until he retired in 1996. Dr. Gibson received Augustana's Betty Osterud Award for excellence in service in 1995.
Karel Lunde
Karel Lunde came to Camrose Lutheran College from the United States as a pastor, teacher and coach in the late 1950s. Under his leadership from 1959 to 1985, the Vikings became the football team to beat in the East Central Alberta region. His former students established the Karel Lunde Memorial Award in 2005 to honour his legacy.
Clarence Servold
Clarence Servold became Canada's Junior Nordic Combined champion two years after graduating from Camrose Lutheran College in 1946. He studied engineering in Seattle and Denver, earning U.S. accolades and a 2004 induction to the University of Denver Ski Hall of Fame. Clarence competed for Canada at the 1956 and 1960 Olympic Winter Games. Afterwards he coached Canada's Nordic Ski Team and continued to compete internationally. Through his long career, his engineering skills and passion for skiing were combined in efforts to design or rebuild ski facilities across Canada. Clarence was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame in 1984, and received Augustana's Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2001. At the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics, he was invited to light the Canore Nordic Centre's Olympic torch.
Irvin Servold
Irvin Servold won Canada's first ski jumping championship while a student at Camrose Lutheran College, and twice represented Canada in the Winter Olympic Games: 1956 and 1960 in both Cross Country and Nordic Combined. He won the International Intercollegiate Ski Meet in Banff three years in a row. He was Nordic Combined National Champion in 1955 and 1972, and the University of Alberta's Outstanding Male Athlete in 1959. He continues to compete around Alberta and B.C. each winter, and also internationally every year in the Masters' World Cup. Irvin is a life member of the Canadian Olympic Association and the Canadian Ski Association. He was one of the founding members of Cross Country Alberta, known in its early days as the Alberta Ski Division.. He has coached at national and international levels in Nordic Combined, Cross Country and Ski Jumping. In 1978 he helped with the initial site selection for the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympic Games. Irvin was inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in 1980 and into the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame in 1985. He was recognized with a place on the University Of Alberta Wall Of Fame in 1987, and received Augustana's Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2001.
Yvonne Visser
Visser was a Canadian National Team biathlete for 12 years, attending Olympic Winter Games in 1992 and 1994. She graduated from the University of Calgary in 1996 and then certified as a massage therapist with specialization in sport massage. She has been a team massage therapist at Pan Am Junior Games, World Cups, and World Championships. She accompanied Canadian Olympic athletes to Torino in 2006 and Vancouver in 2010, as well as Canadian paralympians to Bejing in 2008. Visser was recognized with Augustana's Distinguished Alumna Award in 2009.
Vikings hockey team
The 1974-75 Vikings hockey team – made up of future farmers, teachers and pastors out of a school of 390 students – won the first Canadian Colleges Athletic Association hockey championship in Sydney, Nova Scotia. The win on the national stage paved the way for a season played in Europe, and then the inaugural 1981 Viking Cup hockey tournament in Camrose. In 1974-75, the Vikings were inducted into the Alberta Hockey Hall of Fame.
It is not surprising that cross country supremacy is a perfect fit for the Camrose area as Vikings athletes won all but four ACAC banners in team competition – men, women and relay – from 1977 until 2003 when the sport was no longer team based but of the individual element.
Members of the inaugural Vikings Wall of Fame inducted Sept 8, 2012 at University of Alberta—Augustana campus in Camrose.
photo credit to: Sean Mascaluk - Pro Sports Photography
