Canada Soccer Hall of Fame unveils eligible modern players, new rules
Canadian Soccer Association says voting structure will be reviewed after 2020
Striker Tomasz Radzinski and defender Candace Chapman lead the list of players eligible for Canada Soccer Hall of Fame consideration in 2018.
Radzinski, Canada's player of the year in 1998, won 46 caps for Canada and had a fine club career in Canada, Belgium, England and Greece. Chapman, a member of Canada's bronze medal-winning team at the 2012 Olympics, won 114 caps over her career.
Fourteen other players are eligible for consideration in the "modern Canadian player" category. One male and one female player will be voted into the Hall, with the Class of 18 announcement coming in May.
Other men eligible are Paul Fenwick, Carl Fletcher, Ali Gerba, Richard Hastings, Daniel Imhof, Ante Jazic, Mike Klukowski, Martin Nash and Greg Sutton.
Eligible women are Melanie Booth, Martina Franko, Randee Hermus, Kristina Kiss and Clare Rustad.
175 honoured members
Fifteen other players have been identified as "future eligibles" from 2019 to 2022. Nomination lists for the year will be revealed each January.
Former Canada captains Paul Stalteri and Amy Walsh were inducted in 2017, the first year the Hall of Fame came under the auspices of the Canadian Soccer Association.
Their addition brought the Hall of Fame roll to 175 honoured members: 112 players, 12 coaches, 10 officials and 41 builders. The Hall also honours 10 teams and seven organizations.
Also Thursday, the Canadian Soccer Association released its new framework for Hall of Fame eligibility and entry.
- To be eligible for the Hall, players must have been retired for at least five years and played the game with "excellence at the international and club level" over a career that lasts at least 10 years, unless special exception is granted by the Canada Soccer Association's general secretary.
- To be nominated, a player must be in good standing with the CSA and have either played 10 or more seasons at the professional and/or international level and participated in at least two cycles of FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, or have been inducted into a provincial sport or provincial soccer Hall of Fame.
- Any player that does not receive any votes in three successive voting years will be dropped from the nomination list.
- And players can only be eligible for the nomination list of modern Canadian players for a maximum of 10 years.
- The voting group for the modern Canadian player category consists of 15 to 23 voters including former national team players, referees and media. They can vote for up to three men and three women each year.
- One male and one female player will be selection for induction each year. Beyond 2021, in special cases but not every year, a third player (either male or female) can be inducted, as recommended and approved by Canada Soccer's general secretary in advance of the voting period.
The CSA says the voting structure will be reviewed after 2020.
Brittany Baxter (nee Timko) and former Canadian captain Kevin McKenna will be eligible in 2019 while Dwayne De Rosario, Robyn Gayle, Karina LeBlanc, Carmelina Moscato and Emily Zurrer will be eligible in 2020.
Julian de Guzman, Lars Hirschfeld and Kaylyn Kyle become eligible in 2021 with Josee Belanger, Patrice Bernier, Marie-Eve Nault, Melissa Tancredi and Rhian Wilkinson among those eligible for consideration in 2022.
Other players could be added to the future eligibility list.
Hall of Fame rules on legends and non-athletes, which will be decided by a separate committee, are expected to be released in May.