Andrew Westlake
December 6, 1975 – September 10, 1995
I’ll ride the wave wherever it takes me…
Andrew Westlake
Andrew Westlake was an enthusiastic K1 Junior kayaker, who competed at the provincial and national level in the sport of whitewater slalom.
Upon his graduation from Trinity College School in Port Hope in 1995, Andrew chose to go to Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, because of its proximity to whitewater for training and competition. He regularly competed at the Gull River course in Minden and at various other locations across Canada and the United States, including the Pumphouse in Ottawa, Jonquière, Quebec, Fort Smith, N.W.T., and Asheville, North Carolina. He also loved to kayak at the Westlake family cottage on Logan Lake.
Andrew was inspired to take up kayaking through the encouragement of his teacher at Trinity College, Michael (Barry) Heaton who taught Andrew in class and, along with many of his friends, through the kayaking program at TCS, the joys and challenges of whitewater kayaking.
Andrew made lasting friends through his involvement as a kayaker including Will Pohoresky, Will Karam, Stig Larsen, and Nick Costello.
At the age of nineteen and in his first week at Brock University, Andrew Westlake was killed by a speeding drunk driver, who took the life of Andrew and another young student while they were attending a Brock initiation event.
Andrew was happiest when he was training and competing on a whitewater course with his coaches and friends. His parents, Joyce and Brian Westlake, regularly attended Andrew’s races and gained an appreciation of the character-building quality and challenging nature of the sport of kayaking.
Since Andrew’s death on September 10, 1995, an annual slalom race has been held in his memory, often at the Gull River course in Minden. Many thanks to Whitewater Ontario volunteers and the Andrew Westlake Memorial Fund of the Rotary Club of Toronto Charitable Foundation for organizing this race since 1996. The fund was established with donations from Andrew’s friends and family. It has annually assisted in the cost of running the race and has provided prize money to top finishers at the junior level who have their names engraved on the Andrew Westlake Memorial Cup. Joyce and Brian have attended this race on many occasions.
Many young paddlers have been inspired over the years by the opportunity that the race provides to compete with others at the provincial and national level. Andrew would have been proud of his legacy in kayaking.
Since Andrew’s death, the Westlake family has been very involved with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD Canada), and encourages everyone not to drive while impaired.
Andrew Westlake Memorial Cup Winners
| Year | Recipient |
|---|---|
| 1996 | Warren Hastings, Tom Hewitt |
| 1997 | James Miglin |
| 1998 | Matt Kaspozycki |
| 1999 | Nat Housser |
| 2000 | John Hastings |
| 2001 | Greg Sadler |
| 2002 | Laura Boudens |
| 2003 | Julie-Ann Cote |
| 2004 | Dominic Moisin |
| 2005 | Brian Gifford |
| 2006 | Francois St. Aubin Migneault |
| 2007 | Babacar Daoust-Cisse |
| 2008 | Francois St. Aubin Migneault |
| 2009 | Michael Tayler |
| 2010 | Michael Tayler |
| 2011 | Carl Whitehead, New Zealand |
| 2012 | Cole Moore, U.S.A. |
| 2013 | Jeremy Tian |
| 2014 | Maxime Leboeuf |
| 2015 | Maxime Leboeuf |
| 2016 | Sheamus O’Connell |
| 2017 | Keenan Simpson |
| 2018 | Mael Rivard |
| 2019 | Mael Rivard, Jocelyn Taylor |
| 2020 | Not awarded |
| 2021 | Not awarded |
| 2022 | Not awarded |
| 2023 | Paige Zimmerman, Daniel Parry |
| 2024 | Paige Cartwright, Lachlan Faraday |
| 2025 | Paige Cartwright, George Nor |
| 2026 | Paige Cartwright, Tyler Gevaert |
