Dinos mourn loss of Jenny Vincent

CALGARY – The University of Calgary Dinos are deeply saddened to announce the passing of women’s rugby head coach Jenny Vincent after a brief battle with cancer.

Vincent, who was diagnosed in December 2009, passed away Sunday morning. She was 41.

Jenny was the driving force behind obtaining varsity status for the Dinos women’s rugby program, culminating in their first season in Canada West last fall. She joined the program when it was a competitive club in the late 1990s and worked tirelessly to meet the necessary standards to elevate the program to the varsity level.

She was a pioneer in women’s rugby in Canada and was involved in many firsts in the sport. A player in the first senior women’s national championship tournament, Vincent was selected to the 1987 senior national team – the first national team Rugby Canada put on the pitch. As a coach, she led the University of Victoria Vikes in the inaugural season of Canadian Interuniversity Sport rugby play.

In 2000, she coached the Alberta U19 team to a gold medal at the first national junior championships, then added a silver at the U17 national championships a few years later – again, the first tournament of its kind. Most recently she helped coach the provincial U23 team to a gold medal performance at the inaugural national tournament for that age group.

Vincent obtained her BSc from Bishop’s University in 1991 and her MSc from the University of Victoria in 1994. She was pursuing a Ph.D. in sport technology at the University of Calgary and was a key member of the team that designed and implemented a major project for Own the Podium 2010 – a database which brought together results of Canadian winter athletes from past Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, World Cup events, World Championships, and other international competitions.

A native of Montreal, Vincent is survived by husband Jim Nield and her two children, Tyler (age 10) and Isaac (8).

A memorial service will be held Wednesday, Jan. 27 at 2:30 p.m. at Parkdale United Church (2919 - 8 Ave. NW).

To honour her memory, the Jenny’s family has established the Jenny Vincent Coaching Endowment for Women’s Rugby, which will support future coaches of the Dinos women’s rugby program. Donations can be made by contacting Kristine Williamson at (403) 220-3651 or kristine.williamson@ucalgary.ca .

Source:

Ben Matchett
Sports Information Director
University of Calgary Dinos