Tennis NB Hall of Fame
Tennis New Brunswick Hall of Fame Members:
Player Category:
Marc Pepin - Fredericton (inducted in 2010) Winner of over 100 provincial titles, 16 Atlantic titles, 3 Canadian titles, and 2 World Championship titles, Marc has been one of the most successful players in the history of tennis in New Brunswick playing and competing for over 40 years now. He has represented Canada on the international stage several times and continues to do so as he just recently attended the European Seniors Championships in Germany and came home with the gold medal in mixed doubles and silver medal in the men’s doubles division. Marc has also just written and published a book on the history of tennis in New Brunswick since 1975.
David Piers - New Maryland (inducted in 2010) Winner of 7 junior provincial open championships, 169 senior provincial open championships and 4 national championships, David Piers has had a stellar tennis career spanning 6 decades. As a junior he began to win, as an open player he excelled, and as a senior he dominated. From younger to older, he was a nationally ranked player. In 1952 he was ranked #1 in Canada as an under 18 year old, and in 2000 he was ranked #1 in the over 65 division. A member of a number of different halls and walls of fame around Atlantic Canada.
Marius King - Grand Falls (inducted in 2010) Marius King of Grand Fall was one of the most dominant players in the province during the 1980’s up to the early 2000’s. For a number of these years he was the #1 ranked player in the province and was a four time Provincial Closed Singles Champion. He represented the North West area of New Brunswick and he is still spoken of highly by anyone he knows him and as well he helped in the development of other players from the region.
Larry Wood - Oromocto (inducted in 2011) Larry was a top junior player in the late 1960’s, winning 10 provincial titles, 2 Atlantic titles and 1 Eastern Canadian title and he represented NB at 4 National Championships. Later, as an open/senior player, he won 24 major titles during the 1980’s and early 1990’s as both a singles player and doubles player. Wood was always best known for his fierce competitiveness, determination and respect for the game and his opponents and in return was well liked and respected by everyone in the tennis community.
James Streeter - Rothesay (inducted in 2011) James played most of his competitive tennis in the late 1940’s and in the 1950’s and was the winner of numerous junior titles during this time. He was ranked nationally in both 1951 & 1952. He later went on to win several open titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles provincially and regionally throughout the next few decades. At the age of 71, he continues to play tennis on a regular basis at the Rothesay Tennis Club and is an avid golfer, skier and squash player.
Janyce Arsenault (Rubin) - Moncton (inducted in 2011) Janyce won her first tennis tournament at the age of 9 and went on to become arguably the best female player ever to come out of New Brunswick. Playing most of her junior tennis in the 1970’s, she was a nationally ranked junior in the under 12 and under 14 divisions. She was a national champion in under 12 girls’ doubles. As an open player, she won 25 provincial open and closed championships and was the 13th ranked woman in the country in 1984. Now married with 3 daughters, she spends most of her time now as the chauffeur for the girls.
Player/Builder Category:
Robert Jackson - Fredericton (inducted in 2011) Rob was a top player in the late 1970’s to the early 1990’s as both a singles player and a doubles player amassing numerous provincial titles throughout these years. Best known as a doubles player however, he and partner Larry Wood won a total of 13 NB Open and NB Closed championships. As a builder, Jackson served on the board of Tennis New Brunswick serving as president on 2 occasions in 1986/87 and in 2004/05/06. He helped build a strong relationship with Tennis Canada which continues today. As well, Jackson has contributed to the sport as an official as both a line umpire and chair umpire at the Canada Summer Games, the Federation Cup, the Davis Cup, the Canadian National Championships, the Pan Am Games, and what is now known as the Roger’s Cup.
Builder Category:
Lina Richard - Moncton (inducted in 2010) As a volunteer, Lina was a board member of Tennis New Brunswick for a number of years; she has been on the organizing committee of every special tennis event held in the south east region including the 2001 Gold Medal Tour, the Under 16 National Championships held in Dieppe in 2004/2005 & 2006, and the 2008 Moncton Challenger. She has been a board member or has assisted in some form all 3 local clubs over the years and was recently presented with a life-time membership to the Dieppe Tennis Club and had the ladies doubles league in Dieppe named after her which is now called Soiree du Double Feminin Lina Richard.
Michael Ryan - Hampton (inducted in 2010) Michael Ryan of Hampton has been a coach of an exceptional family of six daughters who all played the game and followed in his footsteps as coaches as well. The girls, simply known as the “Ryan Sisters”, became known for the accomplishments on the court for over 15 years. The girls competed locally, provincially and nationally including at the Canada Games. Michael spent hours and hours at the tennis courts and was always there to help anyone who needed it and encourage young players to take up the sport. Even into his seventies, he attended tournaments and love to talk about tennis.
Frank Remete - Saint John (inducted in 2010) Involved in tennis for over 40 years, Frank Remete has been known as the gentleman of tennis in the Saint John area. He excelled as a player in the 60’s and early 70’s winning a number of titles including 3 provincial closed singles titles and continued to compete into the 90’s. His name is synonymous with tennis in the Saint John region and he has worked to develop the sport. Frank is truly one of the nice guys and is respected by all who know him. He helped form the Saint John District Tennis Association a number of years ago and has been involved with the Rothesay Tennis Club for many years.
Terry Ross - Riverview (inducted in 2011) Terry was a pioneer in bringing clay court tennis to New Brunswick; initiating and succeeding in bringing the first clay courts east of Quebec to Riverview. He also supported the efforts of the Rothesay Tennis Club to move to the clay court surface. As a volunteer, he was the president of both the Moncton Tennis Club and the Riverview Tennis Club for many years and then moved on to become the president of the New Brunswick Tennis Association and was instrumental in working with Tennis Canada in the formation of the Atlantic Tennis Alliance during his tenure as president.
Jean-Guy Blanchette - Dieppe (inducted in 2011) Jean-Guy has been Involved in tennis for almost 20 years now. He was instrumental in the formation of the Dieppe Tennis Club and has served as a club executive since 1993. During these years, the Dieppe club played host to several events in which he was a key organizer; most notably were the Nestor/Lareau Gold Medal Tour in 2001 and the hosting of the Under 16 Outdoor Junior National Championships in 2004/2005/2006. He also served as a volunteer at the 2009 Moncton Challenger and continues to work tirelessly to bring an indoor tennis facility to the region.
Honorary Members:
Frank Flanagan - Fredericton (inducted in 2010) Frank played tennis during the 70’s and 80’s primarily and won numerous tournament titles around the Atlantic Provinces. He was a leader in the tennis community in the Fredericton region and helped develop the sport during this time. He was always one of the most respected players and a true gentleman. In 1994 Frank was inducted into the Canadian Tennis Hall of Fame as a builder.
Ethel Babbitt - Fredericton (inducted in 2010) Ethel, now deceased, played tennis in the early 1900’s, and was the winner of 14 provincial titles and 3 maritime championships. She won the ladies singles title and the mixed doubles title at the All-Canadian Championships in 1910. She won NB ladies singles titles in 1910, ’11, and ’12. Ethel was the first woman inducted into the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame when she received the honour in 1972.