Melody Davidson was more than a little surprised when it was announced she will be inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame.
“It came out of the blue,” said the Red Deer College grad. “I had no feeling (about it) at all. To tell you the truth, I wasn’t that familiar with it. When our 2002 (Olympic champion) team was inducted, it was the first time I was exposed to it, but I really wasn’t thinking of it.”
Davidson spent almost 20 years coaching the Canadian national senior women’s hockey team, winning the 2006 and 2010 Olympic gold as head coach and as an assistant with the 2002 team. She has been head or assistant coach of four world championship teams and two world silver medal squads.
She is the only person ever to be named the Canadian Association for the Achievement of Women and Sports and Physical Activities “most influential women” five years in a row and is globally admired for her dedication to the women’s game and her belief in values and leadership.
Davidson will be indicated into the hall on April 16 in Moncton, N.B., along with figure skater Elvis Stojko, swimmer Curtis Myden, bobsleigher David MacEachern and cycling builder Marc Lemay.
Induction ceremonies have moved across Canada over the years but the hall will find a permanent home in Calgary within the next two years.
Davidson, who received her bachelor of physical education diploma from Red Deer College in 1984, retired as head coach of the national team following last year’s Olympics but is still heavily involved in the program.
She is now head scout for the national team program, which involves the under-18, under-22 and senior teams.
“It was time to move on after 18 or 19 years with the program,” she said. “It’s not like a club or university team where the players change. Most of the players remain the same, so something has to change. I really don’t miss the coaching — I’m still in the rink. I still see a lot of games and I’m still coaching, but with a different team. So not a lot has changed.”
The Oyen native is in her fourth season as an assistant coach with the Calgary Canucks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League, and is loving every minute of it.
“I love the players at that age,” she said. “They have a great aptitude — they want to learn and get better. They all have dream, whether it’s getting a scholarship or playing pro hockey. It’s like coaching college — they come in young boys and leave as young men.”
And the players respect and believe in Davidson.
“I’ve never had an issue — I coached men and boys before. The boys are terrific. The majority of them come out of the midget ranks and they’ve played the women’s team and know my background, so there’s a solid respect there.”
Davidson has coached at the college level and wouldn’t mind getting back into one day.
“I’ve thought about it a lot. I enjoyed that part of my life and I could sink my teeth into it and build a program. But my family is all in Alberta and my parents are getting older, so I’ll be staying here, which limits my options. There’s a lot of good full-time coaches in the province. I wouldn’t say it’s out of the question, but I’ll be staying in Alberta.”
But her main job finds her travelling throughout North America, scouting.
“I’ve been gone more than I expected,” she said. “There’s not a lot of weekday games, so I’m gone a lot from Thursday through Monday.”
Davidson works building the under-18 and under-22 programs for the world championships and also looks at who will fit into the senior program.
She’ll attend the Canada Winter Games, which involves the majority of the top under-16 players in the country, then will hit the road to see the NCAA, CIS and other national championships.
“It’ll be busy until the end of April or early May,” she said. “As well, several of the provincial championships take place in May. I’m looking forward to June, which is the only real down month.”
Davidson also does her share of public speaking.
She will be the keynote speaker at the eighth annual RDC Kings and Queens scholarship breakfast on March 23 at the Red Deer Lodge.
“Red Deer College has been terrific to me,” she said. “I had a younger sister who went there and I have family in the Delburne area and I’m sure they’ll have someone going there, so it is an important part of my past.”
drode@www.reddeeradvocate.com