The 24th recipient of the President’s Award is blown away by the accolade bestowed upon him by the Canadian Soccer Association.
“It’s a humbling experience,” said Norm Odinga of the latest career highlight for the legendary St. Albert soccer product.
The President’s Award provides recognition and appreciation of an individual’s outstanding unique efforts for an extended period time, resulting in the positive and constructive development of the sport across Canada.
Odinga’s involvement at different levels of the game symbolized what the President’s Award is all about.
“A lot of it has to do with playing at a high level, then when that came to an end getting my national B license for coaching and then continuing on as the Canadian Soccer Association appeals and discipline chair so it’s a unique skill set,” said Odinga, who was honoured at the CSA’s Annual Meeting of the Members Banquet last Saturday in Yellowknife.
The official announcement via email to Odinga’s law firm in Edmonton was a stunner for the President’s Award winner.
“I read it twice and then I left it alone and then I sent it to my wife and my brothers,” Odinga said. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Odinga’s passion for the beautiful game started the day he came home from school with a registration form from the Hercules Soccer Association in St. Albert. His field of dreams was the Grosvenor pitch by Sir George Simpson School while moving up the age-group ranks with Herman Kochan as his influential coach.
From the 1980 Edmonton Drillers to the Vancouver 86ers in the early 1990s, the former Alberta Golden Bear and Edmonton Brickmen is credited with six A caps, spanning his international debut in 1982 against El Salvador in San Francisco to the last Canadian appearance in the 1993 World Cup qualifier against Australia.
Odinga played on the 1989 Canadian team that was inducted into the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum as the 2012 team of distinction for winning the first FIFA Francophone Games. The final was a 4-1 decision against Morocco, the host country.
The Robert Rundle, Simpson and Paul Kane alumnus also represented Canada at the inaugural 1989 FIFA Futsal world championship, as well as the 1989 friendly against Denmark and a non-official match against Mexico in 1991, and also scored against China in a 1992 friendly.
“The best part is always playing but once the playing is done then you want to be able to continue and give something back to the game in another facet, which is coaching, and then doing appeals and discipline. That one more or less fell in my lap but it's still being part of the game and it’s a unique perspective of the game,” Odinga said. “I prefer the field part of it more as opposed to the classroom office part of it. Don’t get me wrong, I actually enjoy the appeals and discipline, but the best part is playing and what happens on the playing field is the reason why there is appeals and discipline so it all goes back to the playing.”
Odinga's association with coaching started several years ago with the core group of girls on his 2018 St. Albert Impact U17 Tier 2 team.
“When this group was 10 years old Anneka, my daughter, was nine and that’s when I began coaching,” Odinga said. “It’s very rewarding because they have a good understanding of the game and most importantly they know how to train and that’s come through the years. Not everyone knows how to train and they need to be pushed because you train the way you need to play so the girls are on a good development path. It's always rewarding when they do something that they’ve learned on the training ground and have brought it into the game.
“They’re a very good group of girls.”
Last summer six players on Odinga’s team, and 30 in total, were selected into the regional REX program that prepares and develops players to move onwards into the collegiate and national ranks of women’s soccer.
“That is quite a remarkable percentage from one team,” Odinga said.
Kiersten Girard, 16, an Impact fullback with ties to the junior Alberta Pandas, gave Odinga props for the recent achievement.
“It’s a real honour to play for Norm and now after he got this award it even proves how much more of a great coach he is,” said the Grade 10 St. Albert Catholic High School student. “He’s definitely one of my favourite coaches that I've ever had. He lets you use your imagination and just play soccer. He's strict when he needs to be strict and he also knows when to talk to you.
“He’s a great guy.”
