A season without competition is a tough pill to swallow for high performance athletes, but the varsity Tigers were determined to make the most of the 2020-21 season.
"It's been an unprecedented year for the Tigers," says Tim Maloney, Dalhousie's Executive Director of Athletics and Recreation. "The pandemic forced us all to find new ways of doing things. Our focus has been on providing our student-athletes with a positive experience both academically and in the training environment."
Providing that experience proved challenging at times and required a lot of flexibility and adaptability to ensure the best possible experience while following public health and return to sport guidelines to ensure everyone's safety.
Most teams were fortunate to have the opportunity to train together or in smaller groups in both the high performance room and on their respective fields of play during the course of the pandemic - a privilege not afforded to many other athletic programs.
"We're immensely grateful to the University for their support and flexibility in allowing us to find ways for our student-athletes to train and compete this year," adds Maloney.
Much like the rest of the season, the Tigers year-end celebrations looked a lot different this year. At the end of a typical varsity season, a year-end banquet is held and awards like team MVP's, athletes, and rookies of the year are presented based on the results of competition.
"We felt it was very important to continue to recognize and acknowledge our student-athletes and volunteers much like we do every year, but with a different focus," says Maloney.
In lieu of the usual awards, each coach selected a Tiger of the Year - honouring an athlete's unwavering commitment to training and devotion to the growth of the team and a Greatest Gains recipient - celebrating an athlete's unwavering commitment to training with a laser focus on making positive gains. Volunteers and other support staff were also honoured for their roles in contributing to the teams and student-athletes.
| Team | Greatest Gains | Tiger of the Year |
| Women's Basketball | Hannah Chadwick | Emily Holt Chloe Wilson |
| Men's Basketball | Sam Maillet | Shamar Burrows |
| Women's Cross Country | Georgia Waller | Hannah Trites |
| Men's Cross Country | Hudson Grimshaw-Surette | Nick Robertson |
| Women's Hockey | Ariana Pinchuk | Isabella Weist |
| Men's Hockey | Duncan MacIntryre | Connor Welsh |
| Women's Soccer | Jadyn Cowie | Riley Donovan |
| Men's Soccer | Callum Legge | Zachary Visser |
| Women's Swimming | Abbey Nichols | Amy Hartling |
| Men's Swimming | Logan Sparkes | Ewan MacLean |
| Women's Track & Field | Chelsea MacIsaac | Kayli Friesen |
| Men's Track & Field | Will Cox | Lachlan Greechan |
| Women's Volleyball | Charlotte Arsenault | Catherine Callaghan Julie Moore |
| Men's Volleyball | Malachy Shannon | Quinton Dowling |
Volunteer Awards
Matthew Donovan, Men's Volleyball
Alex Petropolis, Men's Basketball
Joe Wells, Women's Basketball
Tessa Bulmer, Women's Volleyball
Bette El-Hawary, Swimming
Tony Eden, Men's Hockey
Tigers Assist - honouring five years as an assistant coach
Michael Barrie, Men's Basketball
Trainers of the Year
Becca Traversa, Women's Basketball
Nic Jelicic, Swimming
Coach of the Year
Brett Armstrong, Strength & Conditioning Coach