Neighbourhood Challenge 2008
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Neighbourhood Champion
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What is the Neighbourhood Challenge?
What is the Neighbourhood Challenge at Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon? It's a festival, a celebration and a fundraiser for our Waterfront neighbourhoods.
Click image for 2006 video (pop-up window)
The Neighbourhood Challenge has grown over the last 4 years out of our desire to have the marathon give back to the communities we run through. For the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon to be really successful, it has to have a sustainable, year-round impact on our local neighbourhoods, groups, charities and families. It can't be something that imposes itself on the city one day a year, and expects everyone to stand to attention. This is how great marathons have been made in New York, London, Chicago and Paris—by involving, engaging and giving back to the community.
To achieve this goal, we've tried to find 10 (11 in 2008) local charities and groups who could put on a festival, a celebration of their 'hood at our Neighbourhood Cheering & Entertainment Centres along the marathon route—groups like the Ukrainian Festival Committee representing Bloor West/High Park, who strive every year to find the money to put on a marvellous festival in late August/early September that is so important to the many Eastern Europeans who have settled in the west-end of the city; or The Revue Cinema Society that has fought so hard to save and renovate "The Revue", a landmark in their Roncesvalles neighbourhood, but also a place for children and families to go all year round, to have the joy of watching movies, but also to preserve a vital, vibrant community meeting place.
These are the kinds of things that make Toronto's neigbourhoods world-famous, that breathe life into them, and make them such special places to live.
—The other major goal of the Neighbourhood Challenge is to help showcase our evolving waterfront, and reconnect it to the city. The Cheering Centres are a great excuse for us to come out in great numbers, to gather along Toronto's Waterfront, to celebrate our different neighbourhoods from the Humber to The Beach—to enjoy the music, dancing, performers and food on hand; to shout ourselves hoarse cheering on our friends and neighbours, our thousands of charity runners, 12,000 weekend warriors from 30+ countries around the world, and some international-class athletes running some of the fastest times ever on Canadian soil. Most of all, we can cheer for and put a pledge or two on a Neighbourhood Champion, a friend or neighbour who has committed to go the entire 42.195 kilometres on behalf of an important community cause.
Together, with these millions of footsteps, with a marathon effort, we CAN make a difference!
It's a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the vibrancy of our waterfront city, and to showcase it to a world watching on live television and live internet.
DON'T FORGET, there are two ways to support your neighbourhood:
- Put a pledge on a Neighbourhood Champion—the easiest and guaranteed way to support your neighbourhood charity/group. This is so important, as without your pledges, your charity has only a 5 in 10 chance of raising funds (5 cash prizes for best of the 11 NCEs in The Challenge).
- Come out to your local Neighbourhood Cheering & Entertainment Centre on race day and make some noise. Scotiabank will provide thundersticks, pom-poms and cow bells to assist! Cheer on your Neighbourhood Champions, and help your 'hood win some BONUS money in the form of one of 3 prizes—$5,000 for first prize; $2,000 for second place; and $1,000 for third place—as the NC with the most people, most noise, best costumes and best entertainment, as decided by our celebrity judges.
Neighbourhood Challenge Awards, presented by Scotiabank
- 1st = $6,000
- 2nd = $3,000
- 3rd = $2,000
- 2 honourable mentions @ $1,000 each
Neighbourhood Challenge: 11 Neighbourhoods
Here is an overview of the 11 Neighbourhood Cheering & Entertainment Centres, with locations, access, times the runners pass by, and highlights of the entertainment on offer. For full and FINAL details, please pick up pocket-sized SPECTATOR GUIDE and get all the info on "NCE SPECTATOR AREA" at the Running Health & Fitness EXPO, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, North Building, on Front Street, Friday September 26th and Saturday the 27th.
indicates location of a Neighbourhood Cheering and Entertainment Centre.
Click on a 
in map or list below to go to that Neighbourhood's challenge page.
1: Bloor West/High Park, Lakeshore & Windermere
2: Parkdale/Roncesvalles, Parkdale—Palais Royale & Lakeshore
3: Liberty Village/King West, Inukshuk Park, Ontario Place, CNE
4: Harbourfront/Trinity-Spadina, John Quay, Queen's Quay & Rees
5: Downtown, Wellington & Bay Sts.
6: St. Lawrence, Bay & Lakeshore
7: St. Lawrence/Distillery/Corktown, Lakeshore & Parliament
8: South Riverdale: Little Asia, Lakeshore & Don Roadway
9: South Riverdale: Caribbean, across from 500 Commissioners St.
10: Gerrard East/Little India, Lakeshore & Leslie
11: The Beach, Lakeshore & Coxwell
Put a pledge on a Neighbourhood Champion
Click here for a complete list of Neighbourhood Champions, their 'hoods, and their charities, and put a pledge on YOUR local hero today!
Each of the 11 neighbourhoods we pass through will have up to 4 NEIGHBOURHOOD CHAMPIONS running the full 42k for them.
The Champions have been selected as regular runners, everyday "local heroes". The Champs will run in special t-shirts on the day, making it easy for you to spot them, and give an extra cheer for the four heroes going the distance for your 'hood.
Most importantly, the Neighbourhood Champions have been set up so that everyone can put online pledges on them, in support of their neighbourhood charity this year. This way, the charities will not only be able to have a 3 in 10 chance of winning prize money (1st, 2nd or 3rd place in the Neighbourhood Challenge), but they'll be able to collect pledges on their Champions. This way, every neighbourhood will win—just like the marathon itself!
This is your big chance to come out and cheer for the 'hood at the NCE near you, but also to be a super-spectator and "pay not to run"!
Spectators Wanted!
A celebration of Toronto's neighbourhoods, their music, culture and food. A multicultural extravaganza!
Toronto's most-vibrant Waterfront neighbourhoods are out cheering the runners on! If you're one of the 2 million or so Torontonians who won't be running on September 28th, come out and join all the fun of the Festival, and cheer on our heroes from every Canadian province, more than 40 American states, and 30+ countries worldwide. Many will help raise $900,000 for our 45 official charities. All will need your support to encourage them along every step of their run!
2007 RESULTS:
South Riverdale/Little Asia wins Oasis Neighbourhood Challenge 2007
South Riverdale/Little Asia were declared winners of the 2007 fun-filled Oasis Neighbourhood Challenge at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. The defending champions retained their crown with a wonderful display of live music, lion dancing, and a large spectator cheering contingent. Little Asia's winning cheque of $5000 went to the Mon Sheong Foundation for Seniors.
Head judge Caroline Croteau of Oasis Pure Fruit Juices, and her celebrity team awarded second place to Harbourfront/Trinity-Spadina, hosted by Children's Wish Foundation of Canada. Third place went to the Beaches and the Beaches Lions Club.
The 2007 Oasis Neighbourhood Challenge was widely acclaimed as the best ever, by both runners and spectators alike. The entertainment, enthusiasm and cheering was so strong from the Humber to The Beach, that two "Honourable Mention" awards of $500 each were also handed out to the "Downtown" ONC hosted by the music program of West Humber Collegiate, and "Gerrard East: Little India", organized by the Canadian Community Arts Initiative in support of Sri Lanka Day Organizing Committee.
2006 RESULTS:
Sep 29/06: The Oasis Neighbourhood Challenge!! 3 Great Toronto Charities win Cash Prizes! 17 Performances... 6 Hours... 1 Great Charity! That is what it took for NAAAP Toronto and the Mon Sheong Foundation to win first-place honours at the 2006 Oasis Neighbourhood Challenge ...full story
2005 RESULTS:
STWM05 Neighbourhood Challenge Winners announced: York Lions Steelband/TABIA performing in Ward 30 (Paula Fletcher territory) claim $5000 award as champions! ...full report and photos
2004 RESULTS:
Spirited Neighbourhood Challenge ended in a dramatic tie between Ward 14, Sylvia Watson (Parkdale-High Park) and Ward 20, Olivia Chow (Trinity-Spadina). The $5000 winning purse was split, going to Romero House and PARC for Ward 14, and the Music Garden Enhancement Fund for Ward 20. Honourable mentions (and $1000 cheques) went to Ward 13, Councillor Bill Saundercook, for Hope for Children; to Ward 19, Councillor Joe Pantalone, for Fort York Food Bank; to Ward 28, Councillor Pam McConnell, for Yonge Street Mission; and to Ward 32, Deputy Mayor Sandra Bussin, for Community Centre 55.