One 麻豆社国产athlete is helping crush the stereotype of the brain-dead jock.
Liam Hudson, who plays in the Canadian Sport School Hockey League, or CSSHL, is being recognized for his success in the classroom with the league鈥檚 all-academic team award. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been difficult 鈥� I鈥檒l admit that for the first little bit I was struggling to balance everything out,鈥� said the 15-year-old forward. 鈥淏ut then the team, all the staff at the West Van Academy really supported me.鈥�
In every division, the best student from each team is picked for the award. These athletes鈥� overall grades at school range from 91 to 100 per cent.
Hudson credits a lot of his success to a team culture that required players to succeed both on and off the ice.
The coaches at West Vancouver Academy bar players who are failing classes from playing and all schoolwork that is missed due to games must be completed in a timely fashion, he said.
His parents also raised him to value his education, Hudson added, which helped him set his priorities.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important for me to be able to get an education and go past high school and get a post-secondary education,鈥� he said. 鈥淗ockey can only take you so far. At some point you鈥檙e going to have to stop playing whether it鈥檚 at 50 or 20.鈥�
But his drive to do well in the classroom hasn鈥檛 stopped Hudson from performing on the ice.
Hudson first got his start at the age of three when he saw minor hockey players playing a game.
鈥淚 was in awe of their size, the speed of the game,鈥� he said.
Later that day, Hudson begged his parents to let him on the ice, where he stayed until the Zamboni forced everyone off the rink.
鈥淚 was in tears,鈥� he said with a chuckle. 鈥淚 ended up crying because the Zamboni was taking up my ice time.鈥�
Hudson now competes in the CSSHL鈥檚 Elite 15s division, which is considered a feeder into Midget Prep, the league鈥檚 top division for student athletes in Grades 10 to 12.
He hopes to take hockey as far as he can, with the dream of being able to get into a scholarship program that would also pay for his university education.
At the moment, Hudson says the fields of psychology, business and real estate fascinate him, though he鈥檚 still trying to figure out what path to take in life.
He hasn鈥檛 quite decided what post-secondary institution he will wind up attending, though he did float the idea of going to the University of Denver, which is now home ice for another 麻豆社国产player 鈥� Jarid Lukosevicius.
Some other notable 麻豆社国产players include Josh Thrower and Harmen Vining, who both played in the CSSHL with the Pursuit of Excellence.
The Pursuit of Excellence is a hockey academy that has trained players such as Jarome Iginla of the Los Angeles Kings and Justin Schultz of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
