Welcome to the home of Alma Matters, a podcast presented by McGill University Athletics and Recreation featuring interviews with prominent alumni who once competed, played or coached at Athletics and Recreation.
Each episode will treat you to an in-depth conversation with a decorated varsity alum, as they take you through their time at McGill, accomplishments afterwards, lessons they've learned along the way and so much more. These stories will take you behind the scenes for an up-close look at what it takes to succeed at the highest level.
Click the links below to listen, beginning on Wednesday, April 27.
Season Two
Mike Babcock - (B.Ed ’86)
Mike played four years of varsity hockey at McGill, where he was an all-star defenceman and team captain. He also received an honorary doctorate of laws from the University. He embarked on a lengthy and highly successful coaching career in junior, university and pro hockey, including an 18-year stint in the NHL with Anaheim, Detroit and Toronto. He is the only coach to win a national university championship, a world junior title, an IIHF world senior championship, the Stanley Cup and an Olympic tournament, guiding Canada to gold.
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Ana Shapiro - (B.Ed. ’97)
Ana was a star defenceman for the McGill Martlets hockey program. After graduating, she earned a master’s degree in sports management at UMass-Amherst and has gone on to a long career in sports management, including a stint with Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment. Named in 2020 by Sports Business Journal as one of the top “Game Changers” in North America, she has worked in operations and hospitality at 11 Olympic Games and three FIFA World Cup championships. After a lengthy stint of managing multi-million dollar sponsor activations with GMR Marketing, she recently joined Allianz, a global insurance company and a sponsor of the Olympics.
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Denburk Reid - ((BA ’05)
Denburk was a five-time all-star with the McGill men’s basketball program and was inducted to the University’s Sports Hall of Fame. After graduating as the team’s all-time leading scorer, he worked in community relations for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. He also initiated the Red Rush Basketball Leadership Program to encourage inner-city youth through coaching and mentorship. He later launched the Montreal Community Cares Foundation, which aims to empower youth by developing leadership skills through programs, workshops and events that build bridges between communities.
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Shauna Denis - (BCom ’07; Dip PR ‘08)
Shuana played five seasons for the McGill women’s hockey team and was a three-time all-star. She captained the Martlets to three Quebec conference titles and four medals at Nationals, including their first national championship. An inductee to the McGill Sports Hall of Fame, she was hired by the Montreal Canadiens and is currently in her 14th year with the world’s most prestigious hockey club, where she serves as the senior director of content strategy.
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Sylvia Sweeney
Sylvia starred on the court for the McGill Martlets while studying music from 1973 to 1975. A McGill Sports Hall of Fame inductee who has been referred to as “Canada’s First Lady of Basketball”, she played a decade for the Canadian national program, including five years as team captain. Named Tournament MVP of the FIBA world championship in 1979, she played at two Summer Olympics, including the 1976 Games in Montreal and the 1984 Games in Los Angeles. Since retiring from basketball, she has had a wide-ranging career, including stints as a sports broadcaster, a producer of award-winning documentaries and currently, as an associate dean at Humber College.
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Season One
Mathieu Darche - (BCom '00)
Previously skated for the Montreal Canadiens and merited a 2020 Stanley Cup ring as director of hockey operations with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Read more.
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Hubert T. Lacroix - (BCL '76, MBA '81)
A Montreal lawyer and past-president of the CBC, who once coached the McGill women's basketball team and most recently served as co-chair of the men's varsity renaming committee. Read more.
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Kim St-Pierre - (BEd '04)
A three-time Olympic gold medallist who was a 2020 inductee to the Hockey Hall of Fame. Read more.
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Richard Pound - (BCom '62, BCL '67)
A former Olympic swimmer and past chancellor at McGill, is the longest serving International Olympic Committee member.
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Dr. Shaunna Burke - (BA '01)
A former alpine skier and rugby player at McGill who became the second Canadian woman to successfully summit Mt. Everest in 2005.
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Mark Hantho - (BCom '81)
A former McGill rugby player who went on to become a global investment banker and is currently a vice-chair with Citigroup.
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