Release Date: October 17, 2007
Media Contact: Stephen King, External Relations
E-mail: Stephen.King@uregina.ca
Phone: (306) 585.5632
Mobile: (306) 536.4312
Fax: (306) 585.4997
Catriona Le May Doan to receive honorary degree at U of R convocation
Internationally renowned speed skater Catriona Le May Doan is being recognized by the University of Regina for her continuing work to inspire Canadians to achieve their full potential. She will receive an honorary Doctor of Laws as part of the convocation ceremonies to be held October 20, 2007 at the Conexus Arts Centre in Regina at 2:00 p.m.

Le May Doan’s honorary degree will be conferred by the U of R’s seventh Chancellor, long-time Regina lawyer Dr. William F. Ready, Q.C., who was elected in April and assumed his new role on July 1. Ready will be officially installed as Chancellor during the same convocation ceremony, and will play a key role in the governance of the University.

Catriona Le May Doan
Born and raised in Saskatoon, Catriona Le May Doan is a world champion who has proven time and time again that she is the fastest woman on ice.

In 1998, at the Nagano Olympic Winter Games, Le May Doan won her first Olympic Gold medal in the 500 metre distance skate, setting a new world record. Le May Doan carried the Canadian flag into the opening ceremonies of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, where she defended her Olympic title with a Gold medal performance in the 500 metre event. Le May Doan's athletic accomplishments earned her the 2002 Lou Marsh Award as Canada’s Athlete of the Year. She has also been inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame.

An inspiration on and off the ice, Le May Doan, who is fully bilingual, gives motivational speeches across the country. An Officer of the Order of Canada, Le May Doan resides in Calgary with her husband, Bart, and their two children.

Dr. William F. Ready, Q.C.
William Ready received his education at schools in Valparaiso and Tisdale, after which he received a BA and a law degree from the University of Saskatchewan. He holds an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Regina, which he received in 1989. A partner in the law firm McDougall Ready (now McDougall Gauley), he retired from the practice of law in Regina in 1998 after a legal career that spanned nearly 50 years.

Ready served on the Regina Public School Board of Education for 11 years. He also served for 27 years on the board of the RoyFund mutual fund group (now known as RBC Funds).

Ready married Frances Jean Badham of Nipawin in 1952. They are proud parents of five children. They have 11 grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

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Previous recipients of U of R honorary degrees include former Saskatchewan premiers Tommy Douglas (1978), Allan Blakeney (1993) and Roy Romanow (2005); former Saskatchewan Lieutenant-Governor Lynda Haverstock (2006); Saskatchewan artist Joe Fafard (1989); hockey great Gordie Howe (1997); Saskatchewan philanthropist and patron of the arts Jacqui Shumiatcher (2002); The Princess Royal, Princess Anne (2004); Regina entrepreneur Frederick Hill (2005); Regina Symphony Orchestra conductor Victor Sawa (2006); and Regina ceramicist Victor Cicansky (2007).