Jamie Pagendam was more than willing to have a one-day delay going with his family to the Dominican Republic in late November.
The 59-year-old Thorold resident was sent an email Aug. 13 by Boxing Canada informing him of his induction into the Boxing Canada Hall of Fame but for some reason he overlooked it. Sonny Wong called him in October wondering what was going on because no one from Boxing Canada had heard back from Pagendam that he was accepting the honour.
“I was saying ‘Please don’t be on the same weekend as my vacation’ but it was on the same weekend.”
Pagendam ended up driving to the Nov. 23 ceremony in Sarnia with his brother, Steve, Mike Strange and Wong to be inducted in a 2024 class that included his 1988 Olympic teammates, Raymond Downey, Howard Grant and Egerton Marcus.
It was an event Pagendam did not want to miss.
“Obviously I was honoured for them to think of me like that and recognize the career that I had in Canadian boxing. I was a little blown away and knowing I was being inducted with my Olympic teammates who I hadn’t seen in 36 years was amazing,” he said. “We all got together and picked up right where we left off. It was a really exciting time because I travelled with these guys from the age of 16 to 22 and again after the Olympics. They are all doing well so I was pleased with that.”
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