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Sports Oakville Beaver ou might have heard by now that Oakville made it onto Sporting News' latest annual list of the top 400 sports cities in North America. If you hadn't, the town ranked 309th on the magazine's list and was one of only nine Canadian cities to make the cut, outranking Winnipeg and Hamilton. (Perhaps Jim Balsillie should be trying to move the Phoenix Coyotes here instead?) While these subjective lists must always be taken with a grain of salt, it is nice to see such a vibrant sports community as Oakville being recognized on the international scene. But -- sorry to be a killjoy -- Oakville wasn't selected ahead of such revered sports factories as Zebulon, N.C., Salem-Keizer, Ore. and Wappingers Falls, N.Y. because of its professional and Olympic athletes, massive soccer club, successful junior A hockey team, youth programs or athletic facilities. No, Oakville's on the list simply because it hosted the RBC Canadian Open a few months ago. List had criteria Criteria for making the top 400 began with having teams in all four major professional sport leagues -- the National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, National Football League and Major League Baseball. Points were also awarded to cities with NCAA Division 1 football and basketball programs. (For the record, Pittsburgh, home of the Super Bowl champion Steelers and Stanley Cup-winning Penguins, finished first on the list.) Lesser-valued criteria included being a Major League Baseball spring training site, having a Rookie League baseball team, being home to an American Hockey League squad, and hosting a NASCAR race or -- here's where Oakville qualifies -- a PGA Tour event. "The Canadian Open is why Oakville ends up on the list," said Bob Hille, Sporting News' chief of correspondents. Still reason for pride That came as a surprise to Oakville Mayor Rob Burton, who was so cognizant of the town's inclusion on the list that he brought it up in commencement speeches he gave last week at Oakville Trafalgar High School and White Oaks Secondary School. "It's too bad (Sporting News is) not aware of all the other things that my mind instantly leapt to," said the Mayor. "But I'm still happy to have the designation. "If it weren't, as it turns out, a golf award, there's no denying that we've got a lot going for the town when it comes to sports." That's certainly true. Being the home town of high-profile athletes like Olympic champion paddlers Adam van Koeverden and Larry Cain, Canadian soccer team members Kara Lang SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 432) Fax 905-337-5571 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · THURSDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2009 33 Oakville's a top sports town, but for different reasons Y Clockwise from top left, Oakville boasts quality youth programs like the Oakville Skating Club, NHL star goaltender Steve Mason, Olympic paddling champion Adam van Koeverden and Canadian women's soccer team mainstay Kara Lang. But that's not why the town was included on Sporting News' recent list of the top 400 sports cities in North America. and Diana Matheson, long-time NFLers Mike Vanderjagt and Steve Christie and budding NHL superstars Steve Mason and John Tavares, among others, are all things to be proud of. So is having the largest youth soccer club in Canada and offering high-quality programs in a wide variety of other sports. The Mayor attributed much of the town's sporting prowess to its people. "The advantage our kids have is the strength of the parents who volunteer to run these organizations," he said. "There are a lot of parents who believe in the value of sports." Even if there doesn't seem to be much value in being on Sporting News' list.