Bob Lenarduzzi

Robert Italo Lenarduzzi... soccer family (brothers Vanni, Sam and Danny)... both his father Giovanni and mother Clelia were born in Italy... married to wife Deanne... growing up, favourites included Gene Vazzoler... he was 15 years old when he moved to England to join Reading FC... was celebrated in Vancouver with Bobby Lenarduzzi Night on 21 April 1989 (with donations that evening collected for the Sunshine Foundation of Canada)... earned his Canada Soccer Coaching B Diploma in 1994... received the Order of British Columbia in 2005...

honoured by the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame as a player (he was shortlisted as an original alternate by The Soccer Hall of Fame in 2000 and then honoured as part of the Class of 2001)... honoured by the BC Sports Hall of Fame, the Soccer Hall of Fame of British Columbia, the National Soccer Hall of Fame, and the Vancouver Italian Cultural Centre Hall of Fame... part of the first Canadian team to reach the knock-out phase at the Olympic Games (Los Angeles 1984), recognised as a Canada Soccer Team of Distinction... part of the first Canadian team to play at the FIFA World Cup (Mexico 1986), recognised as a Canada Soccer Team of Distinction... his brother Sam Lenarduzzi is also an honoured member of the Canada Soccer Hall of Fame...

Concacaf champion (1985)... represented Canada at the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games and 1986 FIFA World Cup Mexico... represented Canada in three cycles of FIFA World Cup Qualifiers... career 60 international appearances across 14 years from 1973 to 1986 with Canada Soccer’s Men’s National Team, including 48 international "A" appearances... when he left international football in 1986, he ranked second all-time with 60 international appearances...

with Vancouver Whitecaps FC, a North American Soccer League Championship winner (Soccer Bowl 1979)... with Vancouver 86ers, a Canadian Soccer League Championship winner (1988)...

served as Canada's Head Coach at one FIFA Futsal World Cup Netherlands 1989…

featured in a Canadian record NASL crowd of 60,342 spectators at newly-opened BC Place on 20 June 1983, the largest crowd ever for a professional soccer match in Canada (the Whitecaps won 2-1 over the visiting Seattle Sounders)...

carried the Olympic torch in the lead up to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics...

said Lenarduzzi in 1972, “I model myself on Bobby Moore”... said Reading FC’s Charlie Hurley in 1972, Lenarduzzi’s “play is strong and intelligent”... said Lenarduzzi in 1973, “there were times when I was homesick, but I knew that I was getting into and how badly I wanted to be a pro”... as noted in a 1976 program, Lenarduzzi was “a skillful player determined on the tackle and strong in the air”... wrote Zander Hollander in 1977, Lenarduzzi was “a strong tackler, excellent in the air”... wrote Vancouver Whitecaps in 1977, “strong in the air and usually gets job of checking opposition target man”...

said Lenarduzzi in 1982, right back (is my favourite position, the one I’m most comfortable with; I don’t have much skill with my left foot and I like to go forward on attack down the right side, so if it’s up to me, this is where I’d like to stay”... wrote Kevan Pipe in 1989, “Bobby Lenarduzzi is a credit to the game, to his city, to his country and to his family”...

wrote Alan Errington in 1991, “Bobby Lenarduzzi’s philosophy of coaching is simple but direct; the respect he receives from the players is a credit to his knowledge of the game”...