Minister of Community Services Brad Cathers presented awards to 30 individuals for leadership and excellence in sport at the 2013 Sport Yukon awards celebration in Whitehorse last night.

"Yukoners take great pride in the accomplishments of our remarkable and successful athletes,” Cathers said.

"They, and our sport and recreation leaders, do so much to contribute to healthy and vibrant communities, and their hard work and perseverance is an inspiration to us all.”

Yukon athletes representing nine sports were recognized for outstanding performances at regional, national and international competitions. Awards of Excellence plaques were presented to the following 25 athletes:

Athletics: Brenda Dion, Jessica Frotten.

Biathlon: Ryan Burlingame.

Canoeing: Pelly Vincent-Braun.

Cross-country skiing: Colin Abbott, Dahria Beatty, Marcus Deuling, David Greer, Knute Johnsgaard, Caelan McLean, Kendra Murray, Graham Nishikawa.

Curling: Chelsea Duncan, Sarah Koltun, Thomas Scoffin, Mitch Young.

Cycling: Zach Bell, Bill Curtis.

Figure Skating: Michael Sumner.

Orienteering: Pia Blake, Trevor Bray, Kerstin Burnett, Nesta Leduc, Jennifer MacKeigan, Kendra Murray.

The government also presented Anne Morgan of Whitehorse and Ursula Angerer of Tagish with Community Recreation Leadership Awards, and honoured Tom Parlee, Savannah Cash, and Heather Clarke with Awards of Recognition.