April 20, 2012 – The indelible picture I have of Randy Starkman is one of him walking on Bloor St. west of Spadina with a bouquet of flowers. They could only be for his everlasting sweetheart Mary Hynes. It is with overwhelming sadness that I write about his death at only fifty-one from pneumonia. What a loss, not only to Mary and their daughter Ella-I cannot imagine their grief, but to everyone who cares about the real athletes of Canada and truly excellent writing.

Randy started covering Canadian athletes in Europe with his then-girlfriend Mary in the early 1980’s. They eventually came back to Canada where he started full-time with The Toronto Star in 1988. Since Sarajevo in 1984 he has covered twelve Olympic Games. In Seoul he gave a comprehensive report on Ben Johnson’s positive dope test and broke the story about Johnson’s second positive in 1993. This won him one of the two National Newspaper Awards delivered his way.

Watching Randy at the Olympics was a lesson in how to file quickly and accurately. He asked real questions of athletes because he knew so much about them. Then you’d see him on the media bus as he got shipped off to another sport, earphones on, laptop up as he wrote the story. He crammed more sport reporting into one day than any other journalist I knew. But still if he bumped into me at the press centre, he’d take the time to say, “Let me buy you lunch. I remember what it’s like to be a free-lancer.”

Randy was also friends with my brother Jonathon-a Toronto fire-fighter who organized a huge media trivia night as a fund-raiser for the Daily Bread Foodbank. Randy rallied the troops-I don’t know how many tables of journalists he managed to produce, but my everlasting memory of the last one will be of Mary’s TVO table arguing with my brother over a fine point on Canadian geography.

Randy and I talked for a few minutes that evening on Bloor St-he had recently filed a story on Mary Spencer-world boxing champion in the 75 kg category and while Spencer was getting more and more ink as women’s boxing makes its debut at the London Olympics, only Randy took the time to follow her to family’s home.

He situated the story at Chippewa of Nawash First Nation where Spencer’s roots are and where all kids love her. He went to their annual pow-wow. How many sports writers would ever take the time to travel 250 km north of Toronto to talk to ten-year-olds in a First Nation community? Only Randy. I coach those kids in cross-country skiing and Spencer is everything to them. His story captured who Spencer is and why it is so important for those children that she fights on all of their behalf. They were thrilled to see themselves in The Toronto Star.

As always Randy was gracious about receiving accolades about his work but I could see he wanted to move on. “Those flowers are for Mary aren’t they?” I said. He nodded like a school boy-still so in love.

April 19, 2012 (Canmore, AB) – Randy Starkman, who passed away recently at the age of 51, was the Toronto Star’s Amateur Sport reporter, a dedicated journalist that worked tirelessly to raise the profile of amateur sport in the time between the Olympics and very well respected by the Canadian sport community, athletes, coaches and officials alike.

Devon Kershaw recently tweeted his thoughts on Randy’s passing: “So very sad to hear that Randy Starkman passed away. He was truly/deeply passionate about sport, believed in us all & a wonderful person”

Toronto Star Photographer Steve Russell worked closely with Randy on many occasions, and the depth of Randy’s involvement in our sport is shown by photopgraphs Steve used in his tribute to Randy.

Randy Starkman loved what he did. He was devoted to it, compelled by it, and consumed with it. Randy never stopped working. And Randy’s career will never be forgotten. The outpouring of messages, blogs, and remembrances, by journalists and athletes from across the country, is a testament to the dedication he displayed in his career, Steve Russell, Staff Photographer Toronto Star

He was the master of staying out of the frame, I never worried about Randy being in my line of sight when photographing a practice or following an athlete in their home.

You don’t see Randy in this picture of Canadian Olympians Sarah Renner and Thomas Grandi outside their Canmore, Alberta home. He is just to the left holding my flash. The couple welcomed Randy (us) into their home, Grandi cooked for Randy (us).

Randy paid me a huge compliment after the 2006 Olympics, the Star team was to write about their favourite Olympic moment, I wrote about Chandra Crawford’s surprise Gold in the Ladies Sprint skiing. Randy had written about the same thing. He killed his story after reading mine, he slapped my shoulder saying, “Crap Russell, you just wrote me out of the paper” At the next two Olympics we would cover he always checked what my Olympic moment was and joked that he did not want to go up against me again!

Randy’s instincts were second to none, at the 2006 Olympics he asked me if I thought it would be worth the effort to get into Team Canada’s wax house to photograph the famous ski pole Sara Renner broke in her silver medal run with Becky Scott. I jumped at the chance. Before I ran off Randy looking at the weather, wet and drizzly, told me to get pictures of the technicians waxing Becky Scott’s skis. Becky would finish out of the medals, coaches, technician Laurent Roux, and Becky said it was because she missed her wax. Starkman had the story.

Chris so captured this typical Randy Starkman moment, reading from a children’s book (Bedtime for Frances) which be brought and gave to Aria Renner, then 2 years old. Aria is the first child of Olympic medalist Sara Renner and world Cup Champion Thomas Grandi.