Andre De Grasse, Kayla Grey, Fabienne Colas to receive inaugural Legacy Awards

The Legacy Awards will give inaugural trophies to Andre De Grasse, Kayla Grey and Fabienne Colas, organizers announced Friday. 

The new awards show, founded by brothers Shamier Anderson and Stephan James through their organization The Black Academy, is intended to honour Black Canadian talent, and will give out its first round of awards this weekend.

Track sprinter De Grasse is a six-time Olympic medallist, and took home three medals — a bronze, silver and gold — at the games in 2022. He was the first Canadian ever to do so. In winning that gold, he also became the first Canadian in 93 years to win the men's 200 metre since Canadian track star Percy Williams's performance in 1928. 

De Grasse will receive athlete of the year for "his accomplishment in sport in Canada ... and his contribution to the Black Canadian identity," noted a news release.

Kayla Grey, a TV host and co-executive producer of SportCentre's The Shift with Kayla Grey, will receive the Jahmil French Award. That trophy, named after the late-Canadian actor most famous for his role on Degrassi: The Next Generation, is awarded to a "rising star" in the Canadian media world.

WATCH | Canadian awards show to honour Black talent to air on CBC: 

Grey, who became the first Black woman to host a flagship sports highlight show when she assumed her current role in 2018, was chosen for "her unmistakable talent and activism."

And actor, filmmaker and film-festival founder Fabienne Colas will receive The Visionnaire Award. Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Colas has since become the manager of seven independent film festivals in Canada and the United States through her Fabienne Colas Foundation. 

Also announced Friday were additional performers for the awards, airing