Shooting victim was 'longtime friend' to Ontario's badminton community

An Ottawa man who was shot dead Friday night is being remembered by his colleagues as a devoted badminton coach who'd been nationally recognized for his training efforts.

Kevin Willington, 53, was killed at a house in the city's Manor Park area in what police consider to be a targeted killing.

"I am still processing the shock," said fellow badminton coach Janet Hugli in an email to CBC on the weekend.

Emergency crews were called to the area of Birch Avenue and Hemlock Road, just north of Beechwood Cemetery, at approximately 9:22 p.m. on Friday.

They found Willington with life-threatening injuries. He died at the scene shortly after.

The Ottawa Police Service's homicide unit is investigating his death. 

Hugli and Dominic Soong, co-founders of a local badminton academy, said via email that Willington was "an excellent example of a sport builder" who volunteered thousands of hours developing coaches across the province.

"Kevin demonstrated his passion for badminton with players and coaches of all ages and all levels, and helped the players and coaches develop confidence as their skills progressed," they said. 

"He will be greatly missed."

In 2023, the Coaching Association of Canada recognized Willington for his work delivering badminton-pecific National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) training to other coaches. 

According to Brian Tjoa, the executive director of Badminton Ontario, Willington mentored hundreds of coaches across the province.

He was a "longtime friend to the whole badminton community," Tjoa said via email. 

Willington's death marks Ottawa police's third homicide case of the year.  As of Sunday evening, no arrests had been announced.