Gerald Francis Kazanowski (born October 12, 1960 in Nanaimo) is a former professional and Canadian Olympic

Olympic Games

The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...

 basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 player.

Kazanowski was British Columbia High School Basketball Association provincial tournament MVP in 1978 as a member of Nanaimo High School

Nanaimo District Secondary School

The Nanaimo District Secondary School or Nanaimo District Community School is a public high school in Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada which was built in 1952. Since then there have been a few renovations, most notably the 1981 construction of the "tower", which houses a number of computer...

. He played college basketball

College basketball

College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....

 for the University of Victoria

University of Victoria

The University of Victoria, often referred to as UVic, is the second oldest public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It is a research intensive university located in Saanich and Oak Bay, about northeast of downtown Victoria. The University's annual enrollment is about 20,000 students...

 Vikes

Victoria Vikes

The Victoria Vikes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Victoria of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada in Canadian Interuniversity Sport.The Vikes have both men's and women's teams in the following sports:* Basketball* Cross country...

. He was named a three-time CIAU

Canadian Interuniversity Sport

Canadian Interuniversity Sport is the national governing body of university sport in Canada, comprising the majority of degree granting universities in the country. Its equivalent body for organized sports at colleges in Canada is The Canadian Colleges Athletic Association...

 All-Canadian, two-time recipient of the Premier's Athletic Award, and member of four consecutive CIAU championship Vikes teams, 1980 through 1983. Kazanowski graduated with a degree in economics and was drafted in the 7th round of the 1983 NBA Draft

1983 NBA Draft

The 1983 NBA Draft took place on June 28, 1983 in New York City. A total of 226 players were selected over 10 rounds by the league's 23 teams. At least three players from the 1983 draft now serve as coaches...

 by the Utah Jazz

Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz is a professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are currently a part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...

.

The 6-foot, 9-inch centre

Center (basketball)

The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...

/forward, Kazanowski first played for the national team at the 1979 FIBA World Junior Championship. He played in three World University Games, 1981, '83, and '85. The 1983 games played in Edmonton

Edmonton

Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...

 saw the Canadians upset the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....

 to win gold. He participated in three FIBA World Championship

FIBA World Championship

The FIBA World Championship is an international basketball competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of the International Basketball Federation , the sport's global governing body...

s, 1982

1982 FIBA World Championship

The 1982 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball competition hosted by Colombia from August 15 to 28 , 1982.-Venues:- Competing nations :- Preliminary round :-Group A:-Group B:-Group C:-Classification round:-Final round:...

, 1986

1986 FIBA World Championship

The 1986 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball competition hosted by Spain from July 5 to 19 1986.The Final phase of the tournament was held at the Palacio de Deportes de la Comunidad, Madrid...

, and 1990

1990 FIBA World Championship

The 1990 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball competition hosted by Argentina from August 8 to August 20, 1990.The competition final phase was held at the Luna Park, Buenos Aires.Yugoslavia emerged as the tournament winner...

. He also participated against the original Dream Team at the 1992 FIBA Tournament of the Americas as Canada fell to the Americans in round-robin play 61-101. Kazanowski played in two Olympic Games

Olympic Games

The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...

 too, in 1984

Basketball at the 1984 Summer Olympics

-Group B:-Championship bracket:-Classification brackets:5th–8th Place9th–12th Place-Preliminary Round:...

, when a depleted field due to boycott saw Canada finish just outside the medals in fourth place, and in 1988

Basketball at the 1988 Summer Olympics

Basketball at the 1988 Summer Olympics took place at the Jamsil Gymnasium in Seoul, South Korea. The United States won the gold medal in the women's competition, thus repeating their performance from the 1984 tournament. In the men's tournament, the Soviet Union took home their second gold medal in...

.

Kazanowski played professionally from 1984 through 1992 with stops for clubs in Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 (Joventut and Baloncesto León

Baloncesto León

Club Baloncesto León is a basketball team, based in León, Spain. It plays in the basketball Second division, the LEB.-Roster:-Early years :...

), Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

, Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

, Luxembourg

Luxembourg

Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...

, Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 and Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

. He was inducted into both the Naismith Museum and Hall of Fame in 2005 and Basketball BC Hall of Fame in 2006.

As of 2006, Kazanowski continued to live on Vancouver Island

Vancouver Island

Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...

 (he has at various times lived in Sidney

Sidney, British Columbia

Sidney is a town located at the northern end of the Saanich Peninsula, on Vancouver Island in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is one of the 13 Greater Victoria municipalities. It has a population of approximately 11,300. Sidney is located just east of Victoria International Airport,...

 and Saanichton

Saanichton, British Columbia

Saanichton, British Columbia is a village, in the municipality of Central Saanich, located between Victoria and the BC Ferry Terminal, west of the Pat Bay Highway , at the junction of Mount Newton Cross Road and East Saanich Road.-Climate:...

) with his wife Claudia and daughters Sarah and Grace. He is a certified financial advisor.

In 2008, Gerald was inducted into the Nanaimo Sports hall of fame.