Famous Canadian Sports Heroes
(descriptions by my son Rob Found)Famous Canadian Sports Heroes
(descriptions by my son Rob Found)
| Alex Bauman | Alex Bauman - Son of immigrants excelled in the difficult individual medley swimming events, winning Olympic and Commonwealth gold. He shook off chronic shoulder pain and the deaths of his father and brother just prior to the 1984 Los Angeles games to capture gold twice in both the 200 and 400 metre medley. Oh yeah, he set two world records. |
| Ben Johnson | Ben Johnson - Fastest man of all time. Set record of 9.79 seconds for 100m, only to have that and his gold medal stripped for testing positive for drugs. As test was rigged, and everybody else was thought to be on drugs, those in the world of track and field still regard his performance as the fastest a human has ever run. |
| Big Ben | Best horse to ever compete for Canada. A legend in the equestrian world. |
| Bobby Orr | Bobby Orr - Regarded as the greatest player ever. Completely changed the way defense was played. Only won two Stanley Cups, but every other award he could possibly win, including the only defenseman to win the scoring title. Career cut way short by knee injuries, he managed to play his best hockey at the 1976 Canada Cup. |
| Brian Orser | figure skater |
| Catriona Lemay Doan | Catriona Lemay-Doan - Dominated women's speed-skating sprints for a number of years. Endless wins and world records in world cups and championships, as well as delivering in the Olympics. |
| Cliff Thorburn | snooker champion. I heard his name often…only found out he was Canadian now |
| Donovan Bailey | Donovan Bailey - Canada's fastest man that never tested positive for drugs. Current holder of 100m record for Olympics, winning gold for the 100 metre in Atlanta in 1996. Anchored Canada to 4x100m relay over Americans in same games. (See story below). |
| Elvis Stoyko | Elvis Stojko - 3 time world champion figure skater, won silver medal in Olympics after being ripped off for the gold because his routine was too innovative for the stodgy judges. Won second silver medal on a ripped up groin and when sick. Made figure skating about athletics as much as artistry (in a word: less gay). |
| Eric Gagne | |
| Ferguson Jenkins | Hall of Fame baseball pitcher |
| Gaetan Boucher | Gaetan Boucher - double gold medalist in 1984 winter olympic speed skating events. Small town French boy makes good, beats the top skaters from the big skating nations like Netherlands and Germany. |
| George Chuvalo | boxer, actor |
| Gordie Howe | Gordie Howe - "Mr.Hockey", longevity and consistency were his hallmarks, coming out of retirement to play a final year of pro hockey with his sons, when he was 52. |
| Greg Moore | Indy Car driver |
| Guy Lafleur | Guy Lafleur - "The Flower" - multiple NHL scoring champ and MVP, top international player, hall of famer who came out of retirement after 3 years to be the top player on his team. the most electrifying player of all time |
| Jacques Plante | |
| Jacques Villeneuve | racecar driver, father of Gilles Villeneuve, also a racecar driver |
| James Naismith | invented basketball, 1892 |
| Jean Beliveau | Jean Beliveau - Known for exceptional class and grace, led Canadiens teams to 10 stanley cups, the link between Richard and Lafleur, and continues to do promotional work for the Canadiens to this day |
| Joshua Slocum | First man to sail solo around the world, known as "America's greatest sailor" |
| Ken Dryden | Goalie for Montreal Canadians, author, lawyer, now an MP |
| Kurt Browning | Kurt Browning - 4 time world champion figure skater, first guy to do the "quad" in competition, all around nice guy (met him in Edmonton once when he was filming a commercial on the ice just before a hockey tryout). |
| Larry Walker | |
| Marilyn Bell | swam Lake Ontario, English Channel |
| Mario Lemieux | Mario Lemieux - pressure to be the next Gretzky or Lafleur from the time he was 14, he lived up to and managed to exceed all expectations, leading the last placed Penguins to two stanley cups in the first half of his career. Only injuries kept him from breaking all of Gretzky's records. Excelled in international play, leading Canada to gold medal in 2002 Olympics. Now owns the team he plays for. |
| Mark Messier | Mark "Moose" Messier - the ultimate team captain, was Gretzky's right hand man until the Gretzky trade, then became the top guy. Classic hockey style of speed, physical play, and consumate skill. |
| Martin Brodeur | My personal hero. Was goalie for 84 Olympics when Canada beat USA. |
| Mike Weir | golf champion |
| Nancy Greene | Gold medal in Grenoble Olympics, Giant Slalom |
| Patrick Roy | goalie, and a good one |
| Paul Tracy | race car driver |
| Rick Hansen | did a complete world tour in a wheel chair, to raise money for charity. "Man in Motion". |
| Rocket Richard | Rocket Richard - Purest goal scorer ever, and possibly the most intense player of all time. Unjust suspension for the entire playoffs cost the Canadiens the Stanley cup one year. Fan anger turned into famous St.Patrick's Day riot. First to score 50 goals in 50 games, first to score 50 goals in a season, was part of 5 cups in a row Canadiens team of the 1950's. |
| Scott Goodyear | Indy Car driver |
| Simon Whitfield | Simon Whitfield - Won first ever Olympic Triathlon. Continued to lead world in this demanding sport. |
| Steve Bauer | Steve Bauer - Only Canadian to wear the yellow leader jersey in Tour de France cycling event. Wore it for 9 days. Won silver medal in 1984 Olympic road race (lost sprint by photo finish). |
| Steve Nash | Steve Nash - Best Canadian basketball player. Led Canada further than anyone expected in last Olympics, nearly led his team the Mavericks to the NBA championship. Won NBA trophy for most valuable player. |
| Terry Fox | Terry Fox (he became famous through running) - Ran across Canada in support of cancer research. Had one leg, and was dying of cancer all during run. Died before finishing. |
| Toller Cranston | figure skater |
| Victor Davis | swimmer |
| Wayne Gretzky | Wayne Gretzky - lead the offensive revolution of hockey through the 1980's, changing the way the game was played. Went on to popularize hockey in the USA. Most hockey awards of any player alive or dead. |
| Bret Hart | wrestler, starred on The Simpsons as himself, #39 in famous Canadian list. |
| Silken Laumann | She was the favourite to win gold in women's sculls less than 3 months before the Olympics, when during warmups at an event in Germany, a boat cut across her path, breaking her lower right leg and tearing up muscles and ligaments. Yet she qualified for the Olympic final 78 days later. She beat the American in her event, picking up a bronze medal. |
| Greg Joy | Canada hadn't won a gold medal on it's own soil in the 1976 Montreal Olympics and it was the last day of the Games. With comments by Dwight Jones, his main American competitor, saying he "hated French Canadians" to spur him on in the long jump, Joy busted him and won the silver medal. |
| 4x100 Relay Team | 1996 Atlanta. Wow! What a race! Hot on the heels of Donovan Bailey's 100 metre sprint gold, came a showdown between the USA and Canada. Donovan Bailey, Bruny Surin, Robert Esmie and Glenroy Gilbert did not disappoint. IN the heats the USA recorded 38.58 and Canada 38.68 times, leading to the final. In it, Canada opened up a lead in the second leg and Bailey, running fourth, beat US anchor Dennis Mitchell to the finish line by 4 metres. |