Manitoba’s Olympians through the ages

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/08/2016 (3626 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

With the Olympics winding down in Rio, now is a good time to remember some Manitobans who have represented our province in the Summer Games.

Going all the way back to Stockholm in 1912, Joe Keeper from the Norway House Cree First Nation ran in both the 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres events and finished fourth in the latter final.
Army Howard of Winnipeg also was on the Canadian track team. The North End Amateur Athletic Club sprinter won his heat in the 100 metres but lost in the semi-final. Howard is believed to be Canada’s first black Olympian. His grandson, Harry Jerome, from North Vancouver, B.C., won bronze in the 100 metres for Canada in 1964.

In 1928, in what was described as the most exciting race of the Olympiad in Amsterdam, Jimmy Ball finished inches behind American Raymond Barbutti in the 400-metre final. Ball also won bronze as a member of the 4×400 metres relay team. Jim Trifunov competed in wrestling in three Summer Games, winning a bronze medal in 1928. The long-time Winnipeg Free Press promotions and circulation manager also coached at the 1952, 1956 and 1960 Olympics. Lightweight boxer Frankie Battaglia fought for Canada in 1928 before he embarked on a pro career as a middleweight contender.  

John Loaring is a name that few if any Manitobans will recognize. Born in Winnipeg, Loaring attended  La Verendrye and Grosvenor schools and took up running after he moved to Windsor, Ont. at age 10. At the 1936 Games in Berlin, Loaring finished second in the 400-metre hurdles, sixth in the 400 metres and ran a blazing anchor in the 4×400 metres relay for the Canadian team that was fourth.

That same year, Bob Hamerton became the first male swimmer from Manitoba to make the Canadian Olympic swimming team. He didn’t medal but finished fourth in the 100-metre and 400-metre freestyle heats. In 1948 in London, Vivian King swam for Canada in the 400-metre freestyle.
Mark Berger won a bronze in judo in Los Angeles in 1984. In 1988 in Seoul, North Kildonan product David MacKay had a fifth-place finish in wrestling.

A two-time Olympian, in 1984 and 1988, Trevor Porritt rates as the province’s best field hockey player. His father, Peter, was a field hockey official at five Summer Games.

In 1992 in Barcelona, Angela Chalmers from Shilo won bronze in the 3,000 metres. Cyclist Tanya Dubnicoff made the first of three consecutive Summer Olympics appearances in Barcelona. In 1996 in Atlanta, Clara Hughes won double bronze in the cycling individual road race and time trial.

Softball is returning to the Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2020, which will be welcome news to our young female players. In 1996, our province was well-represented by second baseman Karen Doell from Morden, who batted cleanup, and Juanita Clayton, the yodelling catcher from Kaleida. Four years later in Sydney, Australia, the Newsham sisters from Charleswood, Sandy and Heather, pitched for Canada. All were products of the Smitty’s softball factory. Evelyne Holenski from Smitty’s was the Canadian team’s business manager in 2000.

Memories of Sport appears every second week in the Canstar Community News weeklies. Kent Morgan can be contacted at 204-489-6641 or email: sportsmemories@canstarnews.com