In celebration of Canadian Sport Institute Ontario’s 25th Anniversary, we are excited to share our history and the impact CSIO has had on the Ontario and Canadian sport system by elevating people and performances in the pursuit of building champions. The stories will be told over the year-long celebration through three concurrent article series – Elevating Excellence, Elevating People, and Elevating Performances.
Our first article comes from our Elevating Excellence series, which will share the history of CSIO through the lens of each of the Chairs of our Board of Directors, past and present. Written by acclaimed sports journalist David Grossman, we go back to the very beginning with our first Chair, Doug Hamilton.
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As a youngster, Douglas Turnbull Hamilton had no idea that a time would come when people would refer to him as being a builder, a founder, and a creator.
Powerful accolades, but commendable for an individual who would one day have a momentous and strong role in the development, re-structuring, and future, of amateur sport in Ontario. His vision, leadership, and dedication – as a volunteer in many capacities in the Canadian sport system – would also have an impact on the athletic world across the rest of the country.
Take some time to examine the life-long achievements by Hamilton, and one thing was always common. For him, there was always an emphasis on doing things the right way. His focus and contribution always highlighted the dream of a remarkable person. Forget any fantasy, when he set his mind to doing things, his ideas would lead to the creation of something special – and they quickly became a reality.
As for success stories, there have been many in his lifetime and each resulting from him laying the groundwork. His thumbprints of triumph and prosperity have been evident in many sectors of Canadian amateur sport – including his job as the Chair of the 2022 Canada Summer Games held in the Niagara Region.
Years ago, Hamilton had perfected the groundwork and then accomplished what some people thought was only a wish list that was not achievable. So much for that narrative. They didn’t know Hamilton well enough. With patience, guidance and understanding, he would be known for transforming a broken athletic system in Ontario, to a dynamic creation.
It didn’t happen overnight, but it was his dedication and driving force that created a journey of change – and one that continues to blossom growth, determination, and
optimism in young athletes. All that has also strengthened Canada’s showing on the global athletic scene.
As a very modest and sincere individual, Hamilton likes to recognize the efforts of many others. What often gets lost in conversations, is his actual guidance and commitment to excellence. To put it mildly, he’s infatuated with finding ways to help athletes achieve their dreams.
Hamilton is also about focussing on getting the job done in a way that leads, builds, and targets podium success. Reaching goals is paramount to him, but so is a network of trained and competent specialists needed to assist athletes. It’s all reflective in everything he set out to achieve.
Hamilton might have a few words when someone creates a discussion about him being a dominant athlete. For the record, he did excel in track and football as a teenager at the University of Toronto Schools. But there was much more to come for him in the world of athleticism.
Something big occurred in his second year at Queen’s University in Kingston. His roommate, Mark Evans (who also went on to Olympic success) convinced him to put away the cleats and running shoes and join him in trying a new sport at the university – rowing.
Hamilton would become hooked on rowing. Twice he was a member of Queen’s’ varsity championship crews. After winning a pair of gold medals at the World University Rowing Championships in Milan in 1982, Hamilton was also honored in Kingston with the prestigious acknowledgement of outstanding amateur Athlete of the Year.
“I wasn’t talented enough for the Olympics in track and I was too small, and slow, for professional football,” recalled Hamilton. “Rowing was a better fit and it didn’t take long for me to love the sport. It was a team sport that rewarded hard work and I enjoyed that.”
In 1984, Hamilton was in the quadruple sculls crew that won a bronze medal in rowing at the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. A year later came the shocker in Belgium. Again, as a member of the quadruple sculls crew, the foursome beat a powerful East German boat to claim the first rowing gold medal for Canada at a World Championship.
“That was special – something I will never forget,” recalled Hamilton. “There are victories in sport and life – but this one was huge for us and for rowing in Canada.”
After that stunning win, things changed in the Canadian rowing program. Some say the change was far from productive. That was putting it mildly. Performance went from success to failure. Hamilton wasn’t happy and had a few words to say. In fact, he was quite critical of the way programs were being managed.
Keep in mind, home for Hamilton is now St. Catharines – which has the largest rowing program in the country, was also home to the National Team Program and the Henley, one of the best rowing courses in the world.
Having graduated from Queen’s with a law degree and earning a Master’s at the London School of Economics, a frustrated Hamilton chose to step away from national rowing program after the 1988 Olympics, return to Toronto and focus on his chosen professional career of environmental law.
One year later, again things changed after another poor performance by Canadian rowers at the World Championships. Hamilton, then 31 years of age, was approached by many in Canadian rowing to step in and help improve the national rowing scene.
It was an opportunity to make things better. Hamilton wouldn’t pass up the challenge. Something productive would replace bitter feelings by many in the sport.
People had noticed that Hamilton was more than a talented athlete. He was focussed on improving morale, performance, and returning Canada to international glory.
“After hearing from several people asking for my involvement and advice, I figured I could help build a better platform,” said Hamilton, who agreed to step into the role of Vice President High Performance with Rowing Canada.
His new task was a volunteer role on the Board of Directors focussed on running the National team program. Hamilton wanted action and results. Impatient, he didn’t have time to waste. His goal: to establish a program that got out of the athletes’ way.
“To properly build, sometimes you have to demolish something first,” he said in a telephone conversation from his home in St. Catharines, which just happens to be close to the world re-knowned Henley rowing course in Port Dalhousie. “I was confident that I could help make a difference for the athletes. I had seen what worked and what didn’t – and I knew how to remove the impediments.”
That, he did – and with much success. What would result was a revamped system, that would lead to medals, lots of them, at the Summer Olympics in Barcelona in 1992 and Atlanta in 1996. A message had been delivered to the rest of the world. For Canada, there were more medals in rowing at those Olympics than any other country in the world.
Because of Hamilton’s leadership and effectiveness, Rowing Canada would induct him into its Hall of Fame in the Builder category in 2018.
It was just a matter of time before his achievements and triumphs took another huge step. That came in 1997. Still aggressively involved in his law career, Hamilton had agreed to support the Canadian Olympic Association to make more improvements. This time, it was changes that would affect the Canadian amateur sports system.
“We wanted to create a centre for summer sports in Ontario that would lead to legacy facilities- something similar to what Alberta had in winter sports,” recalled Hamilton, who is married to Lynn Polson, a former Canadian Basketball Olympian.
“We knew some sports were under achieving and overall, Canada was under performing in summer sports. Something had to be done to better support our athletes.”
Hamilton agreed to lead the charge. Investing time had some surprises. Tough decisions also had to be made. Things had to improve. Budgets were tight. There would be an immeasurable amount of work, including helping to advance Toronto’s bid for the 2008 Olympic Games and organize the 2015 Pan/Parapan Am Games.
It was time for the creation of the National Sports Centre in Toronto. The name would evolve to the Canadian Sport Centre Ontario. Then, with the new sport facilities developed for the 2015 Pan/Parapan Am Games, the name would change again to Canadian Sport Institute Ontario (CSIO). Regardless the name, what would endure is the organization’s unwavering commitment to supporting high performance athletes and coaches through sport science, sport medicine, and pathway leadership as they strive to achieve international podium performances.
“Those were big dreams back then, they were challenging, too,” said Hamilton, who was recognized for those early years in rowing and inducted to the Kingston and District Sports Hall of Fame in 2000. “Now, after watching the recent international success of so many of our Canadian summer sport athletes, I’m very proud of all of our efforts.”
In this CSIO series “Elevating Excellence”, the focus starts with Hamilton – a man who pioneered numerous innovative ideas in his responsibility as the inaugural Chair of the Board of Directors of that young sports invention.
Hamilton’s vision and ability to leverage the hosting of international games to create lasting legacies for Ontario and Canadian athletes was key to the development of CSIO.
“Indeed, through the 2022 Canada Summer Games, we were again able to leverage a Major Games event to develop more facilities and programs for future generations of athletes to achieve their dreams,” said Hamilton. “These facilities include the new CSIO Regional Training Centre at the Canada Games Park in Niagara.”
After Hamilton finished his term in 2010, CSIO continued to benefit from the knowledge, administrative strength, and leadership of Chris Rudge, Kathryn Giffen, and Ian Gordon – all serving as Chair of the Board.
Across the country, CSIO is known as a premier sport institute that strives to elevate athletes, and their performances, as well as the work of coaches, support staff, officials, and volunteers. The objective has always been to provide opportunities and facilities that make athletes better in the pursuit of building champions.
David Grossman is a veteran multi award-winning Journalist and Broadcaster with some of Canada’s major media, including The Toronto Star and SPORTSNET 590 THE FAN, and a Public Relations professional for 50+ years in Canadian sports and Government relations.
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About Canadian Sport Institute Ontario
Canadian Sport Institute Ontario (CSIO) is a non-profit organization committed to the pursuit of excellence by providing best-in-class programs, services, and leadership to high performance athletes, coaches, and National and Provincial Sport Organizations to enhance their ability to achieve international podium performances. Our team of expert staff deliver sport science, sport medicine, life services, and coaching and technical leadership support to help Canada win medals and strengthen the sport system in Ontario and Canada. CSIO is part of the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Sport Institute Network, working in partnership with the Canadian Olympic Committee, Canadian Paralympic Committee, Own the Podium, and the Coaching Association of Canada. CSIO is further supported by funding partners such as the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport and Sport Canada. www.csiontario.ca
Media Contact:
Laura Albright
Senior Advisor, Communications & Marketing
Canadian Sport Institute Ontario
Tel: 647.395.7536
Email: lalbright@csiontario.ca