Athlete/Builder: Figure Skating
Year Inducted: Legacy
Date of Birth: January 2, 1922
Born in: Toronto, Ontario

For more than half a century, Donald Gilchrist was a central figure in the sport of figure skating, whether as an athlete or a domestic and international administrator.

Gilchrist, who split his time between Ottawa (40 years) and Toronto, was an accomplished skater. He was a three-time Canadian senior men’s singles silver medallist (1940-42), a two-time national senior pairs champion with Marlene Smith (1949-50), and a three-time Canadian fours champion (1939, 1941-42). At the 1950 world championships in Wembley, England, he placed ninth in pairs.

A year after retiring as a skater at age 28, he started his illustrious career as a national and world administrator. He played a dominant role, had an influential voice and was a positive Canadian player in the European-dominated International Skating Union.

In 1951, he became an international judge and the first Canadian delegate to participate at the ISU Congress. For the next 40 years, he was involved in every major figure skating competition at the technical level.

The former president of the then Canadian Figure Skating Association (now Skate Canada) represented Canada as a judge, referee and technical delegate at the Winter Olympics, world championships and international competitions.

During his extensive volunteer career, Gilchrist was a member of the Skate Canada board of directors, and sat on eight committees as either a member or a chair. Internationally, he was Canada’s ISU representative, the figure skating chair for the 1992 Albertville Winter Olympics and technical director at the 1990 European championships.

Gilchrist also shared his knowledge and provided feedback to international skaters from Ottawa like Barbara Ann Scott, Lynn Nightingale and Elizabeth Manley as well as up-and-coming club skaters.

The first Canadian to be named an honorary member of ISU, Gilchrist is a member of the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame and the Skate Canada Hall of Fame.