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​Arthur Howey Ross, hockey player, inventor/innovator and NHL team executive (born 13 January 1885 in Naughton [Sudbury], ON; died 5 August 1964 in Medford, Massachusetts). Ross was considered a top defenseman during a playing career that included several years as a professional (with a brief stint in the fledgling National Hockey League). Following his retirement as a player in 1918, Ross worked as an NHL referee and coached the NHL’s Hamilton Tigers in 1922–23. The Boston Bruins hired him when they entered the league in 1924, and Ross served as coach, general manager and vice president (often holding all three titles at once) until 1954. Ross also invented improved versions of the hockey puck and goalie nets that were used for decades in the NHL, and introduced many of the rules that modernized the game.

​Ashleigh McIvor, freestyle skier (born 15 September 1983 in Vancouver, BC). At the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, McIvor won the gold medal for Canada in women’s ski cross, the first female Olympic champion of the sport.

Aurèle Joliat, hockey player (b at Ottawa 29 Aug 1901; d at Ottawa 1 June 1986). Left-winger for the Montreal Canadiens 1922-38. In 644 games, and despite his 170 cm height and meagre 61 kg weight, he amassed 270 goals and 190 assists.

Cecil Henry Dye, "Babe," hockey player (b at Hamilton, Ont 13 May 1898; d 2 Jan 1962). His learning the skills of hockey from his mother on a backyard rink in Toronto became part of hockey lore.

Balarama Holness, professional football player, jurist, political activist, social entrepreneur (born 20 July 1983 in Montreal, QC). Balarama Holness put a wayward youth behind him to become a Grey Cup-winning professional football player with his hometown Montreal Alouettes. He then pursued a career as a jurist and political organizer and ran for mayor of the borough of Montréal-Nord in 2017. His community organizing efforts led to two separate reports (in 2019 and 2020) that acknowledged the existence and extent of systemic racism in the province, while also recommending solutions. In 2021, Holness ran to become mayor of Montreal but was defeated.

Barbara Aileen Wagner, figure skater (b at Toronto 5 May 1938). Wagner and partner Robert Paul formed the outstanding Canadian figure skating team that dominated the international pairs event 1957-62.

Barbara Ann Scott, figure skater (born at Ottawa, Ont, 9 May 1928; died at Amelia Island, US, 30 Sept 2012).

This article was originally published in Maclean’s magazine on January 12, 1998. Partner content is not updated. Ducking out of the freezing rain on a bitter Chicago night, the woman once dubbed Canada's Sweetheart arrives at Hugo's Frog Bar to a movie star's welcome.

Barbara Ann Underhill, figure skater (b at Pembroke, Ont 24 June 1963). She began pair figure skating with Paul Martini in 1978 and they won the Junior World Championships that year.

The following article is an editorial written by The Canadian Encyclopedia staff. Editorials are not usually updated.

Bernard Conrad Hartman, CM, skeet shooter, pilot (born 2 November 1916 in Swan River, MB; died 30 October 2016 in Ottawa, ON). Barney Hartman was considered the greatest skeet shooter in the world. He won a silver and four bronze medals in international amateur competition and was the Canadian amateur 12-gauge champion for seven consecutive years. He claimed nearly 30 world records in various categories and as a professional boasted the world’s best average in nine of 12 years. He once broke a string of 2,002 consecutive clay targets without a miss and had a career success rate above 99 per cent. A Member of the Order of Canada, he was inducted into numerous halls of fame, including Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame, the Canadian Armed Forces Sports Hall of Fame and the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame.

In a sport dominated by European athletes, Scott is a lone North American success story in international cross-country ski competition. Her success leading up to the 2002 Salt Lake Olympic Games was gradual.

Marilyn Grace Bell Di Lascio (née Bell), OOnt, swimmer (born 19 October 1937 in Toronto, ON). Marilyn Bell is a long-distance swimmer, best remembered for her 1954 swim across Lake Ontario, which brought her international fame at the age of 16. She won the 1954 Lou Marsh Trophy as Canada’s athlete of the year, as well as the 1954 and 1955 Bobbie Rosenfeld Award as the country’s top female athlete. She was also named the 1954 Canadian Press Newsmaker of the Year. In 1955, she became the youngest person to swim the English Channel. She also swam across the Juan de Fuca Strait in 1956. She was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame and is a Member of the Order of Ontario.

Ben Johnson, track and field athlete (b at Falmouth, Jamaica 30 Dec 1961). In 1976 Johnson immigrated to Canada and was attracted to competitive sprinting, initially in the 100 and 200 m.

​Benoît Huot, swimmer (born 24 January 1984 in Longueuil, QC). One of Canada’s most successful swimmers, Huot has won 20 medals at the Paralympic Games, 12 medals at the Parapan American Games and over 30 medals at the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) World Swimming Championships.