Amyot, Frank
Canoeing
b. Sept. 14, 1904, Toronto, ON
d. Nov. 21, 1962
The only Canadian to win a gold medal at the 1936 Olympic Games, Amyot had to pay his own way to get to Berlin for the games because the Canadian Olympic Committee refused to sponsor him.
In the 1,000-meter canoe singles, it looked as if Amyot would lose after Bohuslav Karlik of Czechoslovakia passed him at the 750-meter mark. But Amyot put on a brilliant sprint to retake the lead just 50 meters from the finish line and he held on to win.
The winner of six national canoe titles and one kayak championship, Amyot also coached and managed the Canadian Olympic canoeing team.