Inspired by the convergence of the world’s best athletes at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games, RRU archivist Sarah Holland looked in our vaults for evidence of Hatley’s sporting past.

Clearly, Royal Roads has had its share of athletes who follow the motto: “Swifter, Higher, Stronger”.

by Sarah Elizabeth Holland

William Pridmore (pictured right) was Champion Pedestrian of the Province, c. 1880. He worked for the Dunsmuir family hauling stone to build the fence around Hatley Park. While at Hatley, he also fell in love with and married Hansina Bugslag whose family lived in the Gate House. Pridmore was a speed-walking champion who won many contests in the 1870s and 1880s. In 1881, he beat the American champion in a 10-mile race hailed as The Great Walking Match: California vs. Colombia.

The British Colonist newspaper reported that after Pridmore did five miles in 42 minutes, he “gave one of those magnetic spurts for which he is noted and seemed to walk right away from his opponent who was soon left behind.” Pridmore won the race in one hour and 24 minutes. The American “seemed somewhat distressed and Pridmore who took the stakes and two-thirds of the prize money, was fresh as a daisy.”

Pridmore used his prize money to build the farm on Burnside Road where he and Hansina raised their children.

James Dunsmuir Jr. - known as Boy - had one passion in life. Horses! And he earned many trophies for his show jumping. He's pictured here in the Hatley stable courtyard, c. 1915, with his favourite horses.

Boy's father spared no expense, importing the best mounts for his favourite son and building a stable complete with oak stalls and brass name plates. When World War I broke out, Boy volunteered for a cavalry unit. Eager to get to the front, he booked his own passage on the Lusitania and tragically lost his life when it was sunk by a German submarine.
 
Physical fitness was a priority for the naval and military cadets who trained at Royal Roads.

At the official opening ceremonies of the college in 1942, cadets heard the following from by Vice-Admiral Percey Nelles, Chief of Naval Staff:

"While you are here, work hard and play hard, and make yourself tougher than any enemy you will ever meet.” 

Pictured at right are cadets racing for the Nelles Trophy in 1953.

Cadets played a wide variety of sports from rugby to scuba diving, from track and field to hockey.

Athletic facilities at Hatley Park included a swimming pool, five tennis courts, two squash courts, three soccer pitches, one rugby field, two ball diamonds, a quarter- mile track, a 6.1 km. cross country course, jetty and boat house. Pictured at right is the Royal Roads Military College Rugby team, c. 1965.

 

Focus on the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games Professor Michael Real, who has been exploring Olympic Games impact for more than a decade, has been leading research on the impact of media coverage on the Olympic movement and how the games affect the fabric of the host communities. Professor Jennifer Walinga’s experience from participating in two Olympic Games – Seoul in 1988 and Barcelona in 1992 – has informed her academic research and during the 2010 Olympic Games she watched Canada’s Own The Podium program with great interest as it put pressure on Canadian athletes to perform. RRU professional communication students Kelby Campbell, Christine Hamann, Muyuan Liu, Marianne Stevulak, Erin Zierler and Mola Shahsavari worked with Olympic Broadcasting Services as paid interns to help deliver coverage to all of the world’s Rights Holding Broadcasters throughout the Games. Patrick Levesque performed in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games opening ceremony in Vancouver. Levesque graduated from RRU with a Bachelor of Commerce degree in entrepreneurial management, after taking acting at Vancouver Film School. RRU grad Bas Brusche, a MAPC graduate from RRU, has been working for the Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games as manager of protocol. Read his story . . . Nina Ng, an RRU MBA grad, has been working for VANOC since graduation and has the exciting task of keeping the workforce of 55,000 engaged in the Games. Read her story . . . MA student Heather Boyd, who lives in Yaletown at the centre of much of the Olympics and Paralympics action, has been writing a wonderful blog about her experiences. She's manager of Sector Development and Marketing for Tourism BC and  writes "the air was electric and there was an amazing experience around every corner. Never in my life has there been such a great opportunity to be part of a global experience with people from all cultures around the globe."