John Derek Riley (July 1, 1922 – May 6, 2018) was a Canadian rower who competed in the

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

. Riley was inducted in the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 2009 and appointed the Order of Canada in 2014.

Early life and education

Riley was born on July 1, 1922, in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He graduated from the University of Manitoba with degrees in commerce and accounting.

Career

Riley began his career as a member of the Royal Canadian Navy in World War II. After starting rowing in the Winnipeg Rowing Club in 1946, Riley competed in rowing competitions for the

Royal Canadian Henley Regatta The Royal Canadian Henley Regatta started in 1880 as the first championship for the newly formed Canadian Amateur Rowing Association. History It changed venues often until 1903, when it was decided to hold it at St. Catharines Port Dalhousie's M ...

and Northwest International Rowing Association. In RCH competitions, Riley won a juniors competition in 1946 and a seniors competition with Theo Dubois in 1947. Alternatively, Riley won over thirty medals in the NWIRA including a seniors event with Bob Richards in 1948 and every medal competition in 1961. His final NWIRA event was in 1963. In world competitions, Riley competed at the

in rowing and was the chairman for the rowing events at the

1967 Pan American Games The 1967 Pan American Games were held in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, from July 23 to August 6, 1967. Winnipeg was chosen as host of the Pan American Games on its second try. It first bid for the 1963 Games at the 1959 PASO meeting in Chicago ...

. Outside of rowing, Riley worked at the Hudson's Bay Company as a

chief financial officer The chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization that is assigned the primary responsibility for managing the company's finances, including financial planning, management of financial risks, record-keeping, and financ ...

. Later positions included chief executive officer of a Winnipeg metal company and chairman of

North West Company The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what is present-day Western Canada and Northwestern Ontario. With great weal ...

in 1987.

Awards and honours

In 2009, Riley was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. The following year, he became a member of

St. John's-Ravenscourt School St. John's-Ravenscourt School (commonly referred to as SJR) is an independent, co-educational, university-preparatory school founded in 1820. Located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the school delivers an enriched curriculum from Kindergarten through Grade ...

's sports hall of fame. In 2014, Riley was appointed the Order of Canada. He died in Winnipeg on May 6, 2018, at the age of 95.Derek Riley's obituary
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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Riley, Derek 1922 births 2018 deaths Canadian male rowers Members of the Order of Canada Olympic rowers for Canada Rowers at the 1952 Summer Olympics Rowers from Winnipeg St. John's-Ravenscourt School alumni