Geoffrey Gowan, CM, (November 2, 1929 – May 16, 2013) was Canadian sports broadcaster for the CBC and a sport executive at Coaching Association of Canada. He died at the age of 83 after battling with

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

since 1996.

Biography

Gowan was born in

Ravenglass, Cumbria Ravenglass is a coastal village in the Copeland District in Cumbria, England. It is between Barrow-in-Furness and Whitehaven. Historically in Cumberland, it is the only coastal village in the Lake District National Park. It is located at the est ...

, England. Leaving Loughborough Colleges, where he was a lecturer for the United States]in 1965 to obtain an M.Sc. from

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

, a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Whilst at Loughborough he brought the fundamentals of track and field to all students with his lively instruction and the use of key phrases. He coached the track and field team of the mid-sixties working alongside Basil Stamatakis. His North American coaching career began as a professor and athletics coach at McMaster University in 1968. He became the technical director and president of CAC from 1972 to 1996.

Cultural impact

The Geoff Gowan Award recognizes the lifetime achievements of Canadian coaches by the Coaching Association of Canada.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gowan, Geoffrey 1929 births 2013 deaths British emigrants to Canada Canadian sports announcers Neurological disease deaths in Canada Deaths from Parkinson's disease People from Ravenglass Purdue University alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Academic staff of McMaster University