Gordon Henry Sturtridge (1929 – December 9, 1956) was a professional

Canadian football Canadian football () is a sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's scoring area ( ...

player, and was one of 62 people who died on

Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 810 Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 810-9 was a Canadair North Star on a scheduled flight from Vancouver to Calgary (continuing to Regina, Winnipeg, and Toronto). The plane crashed into Mount Slesse near Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada, on ...

, on December 9, 1956. Sturtridge played his entire five-year professional football career as a

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations over the years have substantially changed how the position is ...

for the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in ...

of the

Western Interprovincial Football Union The West Division is one of the two regional divisions of the Canadian Football League (CFL), its counterpart being the East Division. Although the CFL was not founded until 1958, the West Division and its clubs are descended from earlier leagu ...

, and his #73

jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...

is one of eight that has been

retired Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

by the club.

Amateur football career

Sturtridge played amateur Canadian football in the Canadian Junior Football League, and was a member of the Winnipeg Rods.

Professional career

Sturtridge signed with the

where he starred for four years. In 1953 he won the Dr. Beattie Martin Trophy as best Canadian rookie in the Western Conference (this despite having played with the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fie ...

in 1949). He was a three-time Western All-Star (in 1954, 1955, and

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim Elliot and Pete Fleming, ar ...

), and was on his way back to

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina () is the capital city of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, after Saskatoon, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 census, Regina had a city populatio ...

, on

after playing in the Shrine Game in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, on December 8, 1956.

Death

Sturtridge, his wife, Mildred (née Alford), Roughriders teammates, Mario DeMarco, Mel Becket, and

Ray Syrnyk Raymond Nicholas "Ray" Syrnyk, (1934 – December 9, 1956) was a professional Canadian football player, and was one of 62 people who died on Trans-Canada Air Lines Flight 810. Syrnyk played professionally for the Saskatchewan Roughriders as a ro ...

, were passengers on Flight 810 with another WIFU player, Calvin Jones, of the

. All five players were present at the 1956 All-Star game in Vancouver, British Columbia, and were headed back to their respective teams' home cities. The five players and Mildred were accompanied by 53 other passengers, and 3 crew members who all lost their lives in Western Canada's worst aviation disaster on December 9, 1956, on

Slesse Mountain Slesse Mountain, usually referred to as Mount Slesse, is a mountain just north of the US-Canada border, in the Cascade Mountains of British Columbia, near the town of Chilliwack. It is notable for its large, steep local relief. For example, its w ...

(Mount Slesse) near

Chilliwack Chilliwack ( )( hur, Ts'elxwéyeqw) is a city in the province of British Columbia, Canada. Chilliwack is surrounded by mountains and home to recreational areas such as Cultus Lake and Chilliwack Lake Provincial Parks. There are numerous outdo ...

. The crash is the subject of the 2012 documentary ''The Crash of Flight 810'', part of TSN's ''Engraved on a Nation'' series of eight documentaries celebrating the 100th Grey Cup. Gordon and Mildred were survived by their three young children who were home in Regina at the time of the crash.

Legacy

1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th year ...

, a youth football league in North Vancouver,

was named in memory of Sturtridge. The Gordon Sturtridge Football League is for players aged 6 to 15.

References

External links

Gordon Sturtridge Youth Football League
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sturtridge, Gordon 1929 births 1956 deaths Accidental deaths in British Columbia Canadian football defensive linemen Players of Canadian football from Manitoba Saskatchewan Roughriders players Winnipeg Blue Bombers players Sportspeople from Winnipeg Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Canada Canadian Football League Rookie of the Year Award winners Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1956