Renn Crichlow (born May 9, 1968) is a Canadian sprint kayaker who competed from the late 1980s to the late 1990s. He won a complete set of medals at the

ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships The ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships are an international event in canoe racing, one of two Summer Olympic sport events organized by the International Canoe Federation (the other being the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships). The World Cham ...

with gold (K-1 500 m:

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), a silver (K-1 500 m:

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

), and a bronze (K-1 200 m:

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

). Crichlow also competed in three

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

, earning his best finish of seventh in the K-4 1000 m event at

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

. Crichlow was born in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, and grew up in the Ottawa suburb of Nepean. He pursued many sports and eventually found his way to the

Rideau Canoe Club The Rideau Canoe Club (RCC) is a canoe club located on the Rideau River in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The club is located at Mooney's Bay Park#Mooney's Bay, Mooney's Bay, where the Rideau Canal splits away from the river prior to joining up with the ...

. He won his first

Canadian Canoe Association Canoe Kayak Canada (french: Canot Kayak Canada) is the governing body of competitive canoeing and kayaking disciplines in Canada. The three specific disciplines represented are flatwater, whitewater and marathon. Canoe Kayak Canada officially re ...

National Championship at the age of 16. Crichlow went on to become Canada's most successful male sprint kayaker up to that time. He was the first Canadian male kayaker to win a medal at the Junior World Championships and the first to win a World Championship gold. In 1995, Crichlow was admitted to

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...

and began his training as a

medical doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

, while still active as an international competitor in canoe-kayak. After completing his medical studies, Crichlow moved to

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

to begin practicing medicine as an

orthopaedic surgeon Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...

. The trophy given annually to the winner of the CanoeKayak Canada national sprint championship in Men's U17 K-1 1000m is named in Crichlow's honour. He and his K-4 teammates from the 1996 Olympic Games were used as the models for the sculpture on the David M. Smith Memorial Trophy awarded to the national champions in U19 Men's K-4 1000m.

References

* * 1968 births Canadian male canoeists Canoeists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Canoeists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Canoeists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Living people Olympic canoeists for Canada ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships medalists in kayak Sportspeople from Ottawa Harvard Medical School alumni Simon Fraser University alumni {{Canada-canoe-bio-stub