Melville Marks Robinson (April 8, 1888 – June 6, 1974) was a Canadian journalist and sports executive, also known as M. M. Robinson and Bobby Robinson. He was the sports editor of ''

The Hamilton Spectator ''The Hamilton Spectator'', founded in 1846, is a newspaper published weekdays and Saturdays in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. One of the largest Canadian newspapers by circulation,''The Hamilton Spectator'' is owned by Torstar. History ''The Ham ...

'', and founded the British Empire Games, now known as the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

Career

Born in

Peterborough, Ontario Peterborough ( ) is a city on the Otonabee River in Ontario, Canada, about 125 kilometres (78 miles) northeast of Toronto. According to the 2021 Census, the population of the City of Peterborough was 83,651. The population of the Peterborough ...

, Canada, Bobby Robinson left school at 13 to work as an office boy at the ''Toronto News'' where he later was assistant sports editor. In 1910 he became sports editor for ''

''. He attended the 1928 Summer Olympics in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

as manager of the Canadian track and field team, to which he had recruited British Guiana runner Phil Edwards, whose "country" (actually a colony) had no Olympic team; like other countries' teams, this was Canada's first-ever co-ed track and field team. The Amsterdam Olympics provided Robinson with a venue for the contacts he would need to sell the idea of holding British Empire Games in the "spirit of friendly competition". The first British Empire Games were therefore held in

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a Canada 2016 Census, population of 569,353, and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which includes Burlington, ...

, Canada in 1930, with Edwards competing for British Guiana. Robinson, who lived near Hamilton on a farm in Burlington, Ontario

(from 1920-1957) was later appointed to the board of Burlington Central High School, Burlington High School, serving from 1940 to 1963, including as its president from 1950 to 1963. Upon his retirement, a new school, M. M. Robinson High School, was named in his honour. He died in Burlington on June 6, 1974 and is buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Burlington.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Melville Marks 1888 births 1974 deaths 20th-century Canadian journalists Canadian male journalists Canadian sports executives and administrators Canadian sportswriters Commonwealth Games in Canada Journalists from Ontario Olympic officials Sportspeople from Peterborough, Ontario Sportspeople from Hamilton, Ontario