Victor Nicolas Davis, CM (February 10, 1964 – November 13, 1989) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

Olympic and world champion

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

who specialized in the

breaststroke Breaststroke is a swimming style in which the swimmer is on their chest and the torso does not rotate. It is the most popular recreational style due to the swimmer's head being out of the water a large portion of the time, and that it can be s ...

. He also enjoyed success in the

individual medley Medley is a combination of four different swimming styles—backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, and freestyle—into one race. This race is either swum by one swimmer as individual medley (IM) or by four swimmers as a medley relay. Individual m ...

and the

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

Biography

Victor Davis was born in

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as "The Royal City", Guelph is roughly east of Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Wel ...

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 ...

. As a boy, Davis learned how to swim in the lakes around his home. He then joined the Guelph Marlin Aquatic Club at the age of 12. During his career, Davis held several world records as the winner of 31 national titles and 16 medals in international competition. At the 1982 world championships in Guayaquil, Ecuador, he set his first world record while winning the gold medal in the 200-metre breaststroke. At the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...

in Los Angeles, California, he won a silver medal in the 100-meter breaststroke event, then captured the gold medal in the 200-metre breaststroke, in the process establishing another world record. In recognition of his accomplishments, Davis was named Swimming Canada's Athlete of the Year three times and the Canadian government made him a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

. A star of Canada's national swim team for nine years, he retired from competitive swimming in July 1989. He was voted into the

Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame The Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame is an honour roll of the top Canadian Olympic athletes, teams, coaches, and builders (officials, administrators, and volunteers). It was established in 1949. Selections are made by a committee appointed by the Canad ...

in 1985, and posthumously into

Canada's Sports Hall of Fame Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (french: Panthéon des sports canadiens; sometimes referred to as the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame) is a Canadian sports hall of fame and museum in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Dedicated to the history of sports in Canad ...

in 1990, and the

International Swimming Hall of Fame The International Swimming Hall of Fame and Museum (ISHOF) is a history museum and hall of fame, located at One Hall of Fame Drive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States, operated by private interests and serving as the central point for the s ...

in 1994.

Death

A few months after his retirement, on November 11, 1989 while outside a nightclub in the

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

suburb of

Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue () is an on-island suburb located at the western tip of the Island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is the second oldest community in Montreal's West Island, having been founded as a parish in 1703. The old ...

, Davis was struck by a car driven by Glen Crossley, who fled the scene. Crossley told police he hit Davis while trying to avoid a juice bottle Davis threatened to throw at the vehicle and didn't realize he made contact with the swimmer. However, other testimony showed that Davis was actually hit from behind and thrown in the air before hitting his head on a parked car and a street curb. Two days later, the 25-year-old swimmer died of a severe

skull fracture A skull fracture is a break in one or more of the eight bones that form the cranial portion of the human skull, skull, usually occurring as a result of blunt force trauma. If the force of the impact is excessive, the bone may fracture at or near ...

as well as

brain hemorrhage Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain, into its ventricles, or into both. It is one kind of bleed ...

and spinal hemorrhage in hospital. In February 1992, Crossley was found guilty of leaving the scene of an accident and sentenced to ten months in prison, ultimately serving four months.

Legacy

Davis's parents fulfilled his express wish that his organs be donated to help save the lives of others. The swimmer's heart, liver, kidneys and corneas were transplanted. Each year since his death, awards are made by the Victor Davis Memorial Fund to help young Canadian swimmers continue their education while training. Thirteen recipients of this award participated in the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

. In 2002, Victor Davis was inducted into the

Ontario Sports Hall of Fame The Ontario Sports Hall of Fame is an association dedicated to honouring athletes and personalities with outstanding achievement in sports in Ontario, Canada. The hall of fame was established in 1994 by Bruce Prentice, following his 15-year tenure ...

. In Guelph, the city named the 50m swimming pool in honour of Victor Davis.

Film

Davis's life, death and legacy were remembered in ''

Victor The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

'', a two-hour biographical drama film that was written by the Canadian former swimmer Mark Lutz, who also appeared in the title role.

Career highlights

1982 World Aquatics Championships –

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

*Gold medal – 200 m breaststroke (world record 2:14.77, breaking the old record of 2:15.11 set by

David Wilkie David Wilkie may refer to: * David Wilkie (artist) (1785–1841), Scottish painter * David Wilkie (surgeon) (1882–1938), British surgeon, scientist and philanthropist * David Wilkie (footballer) (1914–2011), Australian rules footballer * David ...

in 1976) *Silver medal – 100 m breaststroke

1982 Commonwealth Games The 1982 Commonwealth Games were held in Brisbane, Australia, from 30 September to 9 October 1982. The Opening Ceremony was held at the QEII Stadium (named after Elizabeth II), in the Brisbane suburb of Nathan. The QEII Stadium was also the a ...

–

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

*Gold medal – 200 m Breaststroke *Silver medal – 100 m Breaststroke 1984 Canadian Olympic Trials –

Etobicoke, Ontario Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district of, and one of six municipalities amalgamation of Toronto, amalgamated into, the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west-end, Etobicoke was first settled by Europeans in the 17 ...

, Canada *Won the 200 m breaststroke (broke his own world record with a time of 2:14.58, bettering his 1982 time)

– Los Angeles, United States *Gold medal – 200 m breaststroke (established world record at 2:13.34, lowering his own 1984 record time) *Silver medal – 100 m breaststroke *Silver medal – 4 × 100 m medley relay 1986 Commonwealth Games –

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

*Gold medal – 4 × 100 m medley relay *Gold medal – 100 m breaststroke *Silver medal – 200 m breaststroke 1986 World Aquatics Championships –

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

*Gold medal – 100 m breaststroke *Silver medal – 200 m breaststroke

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

–

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

*Silver medal – 4 × 100 m medley relay (1.00.90 split) *Fourth place – 100 m breaststroke (1.02.38) Canadian National Championships (including separate trials meets) *17-time national champion, 100 m breaststroke *14-time national champion, 200 m breaststroke *2-time national champion, 200 m butterfly *2-time national champion, 200 m individual medley *1 national championship, 400 m individual medley

References

External links

Official Victor Davis Movie Site
* * ttp://www.swimnews.com/Magazine/2000/2000jan.pdf Swimnews Magazine in 2000 ran a retrospective on Davis, see pages 6 – 7.
Victor Davis Memorial Fund page – part of Guelph Marlin Aquatic Club websiteVictor Davis Memorial Fund Page - Swimming Canada
looking back at the 1984 LA Olympics * * * *
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Victor 1964 births 1989 deaths Accidental deaths in Quebec Canadian male backstroke swimmers Canadian male breaststroke swimmers Canadian male medley swimmers Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Canada Deaths from cerebrovascular disease Deaths from head injury World record setters in swimming Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Members of the Order of Canada Olympic gold medalists for Canada Olympic silver medalists for Canada Olympic swimmers of Canada Pedestrian road incident deaths Road incident deaths in Canada Sportspeople from Guelph Swimmers at the 1984 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1988 Summer Olympics Swimmers from Ontario World Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming Olympic gold medalists in swimming Olympic silver medalists in swimming Swimmers at the 1982 Commonwealth Games Swimmers at the 1986 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games medallists in swimming 20th-century Canadian people