Great Local Athletes - 1920 Olympic Medalist - Earl Thompson (Thomson)

As the first Olympic Games after World War I, the 1920 Games were awarded to Antwerp to honour the suffering that had been inflicted on the Belgian people during the War. Earl Thompson was one of three Canadian Gold Medalists at the 1920 Summer Olympic Games, winning a gold medal in the 110 metre hurdles.

Thompson was born in either Prince Albert or Birch Hills, SK in 1895; there has been some debate as to where he was born on the internet. The USA Track and Field Hall of Fame lists Prince Albert, SK as his place of birth while the Library and Archives of Canada website lists his place of birth as Birch Hills, SK.

Thompson was almost entirely deaf.

At the age of eight Thompson moved to California with his family. As a young adult Thompson competed in Track and Field at Dartmouth College and the University of Southern California (USC).

Thompson was the first athlete to break 15 seconds for the 110m hurdles, setting a world record of 14.8 in 1916.

He lost the world record to his brother-in-law, Robert Simpson, later that year. However, at the 1920 Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium where he represented Canada on the Canadian Olympic Team he won a Gold Medal and set a new world record with a time of 14.4 seconds in the 110m Hurdles. His time of 14.4 seconds remained a world record for 11 years, until 1931.

After his Olympic Success Thompson won the national collegiate (NCAA) title in 1921 and took three National AAU titles. After retiring from athletics in 1922, he became an athletics coach at the University of West Virginia and later at Yale University. From there, he went on to coach at the U.S. Naval Academy, where his team won the 1945 national collegiate (NCAA) title. In 1955, Thompson was elected into the Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame. Earl Thompson passed away at the age of 76 in 1971 in Annapolis.

Michelle Horncastle