Doug Skinner

Doug Skinner
Died	1982-06-13 Duncan, BC
Years in Thunder Bay	by 1921–at least 1967
Partner	Evelyn Skinner (née Stanley)

Doug Skinner was a multi-sport athlete and athletic administrator who excelled as a sprinter and hurdler before serving as a curling executive. Doug Skinner was inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 1982 as an athlete.

Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame

Doug Skinner was inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame on 25 September 1982 in the athlete category for track and field, soccer, golf and curling, representing Fort William.

Career

Beginning his competitive career in the early 1920s, Skinner was a versatile athlete in Fort William, Ontario. He participated in Track and Field, Soccer, Golf, and Curling. He gained significant recognition as a specialist in sprints and hurdles. At the 1921 annual Track and Field meet in Fort William, he was named the all-round champion for his performance across multiple events.

In 1922, the local chapter of the Amateur Athletic Union of Canada chose Skinner to represent the region at the Manitoba Championships in Winnipeg and the Dominion Athletic meet. Throughout the 1920s, he earned various medals and trophies across Ontario and Manitoba. His notable finishes included a second-place result in the 440-yard dash at the 1923 Ontario Championships held in London, and a third-place finish in the same event at the Canadian Championships in Winnipeg during the middle of the decade.

Skinner reached a career peak at the 1928 Olympic Trials in Hamilton. Competing in the 400m hurdle event, he secured a bronze medal with a third-place finish. Under the selection criteria of the era, only the winner of the event qualified for the Olympic Games, meaning he did not join the national team. Outside of Track and Field, he was a prominent goaltender in Soccer, representing local squads in matches against visiting professional teams from England and Scotland.

In his later years, Skinner continued to compete in Golf and Curling. He won a senior Golf title in 1964. While residing in Duncan, B.C., he was a member of a provincial championship Curling team for competitors over the age of 60. He also transitioned into sports administration, serving as the President of the Northwestern Ontario Curling Association from 1964 to 1965 and as Past President from 1966 to 1967. During his presidential term, he represented the regional association on the Dominion Curling Executive.

Residence in the Thunder Bay area (by 1921–at least 1967) rests on the following dated evidence. He competed in track in Fort William in 1921 and served as President and Past President of the Northwestern Ontario Curling Association from 1964 to 1967.

Honours and achievements

• Named all-round champion at the 1921 Fort William annual track and field meet
• Placed second in the 440 at the 1923 Ontario Championships
• Finished third in the 440 at the Canadian Championships in the mid-1920s
• Won a bronze medal in the 400m hurdles at the 1928 Olympic Trials
• Captured a senior golf title in 1964
• Won a British Columbia provincial curling championship in the over-60 category
• Served as President of the Northwestern Ontario Curling Association from 1964-65

Other records

The following comes from the page Douglas Skinner, which is taken to be the same person (the Hall of Fame profile calls Doug Skinner deceased, and this page has a Thunder Bay man of that name who died on 13 June 1982, the year of the induction; his 1926 marriage fits a man born about 1903, the age of the 1921 sprinter).

Douglas Skinner (died (1982-06-13)13 June 1982) was a resident of Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Family

• Married Evelyn Skinner (née Stanley) on 1 September 1926.