Donald Gilchrist


Donald Hunter Gilchrist was a Canadian figure skater. As a pair skater with Marlene Smith, he became the 1949 North American silver medallist and a two-time Canadian national champion. He was a three-time national silver medallist in men's singles.

Personal life

Gilchrist was born on January 2, 1922, in Toronto. He graduated from the University of Toronto in 1950 and married Christiane Legier in 1952; the couple would have three children – Nancy Ann, Donald, and Jean. He died at age 95 on March 14, 2017.

Career

Figure skating

Gilchrist began skating when he joined the Toronto Skating Club in February 1928. Competing in men's singles, he won silver at three consecutive Canadian Championships, from 1940 to 1942.
After a partnership with Eleanor O'Meara, he teamed up with Marlene Smith. The pair won two national titles and silver at the 1949 North American Championships.
Gilchrist began judging international skating competitions in 1951. He judged at the 1952 Winter Olympics and at multiple World Championships, and also served as a referee.
He was a substitute member of the International Skating Union Single & Pair Skating Technical Committee, a main member of the technical committee, an ISU Council member, and an ISU Honorary Member. He was inducted into the Canadian Figure Skating Hall of Fame in 1996.

Other

Gilchrist served as a marksman and captain in the Royal Canadian Army Service Corps during the 1940s. He worked for Canada's Department of Defence Production in Washington, as director general of the Trade Commissioner Service, as a vice-president of the Canadian Commercial Corporation, as consul general in Los Angeles, and as minister-counsellor at the embassy in the Netherlands.

Competitive highlights

Pairs with Smith

Pairs with O'Meara

Men's singles