Cynthia Maria "Cindy" Nicholas, (August 20, 1957 – May 19, 2016) was a long distance swimmer and a politician in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada. In 1977, she became the first woman to complete a two-way crossing of the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

. From 1987 to 1990 she was a Liberal member of the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA; ) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly are given royal as ...

Background

Nicholas was educated at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

and the

University of Windsor The University of Windsor (UWindsor, U of W, or UWin) is a public university, public research university in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's southernmost university. It has approximately 17,500 students. The university was incorporated by ...

. She worked as a lawyer in Scarborough, Ontario. She had a daughter. She died from liver cancer on May 19, 2016.

Swimming

At age 16, she attained provincial fame by swimming across

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...

in 15 hours and 10 minutes. She later swam across the

on 19 occasions, including the first two-way crossing by a woman. She completed a record five two-way crossings including two in one year, earning her the sobriquet ''Queen of the Channel''. She was named top female athlete of the year in 1977 and given the Bobbie Rosenfeld Award. In 1979, she was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

. In 1993, she was inducted into

Canada's Sports Hall of Fame Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (; 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 Canada, it serves as a hall of fame and mu ...

and into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 2005. She was inducted into the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 2003. ;Two-way Channel swims 1977 - 19 h 55 min (breaking Jon Erikson's record of 30 hours, and the first ever two-way crossing by a woman)
1979 - 19 h 12 min
1981 - 22 h 21 min
1982 - 18 h 55 min
1982 - 20 h 09 min

Politics

She was elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1987 provincial election to represent the east

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

riding of Scarborough Centre, defeating

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * * The Editors of ''Encyclopædia Britann ...

candidate Menno Vorster by 3,396 votes. For the next three years, Nicholas served as a backbench supporter of

David Peterson David Robert Peterson (born December 28, 1943) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 20th premier of Ontario from 1985 to 1990. He was the first Liberal officeholder in 42 years, ending the so-called Tory dynasty. Back ...

's government. She was parliamentary assistant to the

Solicitor General A solicitor general is a government official who serves as the chief representative of the government in courtroom proceedings. In systems based on the English common law that have an attorney general or equivalent position, the solicitor general ...

from 1989 to 1990. The Liberals were defeated by the NDP in the 1990 provincial election and Nicholas lost her seat to NDP candidate Steve Owens by 3,068 votes. She returned to her legal practice in the Toronto district of

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholas, Cindy 1957 births 2016 deaths Canadian sportsperson-politicians Canadian female long-distance swimmers English Channel swimmers Members of the Order of Canada Ontario Liberal Party MPPs Politicians from Toronto Swimmers from Toronto University of Toronto alumni University of Windsor alumni Women MPPs in Ontario 20th-century Canadian sportswomen 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario

Background

Swimming

Politics

See also

References

External links