Kenneth Pentin Farmer, (July 26, 1912 – January 12, 2005) was a Canadian ice hockey player and businessman. He won a

Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (), also known as the Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held i ...

silver medal winner in

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

, served as president of the

Canadian Olympic Association The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC; ), also known as Team Canada, is a private nonprofit organization that represents Canada at the International Olympic Committee. It is also a member of the Pan American Sports Organization. History Cana ...

, and worked as a chartered accountant.

Background

Born in

Westmount, Quebec Westmount () is a city on the Island of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is an enclave of the city of Montreal, with a population of 19,658 as of the 2021 Canadian census. Westmount is home to schools, an arena, a pool, a public li ...

, he received a

Bachelor of Commerce A Bachelor of Commerce (BCom or B Com) is an undergraduate degree in commerce, accounting, mathematics, economics, and management-related subjects. The degree is mainly offered in Commonwealth nations. Structure Bachelor of Commerce The Bac ...

degree from

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

. In 1934 he joined the accounting firm of McDonald Currie & Company (now

Coopers & Lybrand PricewaterhouseCoopers, also known as PwC, is a multinational professional services network based in London, United Kingdom. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is one of the Big Four accounting firms, along ...

) and became a Chartered Accountant in 1937. He became a partner in 1945 until his retirement in 1977. Farmer was an outstanding hockey player. He was a member of the 1936

Port Arthur Bearcats The Port Arthur Bearcats (Bear Cats) were a senior amateur ice hockey team based in Port Arthur, Ontario, Canada – now part of the city of Thunder Bay – from the early 1900s until 1970. Before settling on the nickname of Bear ...

, which won the silver medal for

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

ice hockey at the 1936 Winter Olympics The men's ice hockey tournament at the 1936 Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, was the fifth Ice hockey at the Olympic Games, Olympic Championship, also serving as the tenth World Ice Hockey Championships, World Championships and ...

. He had the second-highest points at the Olympics with 10 goals and four assists. Canada had been expected to win the gold medal, but several incidents led to winning the silver medal instead. After the Olympics, Farmer stated that none of Canada's officials knew what playoff system was being used and that

E. A. Gilroy Edward Albert Gilroy (October 10, 1879August 8, 1942) was a Canadian ice hockey administrator. He served as president of the Manitoba Amateur Hockey Association (MAHA) from 1927 to 1934, and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) from ...

and

Fred Marples Frederick Paul Henry Marples (January 27, 1885January 17, 1945) was a Canadian sports executive in ice hockey and athletics. He was president of the Winnipeg Monarchs (senior), Winnipeg Monarchs team which won Manitoba Hockey Association, Winni ...

"were blissfully unaware of what it was all about". During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he served with

The Royal Montreal Regiment The Royal Montreal Regiment is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army based in Westmount, Quebec. It is part of the 2nd Canadian Division's 34 Canadian Brigade Group. Lineage File:RMR Colour.jpg, Regimental colour File:RMR Cam ...

and the Manitoba Dragoons. He was discharged with the rank of Major and was

Mentioned in Dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

in 1945. From 1953 to 1961, he was the President of the Canadian Olympic Association. He was President of the Commonwealth Games Association of Canada from 1977 to 1983. He was a Governor of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame from 1980 to 1990.

Honours

*1971, inducted into the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame in 1971Ken Farmer at Sports Reference
/ref> *1981, 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 ...

*1987, inducted into the

Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame The Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame, established in 1978 in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, is dedicated to the people of Northwestern Ontario who have achieved greatness in sport. It is located on 219 South May Street in Downtown Fort Wil ...

as a member of the 1936 Olympic team *1999, inducted to the McGill University Sports Hall of Fame

References

Sources

* * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Farmer, Kenneth 1912 births 2005 deaths Anglophone Quebec people Canadian accountants Ice hockey players at the 1936 Winter Olympics McGill University Faculty of Management alumni Medalists at the 1936 Winter Olympics Members of the Order of Canada Olympic ice hockey players for Canada Olympic medalists in ice hockey Olympic silver medalists for Canada People from Westmount, Quebec Presidents of the Canadian Olympic Committee