Nancy McCredie (February 5, 1945 – May 1, 2021) was a Canadian female

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete An athlete is most commonly a person who competes in one or more sports involving physical strength, speed, power, or endurance. Sometimes, the word "athlete" is used to refer specifically to sport of athletics competitors, i.e. including track ...

. During her athletic career, she won three gold medals at the Pan American Games and one bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games. McCredie was awarded the

Velma Springstead Trophy The Velma Springstead Trophy is an award presented annually to Canada's outstanding female Sportsperson, athlete. It is named in honour of track athlete Velma Springstead whose career ended prematurely when she died from pneumonia in 1927 when only ...

as the best Canadian female athlete of the year in 1963.

Career

McCredie claimed two gold medals at the

1963 Pan American Games The 1963 Pan American Games, officially known as the IV Pan American Games () and commonly known as São Paulo 1963, were held from April 20 to May 5, 1963, in São Paulo, Brazil. Host city selection For the first time, two cities submitted b ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

and was awarded the

. McCredie also represented her native country of Canada in two events ( discus and

shot put The shot put is a track-and-field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical Ball (sports), ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. For men, the sport has been a part of the Olympic Games, modern Olympics since their 1896 Summer Olym ...

) at the

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subseq ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

, Japan. In 1966, McCredie reported that she was going to retire from sports. At the time of her announcement, she was singing alongside the Benny Louis Orchestra. Before her retirement, McCredie won two final medals in shot put. She was awarded a bronze medal at the

1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games The 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Kingston, Jamaica, from 4 to 13 August 1966. This was the first time that the Games had been held outside the so-called White Dominions. The event was followed by the 1966 Commonweal ...

and a gold at the

1967 Pan American Games The 1967 Pan American Games, officially known as the V Pan American Games () and commonly known as Winnipeg 1967, were held in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, from July 23 to August 6, 1967. Winnipeg was chosen as host of the Pan American Games on ...

. McCredie officially retired in 1968, stating a knee injury as her reason for retirement. During her career, she held the Canadian record in shot put and discus. In 2001, McCredie moved to

Bristol, Quebec Bristol is a municipality in the Ottawa Valley, on the Quebec side in the Outaouais region, part of the Pontiac Regional County Municipality, Quebec, Canada. It is located on the north shore of Lac des Chats (part of the Ottawa River) across fr ...

and became an artist.

Awards and achievements

In 1968, McCredie was inducted into the

Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame The Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame is an honour roll of the top Canadian Olympic athletes, teams, coaches, and builders (officials, administrators, and volunteers). It was established in 1949. Selections are made by a committee appointed by the Cana ...

. She was also added to the

Brampton Sports Hall of Fame Brampton is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario, and the regional seat of the Regional Municipality of Peel. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a lower-tier municipality within the Peel Region. The city has a populati ...

in 1983 and the

Athletics Ontario Athletics Ontario is the governing body of track and field sports in Ontario, Canada. Athletics Ontario was founded in 1974 under the name Ontario Track and Field Association to replace several regional bodies under Athletics Canada. In 2008 its n ...

Hall of Fame in 2016. McCredie lived in

Brampton Brampton is a city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario, and the regional seat of the Regional Municipality of Peel. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a List of municipalities in Ontario#L ...

during the height of her athletic career, and became the namesake of Nancy McCredie Drive and Nancy McCredie Park.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCredie, Nancy 1945 births 2021 deaths Athletes (track and field) at the 1963 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1967 Pan American Games Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Canada Pan American Games gold medalists for Canada Canadian female discus throwers Canadian female shot putters Olympic track and field athletes for Canada Sportspeople from Belleville, Ontario Track and field athletes from Ontario Pan American Games gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Medalists at the 1963 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1967 Pan American Games Medallists at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Canadian Track and Field Championships winners 20th-century Canadian sportswomen Commonwealth Games bronze medallists in athletics