The Lou Marsh Trophy, also known as the Lou Marsh Memorial Trophy and the Lou Marsh Award, is a trophy given to Canada’s best athlete, whether professional or amateur, every year. A panel of journalists selects the winner, with the vote that takes place in December. For the first time, the award was given in 1936. It is named after Lou Marsh, a well-known Canadian athlete, referee, and former Toronto Star sports writer.
Marsh passed away in 1936, and the trophy was named after him. The trophy is made of black marble and is around 75 centimetres tall. Above the engraved names of the victors are the words “With Pick and Shovel.”
Here on our site, we collected the names of the outstanding athletes that have ever been awarded the trophy. Each link represents the athlete’s accomplishments in the year they received the Lou Marsh Memorial Award. Photos, artifacts, and selected videos are displayed in galleries to help you learn more about each athlete.
It’s common knowledge that sports are popular in Canada. And many Canadians, both individuals and corporates, watch and attend sports competitions, follow athletes and their track records or go in for sports themselves. Regardless of their occupation or area of activity, people do enjoy sports without exception.
A compilation of stories from the Toronto Star newspaper provides historical context. Take a note of the various journalistic approaches that have emerged over time.
Look for the announcement of the Toronto Star winner in each exhibit. The article includes the names of a large number of additional athletes who were considered that year. They highlight the breadth of extraordinary talent that has existed throughout Canadian history, as well as the difficult task that the selection committee faces each year in making its decision.
The 1930’s
1936 Edwards, Phil
Track & Field
1937 Cleland, W. Marshal
Equestrian
1938 Pearce, Bob
Rowing
1939 Pirie, Bob
Swimming
The 1940’s
1940 Cote, Gerard
Marathon Running
1941 Dubois, Theo
Swimming
1945 Scott, Barbara Ann
Figure Skating
1946 Krol, Joe
Football
1947 Scott, Barbara Ann
Figure Skating
1948 Scott, Barbara Ann
Figure Skating
1949 Lumsdon, Cliff
Marathon Swimming
The 1950’s
1950 McFarlane, Bob
Football, Track & Field
1951 Streit, Marlene Stewart
Golf
1952 Genereux, George
Trap Shooting
1953 Hepburn, Doug
Weightlifting
1954 Bell, Marilyn
Swimming
1955 Whittall, Beth
Swimming
1956 Streit, Marlene Stewart
Golf
1957 Richard, Maurice
Hockey
1958 Wheeler, Lucile
Downhill Skiing
1959 Wagner, Barbara
Figure Skating
1959 Paul, Robert
Figure Skating
The 1960’s
1960 Heggtveit, Anne
Downhill Skiing
1961 Kidd, Bruce
Track & Field
1962 Jackson, Don
Figure Skating
1963 Crothers, Bill
Track & Field
1964 Hungerford, George
Rowing
1964 Jackson, Roger
Rowing
1965 Burka, Petra
Figure Skating
1966 Tanner, Elaine
Swimming
1967 Greene, Nancy
Downhill Skiing
1968 Greene, Nancy
Downhill Skiing
1969 Jackson, Russ
Football
The 1970’s
1970 Orr, Bobby
Hockey
1971 Filion, Herve
Harness Racing
1972 Esposito, Phil
Hockey
1973 Hawley, Sandy
Harness Racing
1974 Jenkins, Ferguson
Baseball
1975 Clarke, Bobby
Hockey
1976 Hawley, Sandy
Harness Racing
1977 Lafleur, Guy
Hockey
1978 Smith, Graham
Swimming
1978 Read, Ken
Downhill Skiing
1979 Post, Sandra
Golf
The 1980’s
1980 Fox, Terry
Marathon of Hope
1981 Nattrass, Susan
Shooting
1982 Gretzky, Wayne
Hockey
1983 Hansen, Rick
Wheelchair Athlete
1983 Gretzky, Wayne
Hockey
1984 Boucher, Gaetan
Speed-Skating
1985 Gretzky, Wayne
Hockey
1986 Johnson, Ben
Track & Field
1987 Johnson, Ben
Track & Field
1988 Waldo, Carolyn
Synchronized Swimming
1989 Gretzky, Wayne
Hockey
The 1990’s
1990 Browning, Kurt
Figure Skating
1991 Laumann, Silken
Rowing
1992 Tewksbury, Mark
Swimming
1993 Lemieux, Mario
Hockey
1994 Bedard, Myriam
Biathlon
1995 Villeneuve, Jacques
Auto Racing
1996 Bailey, Donovan
Track & Field
1997 Villeneuve, Jacques
Auto Racing
1998 Walker, Larry
Baseball
1999 Brunet, Caroline
Kayaking
The 2000’s
2000 Igali, Daniel
Wrestling
2001 Pelletier, David
Figure Skating
2001 Sale, Jamie
Figure Skating
2002 Le May Doan, Catriona
Speed-Skating
2003 Weir, Mike
Golf
2004 van Koeverden, Adam
Kayaking
2005 Nash, Steve
Basketball
2006 Klassen, Cindy
Speed-Skating
2007 Crosby, Sidney
Hockey
2008 Petitclerc, Chantal
Wheelchair Athlete
2009 Sidney Crosby
Ice hockey
The 2010’s
2010 Votto, Joey
Baseball
2011 Chan, Patrick
Figure skating
2012 Sinclair, Christine
Soccer
2013 Cornish, Jon
Canadian football
2014 Humphries, Kaillie
Bobsleigh
2015 Price, Carey
Ice hockey
2016 Oleksiak, Penny
Swimming
2017 Votto, Joey
Baseball
2018 Kingsbury, Mikaël
Freestyle skiing
2019 Andreescu, Bianca
Tennis
The 2020’s
2020 Davies, Alphonso
Soccer
2020 Duvernay-Tardif, Laurent
American football
2021 Warner, Damian
Track and field