Top 15 Greatest Nova Scotian Athletes Of All Time
With an updated 2024 ranking
Sidney Crosby. Cole Harbour. Hockey.
Colleen Jones. Halifax. Curling.
Al MacInnis. Port Hood. Hockey.
Nancy Garapick. Halifax. Swimming.
Sam Langford. Weymouth Falls. Boxing.
George Dixon. Africville. Boxing.
Johnny Miles. Sydney Mines. Track and field.
Aileen Meagher. Halifax. Track and field.
Steven Giles. Lake Echo. Sprint canoe.
Mark Smith. Halifax. Softball.
Karen Furneaux. Waverley. Sprint kayak.
Ellie Black. Halifax. Gymnastics.
Jamie Bone. Dartmouth. Wheelchair Sprint.
Mark De Jonge. Halifax. Sprint kayak.
Rob McCall. Dartmouth. Ice dancing.
The above is the original list created in 2018 by the Nova Scotia Sport Hall of Fame. It was cool to read the history on these athletes, some of which I had never heard of before. Seeing the various accomplishments and challenges overcome was inspiring. It was also interesting to read what some of the retired athletes are up to now because there is more to life than sport.
I posted the list on my social media and many people said it needed to be updated. I took it upon myself to create the updated 2024 list of Top 15 Greatest Athletes from Nova Scotia.
People said to add Nathan MacKinnon. Amy Cotton. Scott Tanner. Wyatt Sandford. Doug Rogers. It was tough to put these in order but I did my best. The overall criteria that I used was as follows.
Criteria
Dominance. How big was/is the athletes gap over their peers?
Achievements. Did the athlete have world championships, world records, Olympic medals, and major awards. I weigh any Olympic medals pretty high on the list.
Consistency. Can/could the athlete be counted on to consistently deliver great performances?
Longevity. For how long was the athlete great for?
Depth/quality of competition. How good are/were the opponents?
Performance under pressure. In the big moments how good are/were they?
Legacy. To what degree can you think of the sport without thinking of the athlete?
Wow factor. When you watch the athlete perform, can he/she do things that most others simply can’t?
2024 list
Sidney Crosby. Cole Harbour. Hockey.
Sid the kid. Obvious number one on this list. Born 1987 in Cole Harbour, NS. Three-time Stanley Cup champion, Olympic gold medal winner, one of the greatest hockey players of all time. He’s got all the achievements and hardware to back it up. Including one of the most memorable moments in Canadian history, the golden goal for Canada to win the gold at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. Sidney Crosby inspired my generation.
Al MacInnis. Port Hood. Hockey.
Al MacInnis was a force. Born in 1963, he owned the hardest slap shot in the NHL. A Stanley Cup champion with the Calgary Flames in 1989, including winning the Conn Smythe trophy for playoff MVP. He won the Norris trophy for best defenseman in the 1999 season. Olympic gold medal winner in 2002, Canada’s first gold medal in 50 years. Only the 4th defenseman in NHL history to score 100 points in a season.
Nathan MacKinnon. Halifax. Hockey.
2022 Stanley Cup champion. 2013 Memorial cup winner with his hometown Halifax Mooseheads team. 2014 Calder trophy rookie of the year in the NHL. Born in 1995, the “Nate Dogg” could very well add a Hart trophy MVP award to his accomplishments this 2024 NHL season. That’s pretty impressive when you look at the superstars currently playing in the NHL.
Brad Marchand. Hammonds Plains. Hockey.
2011 Stanley Cup champion with the Boston Bruins. IIHF World Juniors gold medalist. IIHF 2016 World Championship gold medal. Born in 1988, Brad Marchand holds 7 different Boston Bruins records including most suspensions in NHL history with 8. Seems like a “love to play with him, hate to play against him” type of guy.
Nancy Garapick. Halifax. Swimming.
World recordholder in the 200-metre backstroke. Nancy Garapick set that record when she was only 13-years old! Silver and bronze medalist at the 1975 World Championship. Two bronze medals at the 1976 Olympic games in Montreal. 17 national titles. Born in 1962, Garapick was a member of the Canadian national swim team for over 8 years. A Canadian record holder in the butterfly, the backstroke, and individual swimming medley.
Sam Langford. Weymouth Falls. Boxing.
Born in 1883. Official pro record of 252 fights, 99 knockouts and only 19 losses. Langford fought his first professional boxing bout at age 16. Elected to the Boxing Hall of Fame in 1955. The NY Journal called him “the greatest fighter that ever lived”. The Canadian press called him “the fighter of the century”. Langford was seen as the uncrowned heavyweight champion of the world. At the time current heavyweight champion, Jack Johnson refused to fight Langford because he could earn more money fighting white boxers. In June 1917, Langford was injured during a fight and went blind in his left eye. He continued to fight for another 9 years before his license was revoked after walking to the wrong corner of a fight in 1926.
George Dixon. Africville. Boxing.
Born in 1870, George Dixon started his boxing career at 16, and was already bantamweight champion of the world by the age of 18. He had roughly 150 fights over his career. 86 wins, 21 losses, 38 draws, 18 no contests. George Dixon was the first man to ever win two boxing world titles. He held titles in the paperweight, bantamweight, and featherweight divisions. He was also the first man ever in boxing to lose a title, then regain it back. Pretty cool history. He used his popularity as an athlete to champion black civil rights, getting fight promoters to reserve seats for black fans who wanted to attend his fights. This was previously unheard of at the time. Dixon once fought a 70 round bout that lasted 4 hours and 37 minutes. He passed away in 1908 at age 37.
Ellie Black. Halifax. Gymnastics.
The best gymnast in Canadian history. Born in 1995, Ellie Black is already a three-time Olympian 2012, 2016, and 2020. Black placed 4th at the 2020 Olympic Games, the best ever result for Canada in the event. Ellie won the 2017 Silver at the World Championships, making her the first Canadian gymnast to win a world all-around medal. She won silver and bronze medals at the 2022 World Championships. 2018 Commonwealth games champion. Six-time Canadian national all-around champion. Currently 28 years old, Ellie Black still has time to make her way up this list.
Johnny Miles. Sydney Mines. Track and field.
Born in 1905 in Halifax, England. Johnny Miles family moved to North Sydney, Cape Breton when he was young. Miles started his running career at 16-years old. He became the Canadian champion for the 5-mile distance run in 1925. He competed and won the famous Boston Marathon in 1926 to the surprise of everyone. Miles did it again, winning a second Boston Marathon in 1929. This accomplishment made him the only Nova Scotian to win the Boston Marathon twice. Johnny was a part of two Olympic games in 1928 and 1932 where he placed 16th and 14th. He received the Order of Canada Award in 1982. He is honored by the annual “Johnny Miles Marathon” that takes place in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia every year. Miles passed away in 2003 at the age of 97.
Colleen Jones. Halifax. Curling.
Curling superstar. You know this is a Canadian list when curling makes it. Born in 1959, Colleen Jones started curling at the Mayflower Club in Halifax. Team Jones was the most successful team in Nova Scotian history. They won 5 Canadian national championships (1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004). Jones also won 2 world championships (and a silver medal) during that same time period. She was the youngest to ever win a Canadian curling championship at age 22.
Steven Giles. Laker Echo. Sprint canoe.
Lake Echo, stand up. Born in 1972, Steven Giles began canoeing at age 8. He is a world champion in sprint canoe and also holds a senior men’s 1998 World Championship gold medal. He represented Canada at 4 different Olympic Games (1992, 1996, 2000, 2004), placing top 8 each time. Giles best Olympic result was a bronze medal in the 2000 games in Sydney, Australia. Giles competed at the world championships 7 different times, earning 2 bronze medals. He retired in 2004 and became a full time electrical engineer.
Aileen Meagher. Halifax. Track and field.
Track and field queen. Born 1910 in Halifax, Nova Scotia Aileen didn’t start her track career until she was a student attending Dalhousie University. She qualified for the 1932 and 1936 Olympic Games, winning a bronze in 1936 in the 400 yard relay. Aileen Meagher set a Canadian record in the 100 yard and 220 yard events. In 1935, Meagher was named Canada’s top female athlete and Canada’s overall outstanding athlete of the year. She passed away in 1987 at 67 years old.
Karen Furneaux. Waverley. Sprint kayak.
Waverley, represent. Born in 1976, Karen Furneaux has 3 Olympic appearances (2000, 2004, and 2008) and 2 world championship titles in the sport of sprint kayak. Overall she owns 9 medals from the World Championships. Karen started paddling at the Cheema Aquatic Club around 12 years old. She trained 6 days a week while taking full-time studies at Dalhousie University. She won the Canadian championships in 1993, and took silver at the World Cup. Furneaux won the World Championship gold medal in 1998 in the K2 200-metres. Her first Olympic games in 2000 she placed 5th.
Raymond “Sugar Ray” Downey. Halifax. Boxing.
Son of famous Halifax boxer, Dave Downey. Born in 1968, Raymond “Sugar Ray” Downey started boxing around age 10 at Citadel Boxing club in Halifax. In 1987, he won a gold medal at the Canada Winter Games in Sydney, NS. He won a bronze medal in the light middleweight (under 156 pounds) category at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea. Only losing a controversial decision to a Korean opponent, which had he won would have set up a gold medal match with future boxing legend, Roy Jones Jr. Downey was named Canada’s Male Athlete of the Year in 1988. “Sugar Ray” Downey was a 3-time Canadian Senior Boxing champion. After qualifying and competing in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain he turned professional. Downey had an amateur record of 160 wins, and 20 losses. Professional record of 16 wins (8 knockouts), 2 losses, and 1 draw. Following his boxing career, Downey took cooking courses at NSCC and now works as a chef at Casino Halifax.
Amy Cotton. Judique, Cape Breton. Judo.
Born in 1980, Amy Cotton started training at age 6 at the Judique Judo Club in Cape Breton. She was diagnosed with juvenile arthritis at the age of 13. Doctor’s told her due to her condition, if she continued judo training she would have major health complications by age 21. Cotton continued to train and became a 2 time Olympian representing Canada in 2004 Athens, Greece and 2012 London, England (missed 2008 due to injury). She won 11 Canadian national titles and is a 2 time Pan American champion, competing in the women’s half heavyweight under 170 pounds. She placed 7th at the World Championships in 2009. Amy Cotton is now a high performance judo coach in Saskatchewan.
Honorable mentions
Scott Tanner. Halifax. Judo. (I have actually had the privilege to train with Scott Tanner in BJJ. He took a few of my classes.)
Wyatt Sandford. Kennetcook. Boxing.
Mark Smith. Halifax. Softball.
Jamie Bone. Dartmouth. Wheelchair Sprint.
Mark De Jonge. Halifax. Sprint kayak.
Rob McCall. Dartmouth. Ice dancing.
Doug Rogers. Truro. Judo.
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In my opinion, Ellie Black needs to be significantly higher on the list. The level of competition in artistic gymnastics is very, very high and I feel this should be taken into account. To get a 4th place finish in the all round at the Olympics, hailing from Nova Scotia, is absolutely astounding.