77 Facts About Gord Renwick

Gordon Ralph Renwick was a Canadian ice hockey administrator, who served as president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association, vice-president of the International Ice Hockey Federation, and was the team president of the Galt Hornets.

Gord Renwick was the founding chairman of the Wrigley Cup hockey tournament for midget age group in 1974, and then became vice-president of the CAHA in 1975.

Gord Renwick served as president of the CAHA from 1977 to 1979, during a time when the CAHA battled with the World Hockey Association over junior ice hockey players, and struggled with Hockey Canada and the Government of Canada, for control of international hockey.

Gord Renwick was the last elected president of the CAHA, which transitioned to having a full-time president in 1979.

Gord Renwick later served eight years as vice-president of the IIHF, implementing bookkeeping and accounting reforms, and was responsible for marketing and sponsorship of international events including the Canada Cup, and the World Cup of Hockey.

Gord Renwick served as the chairman of the IIHF committees for rules, by-laws and statutes, and helped negotiate National Hockey League involvement in the Winter Olympic Games.

Gord Renwick was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2002, received the Order of Hockey in Canada in 2012, and is the namesake of the Renwick Cup.

Gordon Ralph Renwick was born on February 13,1935, in Galt, Ontario, the eldest of three children to Donald and Daisy Renwick.

Gord Renwick was an aspiring baseball pitcher while attending the Galt Collegiate Institute and Vocational School.

Gord Renwick served as president of the Galt Hornets team from 1966 to 1973, which won two Allan Cups for the senior ice hockey championship of Canada.

Gord Renwick was encouraged to revive the team's ownership group by close friend, and the team's previous coach Bill Wylie.

In 1966, Gord Renwick named Earl Balfour as the team's new playing coach, and signed Gary Collins.

Gord Renwick first joined the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association committee as a director in 1969.

Gord Renwick made connections with other European teams while his Galt Hornets travelled to international tournaments.

Gord Renwick opened the door for European senior clubs to play series in North America at the same time the National Hockey League and the World Hockey Association were beginning to sign European players, and exposed sold out North American arenas to European teams.

Gord Renwick served as the Chef de Mission for European club teams visiting North America during 1970s on exhibition tours.

Gord Renwick hosted an international senior hockey tournament in December 1972, involving his own Galt team, HC Dynamo Moscow from the Soviet Union, the Prague Selects from Czechoslovakia, Timra IK from Sweden, and the Owen Sound Downtowners and Kingston Aces from Ontario.

Gord Renwick organized the original Wrigley Cup in 1974, as the tournament chairman.

Gord Renwick was responsible for implementing the CAHA development programs for coaches, referees and managers, but struggled with appropriate funding.

Gord Renwick was elected president of the CAHA on May 27,1977, succeeding Don Johnson.

In June 1977, Gord Renwick appointed David Branch as the new executive director of the CAHA effective September 1,1977.

Gord Renwick sought to repair relations with the NHL and the World Hockey Association, which the CAHA relied upon for income in the form of development fees for its junior ice hockey players signed to professional contracts.

In March 1978, Gord Renwick announced that by 1980, the CAHA would implement mandatory face masks on hockey helmets which met Canadian Standards Association approval.

The CAHA faced differences between its provinces regarding mandatory helmets for ice hockey referees, and Gord Renwick denied reports of cancelling the western portion of the 1978 Centennial Cup playoffs due to whether games were officiated by referees wearing helmets.

Gord Renwick said that dealing with Hockey Canada was the most unpleasant part of his role as the CAHA president.

Gord Renwick was disappointed in the abilities of Doug Fisher as the chairman, and described Alan Eagleson as a dictator who wielded influence in the favour of professional players.

Gord Renwick looked to defend the amateur interests in Canada, and sought representation on the Hockey Canada committee which oversaw the 1978 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

When Fisher insisted that the CAHA not be involved in international hockey, and accused the CAHA of being hostile towards the Hockey Canada mandate, Gord Renwick called for Fisher's resignation.

Gord Renwick further denied that the CAHA was interfering in Hockey Canada's affairs, and actually supported Hockey Canada at meetings to approve the Canada Cup.

Gord Renwick reiterated that Fisher should be removed, and that Eagleson should focus solely on professional hockey since he showed no interest in amateur issues.

Gord Renwick expressed concerns that the Government of Canada had too much control on hockey in Canada, and that he was frustrated with Hockey Canada being in charge of the Canadian national team at the Winter Olympic Games, which was restricted to amateur participation.

Gord Renwick felt that Hockey Canada should focus on trying to get the NHL and WHA to cooperate instead, and blamed Hockey Canada for the financial losses at the 1978 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships hosted in Canada.

Gord Renwick was reelected by acclamation as CAHA president on May 25,1978, and as the non-European representative on the International Ice Hockey Federation council on July 7,1978.

Gord Renwick announced a five-year deal to rename the Wrigley Cup in July 1978, to become the Air Canada Cup for the national midget championship.

Gord Renwick expressed concerns about a proposal in November 1978 to have government appointees running youth hockey instead of volunteers.

Gord Renwick considered volunteers to be the backbone of minor ice hockey in Canada, and felt they would lose the incentive to participate without having a say in how hockey operated.

Gord Renwick felt that there was little that the federal government of CAHA could do in preventing professional leagues from signing junior-aged players.

In October 1978, Gord Renwick threatened to use the CAHA's leverage as an IIHF member, to block a series of WHA games versus international teams, unless the issue was resolved.

Gord Renwick claimed that the CAHA was owed $320,000 in development fees, which included a $150,000 bond signed by the WHA in November 1977, as a promise not to sign junior-aged players.

Talks to resolve the issues broke down in November 1978, and Gord Renwick informed the IIHF that the WHA was no longer in good standing with the CAHA, thus blocking the sanction of WHA international games by the IIHF.

Gord Renwick disputed this by saying that such an agreement was tentative, and not approved by the CAHA executive board.

Gord Renwick refused to hand over the sanctioning approval to the IIHF executive itself, when Hockey Canada requested to bypass the CAHA.

Later that month, when Lou Lefaive from Sport Canada said that Hockey Canada informed the government it would stop organizing teams for Olympics and World Championships, Gord Renwick said the threat was an excuse for Eaglesons's inability to organize a profitable Canada Cup, and reiterated that the CAHA had supported the Hockey Canada endeavours.

Gord Renwick was tired of the constant questioning of the CAHA by federal and provincial governments, but he put together a committee to examine the report in more detail.

Gord Renwick said that governments are quick to support the professional players, but give little help to amateurs and youths.

Gord Renwick was surprised by the QAHA statement and criticism, and said that the QAHA has not nominated anyone to sit on the CAHA board, or take part in the technical committee.

Gord Renwick indicated that the CAHA would begin searching immediately to fill the position, and that neither he, nor CAHA vice-president Frank McKinnon would apply for the position.

Gord Renwick was succeeded as CAHA president by Murray Costello, who served in a full-time capacity.

Gord Renwick returned to senior ice hockey, and served as president of the OHA Senior A Hockey League from 1979 to 1981.

The CAHA later extended the ban of body checking to include the pee-wee age group, which Gord Renwick had previously implemented.

Gord Renwick later served on the CAHA's rules committee which made suggestions for the atom levels and younger in 1980.

Gord Renwick served as an IIHF board member for twenty years, and was its vice-president from 1986 to 1994.

Gord Renwick then asked IIHF members to endorse approved masks in their respective youth hockey associations.

Gord Renwick arranged an external annual auditing contract for IIHF books.

Gord Renwick was responsible for marketing and sponsorship of international events including the Canada Cup, and the World Cup of Hockey.

Gord Renwick served as the chairman of the IIHF committees for rules, by-laws and statutes to implement uniformity of hockey in North America and Europe.

Gord Renwick utilized ice hockey referee clinics in Canada to identify quality referees to address the growing need for officials.

Gord Renwick reiterated concerns for consistency in global enforcement of rules, and excessive on-ice violence experienced in the CAHA that came with the improved safety equipment, and players feeling invincible.

In February 1989, when Peter Nedved defected to Canada from Czechoslovakia, Gord Renwick said that Nedved must be released from his home country according to IIHF statutes before he could play for Canada, unless there was a court order otherwise.

The German Ice Hockey Federation protested the shootout win by Team Canada in the 1992 Winter Olympics due to a referee error, but the game result was upheld by the IIHF, and Gord Renwick stated that the previous goal counted once the puck had been put back into play.

In March 1994 after the Winter Olympics, Canada and Sweden made a proposal to the IIHF to eliminate the shootout, and Gord Renwick felt that there would be opposition, and that "Europeans are pretty high on the shootout and they are used to it".

Gord Renwick played an integral role in discussions between the NHL and the IIHF, that lead to NHL participation in the Winter Olympic Games.

Gord Renwick worked with Gary Bettman of the NHL and National Hockey League Players' Association to have professionals in the Olympics, and for NHL exhibition games in Europe, and to work out the international player transfer process.

Gord Renwick was cautious that lengthening the NHL season schedule to accommodate the Olympics would decrease the number of players available to participate in the Ice Hockey World Championships.

Gord Renwick was the first declared candidate to replace Gunther Sabetzki, who planned on retiring as IIHF president in 1994.

Gord Renwick was the preferred choice of the CAHA for the position, despite previous campaigning for the position by Eagleson.

Journalist Alan Adams noted that despite Gord Renwick being well respected behind-the-scenes work and loyalty to the game, Europeans would be unlikely to elect a Canadian as president, due to fears of NHL encroachment into Europe, and having a president geographically far away from the European market.

Gord Renwick was defeated by Rene Fasel, in a vote described as a surprise by media in Canada.

Gord Renwick chose to retire from hockey, after his failed candidacy to be IIHF president.

Gord Renwick was the owner of Gord Renwick Construction which constructed and managed residential and industrial properties in Cambridge.

Gord Renwick took over the business after the death of his father in 1963.

Gord Renwick's hobbies included his cottage on Lake Rosseau, sailing, and following the Toronto Blue Jays.

Gord Renwick was presented with the CAHA Volunteer of the Year Award known as the meritorious award, after 10 years of service when his term as president expired in 1979.

Gord Renwick was made a life member of the IIHF in 1994, after he retired from international service.

Gord Renwick was part of the inaugural class of the Order of Hockey in Canada in 2012.

Gord Renwick received the order on June 25,2012, along with fellow honourees Jean Beliveau, Cassie Campbell, Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe.

Gord Renwick was made a life member of Hockey Canada, and was inducted into the Waterloo Region Hall of Fame.