Gord Renwick

Gordon Ralph Renwick (February 13, 1935January 6, 2021) was a Canadian ice hockey administrator, who served as president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA), vice-president of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), and was the team president of the Galt Hornets.

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

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

During a summer baseball camp in his junior year, he was nervous pitching to former major league player Goody Rosen, and hit Rosen in the elbow with a wild pitch.

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..

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

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

Two seasons later, the 1968–69 Hornets team won 52 of 67 games played, and won the Ontario championship in a four-game sweep of the Barrie Flyers.

In the national playoffs, Galt defeated the Gander Flyers in five games, then the Victoriaville Tigers in six games to reach the final.

Renwick led the Hornets to Allan Cup championships for senior ice hockey in 1969 and 1971.

His travels to the Ahearne Cup in Europe led to him opening the door for European teams playing tournaments in North America, and his role as a Chef de Mission for these events.

Galt captured the 1969 Allan Cup winning in four consecutive games over the Calgary Stampeders.

Renwick and the team executive used a share-the-wealth philosophy, where the players saw a proportion of the team's profits.

Renwick first joined the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) committee as a director in 1969.

Galt won another Ontario championship in the 1970–71 season, with the goaltending tandem of Harold Hurley and Ken Broderick.

In the playoffs, Galt defeated the Barrie Flyers, Orillia Terriers, Sault Ste.

Marie, Thunder Bay Twins, and the Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts to reach the finals.

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

Galt captured the 1971 Allan Cup winning in four consecutive games over the same Calgary team from 1969, and played to sellout crowds at the Galt Arena Gardens.

The Hornets represented Canada at the 1971 Ahearne Cup in Stockholm, finishing in third place behind teams from Russia and Sweden.

He also 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, Timrå IK from Sweden, and the Owen Sound Downtowners and Kingston Aces from Ontario.

In May 1973, he was elected vice-president in charge of senior and intermediate hockey, and reelected to the same position in May 1974.

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.

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

The event was a national midget age group hockey tournament for the top 12 teams in Canada, with the winning team to earn a trip to the Soviet Union.

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

After two years on the executive, he was acclaimed as the first vice-president in May 1975, and held the position for two years.

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

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

He 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.

During his time as president, the CAHA began the process of recognizing women's ice hockey in Canada, and implemented rules for mandatory safety equipment for youths.

When the annual meeting in 1977 approved $523,000 for development, Renwick stated that the CAHA needed about $5 million to fully implement what it envisioned.

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

His first order of business was to find a replacement for Gordon Juckes, who was retiring as the executive director of the CAHA.

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

The CAHA was also facing difficulties implementing its goals due to the cost of inflation and decreasing income.

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

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.

He also 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.

He 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.