 |
| "Jim
Thompson, a deceptively common name to describe a man who was
anything but." |
| Diana Zlomislic, The Toronto
Sun |
|
| Jim Thompson was a walking contradiction: |
| He wasn't an artist, but he is widely regarded
as the Picasso of the way sport is now viewed in Canada; |
| He held hard opinions, but spent a lifetime
softly helping others less fortunate; |
| He enjoyed the spirit of life, but was never
more spiritually fulfilled than when in the company of his wife
Sheila and daughter Sam and son Jake; |
| He wasn't an athletic champion, but he championed
people and sport. |
| He was not an educator, but spent his life
teaching others how to grow and learn and walk tall. |
Brian Etherington,
Past Chairman,
Special Olympics Canada Foundation
|
|
| With an abiding enthusiasm for sport, and
a strong belief in its benefits to society nurtured over a lifetime
in television sports production, retirement from TSN provided Mr.
Thompson the unique opportunity to invest his energies in the advancement
of high performance sport in Canada. It was largely as a result
of his personal commitment that TSN became such a key partner in
the Special Olympics movement in Canada. |
|
| In his years of commitment to Special Olympics
he realized the importance of dedicated, qualified coaches in developing
athletes' skills and abilities to heights never before thought possible.
When Mr. Thompson ended his brief "retirement" to become
CEO of the Canadian Olympic Committee, his passion and determination
to enable Canadian athletes to excel became even more pronounced.
|
|
| While it was never Jim's aim in life to draw
attention to himself, he would no doubt be very pleased to be the
torch bearer of a fundraising event to help Special Olympics athletes.
He had a passion for seeing athletes achieve their best, and he
worked tirelessly to turn the power of possibility into athletic
achievement. We look forward to seeing you as we celebrate Jim and
his vision of the Special Olympics movement. |
|
 |
