OTTAWA – To commemorate Olympic and world champion Victor Davis on the 31st anniversary of his passing, Swimming Canada will be selling a limited-edition T-shirt , with 90 per cent of proceeds going to the Victor Davis Memorial Fund.

Davis was an inspiration to many young swimmers that came after him. After his sudden death at age 25, the Victor Davis Memorial Fund was created to remember him and to help young Canadian swimmers to continue their training, education, and pursuit of excellence at the highest levels of competition. The Victor Davis Memorial Award is given out every year to financially help promising high performance swimmers.

The Victor Davis Memorial Fund has given out scholarships every year since 1990. There have been 158 swimmers who have received this scholarship with over $197,000 awarded over those 30 years. This financial support has greatly benefited many young Canadian swimmers.

“It was great to be recognized and to be given the financial assistance to pursue my goals as an athlete and as a student of the sport,” said Matthew Hawes, a 2002 Victor Davis Award recipient who went on to represent Canada on multiple national teams. “I knew that I had a lot of work to do in and out of the pool and the Victor Davis Award helped me financially be able to continue my pursuit of excellence as a young competitor. It was also very empowering to know that I was selected as one of the few each year to be given the award.”

“Growing up, I knew all about Victor Davis – how tough he was, how fast he was, and how fearless he was,” added Olympian Andrea Schwartz Smith. “Winning the Victor Davis Memorial Award was another stepping stone on my way to the Olympics in 1996. Being recognized as an athlete of Victor’s calibre was such a huge confirmation to me that all my hard work was going to pay off, and I knew one day I’d have the chance to represent Canada just like he did.”

Swimming Canada looks to always support the next generation of swimmers, especially through the current economic climate.

“Victor was destined for greatness both athletically and in the career that he should have had after swimming,” said Clifford Barry, Davis’s longtime coach. “He dreamed it, believed it and made it happen. I believe that whatever Victor ended up wanting to do, success would have been the result. His death was a great loss to Canadian swimming and hence the Victor Davis Fund, to keep those qualities in front of our future athletes and give them someone to emulate and achievements to surpass.”

To read more about the Victor Davis Memorial Fund please visit: https://www.swimming.ca/en/resources/history-awards/victor-davis-memorial-fund-awards/

To buy your limited-edition T-shirt, go to shop.swimming.ca