The championship figure skater once dubbed “Canada’s Sweetheart” will soon have her own room at city hall.
Olympic gold medalist Barbara Ann Scott has donated her collection of skating memorabilia to the City of Ottawa, Mayor Jim Watson announced in his first state of the city address.
“The space soon to be vacated on the first floor of city hall will be transformed into a showcase of Ms. Scott’s remarkable achievements,” Watson said.
In 1948, Scott, a native of Ottawa, won the European, World and Olympic skating titles, making her the first North American to win all three in one year. She is the first and only Canadian figure skater to win an Olympic gold medal in the women’s singles competition. All of her medals are set to be displayed in the new city hall exhibit.
“I’m very honoured and very thrilled,” Scott said in a telephone interview from her home in Florida.
Scott, now 83, says the collection belongs to Ottawa because the city was so good to her throughout her skating career.
“Citizens helped send me over to compete in Europe,” recalls Scott. “The Minto Club had so much ice time and they were always so helpful.”
Scott says she talked to the mayor about donating her collection to the city in 2008 when she was in Ottawa to receive the Order of Ontario.
The Barbara Ann Scott room will likely be located in the space previously occupied by the EnviroCentre, a non-profit organization that delivers energy-efficient goods and services.
It was asked to vacate its space on the first floor of city hall by the end of March.
Scott’s collection includes all of her medals, trophies, costumes, scrapbooks and photographs.
“It’s quite impressive, I can tell you that,” says her husband, Tom King. “She’s modest but it’s really magnificent.”
City archivist Paul Henry visited Scott in Florida to see the historic memorabilia.
“It was a fantastic collection,” says Henry. “It really represented not only Barbara Ann Scott as an athlete, but also her as an individual.”
One of his favourite pieces is the “Bearbara Ann” teddy bear, complete with a figure skating uniform and skates.
“If you can imagine, before Beatlemania, you almost had Barbara fever,” says Henry.
Watson said he looks forward to hosting Scott later this year when the room is dedicated in her honour.
But Scott has yet to receive an invitation for the opening.