Lionel Conacher

Lionel Conacher MP
Hockey Hall of Fame, 1994
Born	(1900-05-24)May 24, 1900 Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Died	May 26, 1954(1954-05-26) (aged 54) Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Height	6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight	194 lb (88 kg; 13 st 12 lb)
Position	Defence
Shot	Left
Played for	Pittsburgh Pirates New York Americans Montreal Maroons Chicago Black Hawks
Playing career	1925–1937
Member of Parliament for Trinity
In office June 27, 1949 – May 26, 1954
Preceded by	Larry Skey
Succeeded by	Donald Carrick
Member of Provincial Parliament
In office October 6, 1937 – August 3, 1943
Preceded by	Arthur Russell Nesbitt
Succeeded by	Rae Luckock
Constituency	Bracondale
Personal details
Political party	Liberal
Military service
Allegiance	Canada
Branch/service	Royal Canadian Air Force
Years of service	1942–1943
Rank	Honorary squadron leader

Lionel Pretoria Conacher MP (/ˈkɒnəkər/ KON-ə-kər; May 24, 1900 – May 26, 1954), nicknamed "The Big Train", was a Canadian athlete and politician. Voted the country's top athlete of the first half of the 20th century, he won championships in numerous sports. His first passion was Canadian football; he was a member of the 1921 Grey Cup champion Toronto Argonauts. He was a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs baseball team that won the International League championship in 1926. In hockey, he won a Memorial Cup in 1920, and the Stanley Cup twice: with the Chicago Black Hawks in 1934 and the Montreal Maroons in 1935. Additionally, he won wrestling, boxing and lacrosse championships during his playing career. He is one of three players, including Joe Miller and Carl Voss, to have their names engraved on both the Grey Cup and Stanley Cup.

Conacher retired as an athlete in 1937 to enter politics. He won election to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in 1937, and in 1949 won a seat in the House of Commons. Many of his political positions revolved around sports. He worked to eliminate corruption in boxing while serving as a member of provincial parliament (MPP) in Ontario, also serving as the chairman of the Ontario Athletic Commission. Additionally, he served a term as director of recreation and entertainment for the Royal Canadian Air Force.^[1] It was also on the sports field that Conacher died: He suffered a heart attack twenty minutes after hitting a triple in a softball game played on the lawn of Parliament Hill.^[2]

Numerous organizations have honoured Conacher's career. In addition to being named Canada's athlete of the half-century, he was named the country's top football player over the same period. He was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1955, the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1964, the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1965, the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1994, and the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 1996.^[3] Additionally, the Canadian Press gives the Lionel Conacher Award to its male athlete of the year.