Linda Mary Alice Thom, CM

Order of Canada

The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...

, née Malcolm, (born December 30, 1943) is a Canadian Olympic gold medal-winning shooter

Shooting sports

A shooting sport is a competitive sport involving tests of proficiency using various types of guns such as firearms and airguns . Hunting is also a shooting sport, and indeed shooting live pigeons was an Olympic event...

.

Born in Hamilton, Ontario

Hamilton, Ontario

Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...

, she received a Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree in 1967 from Carleton University

Carleton University

Carleton University is a comprehensive university located in the capital of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario. The enabling legislation is The Carleton University Act, 1952, S.O. 1952. Founded as a small college in 1942, Carleton now offers over 65 programs in a diverse range of disciplines. Carleton has...

.

At the 1984 Summer Olympics

1984 Summer Olympics

The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...

, she won a gold medal in the women's 25 m Pistol

25 m Pistol

25 metre pistol, formerly and unofficially still often known as sport pistol, is one of the ISSF shooting events. It was devised as a women's event in the 1960s, based upon the rules of 25 metre center-fire pistol but shot with a .22-caliber sport pistol instead of the larger-caliber guns men used...

 event becoming the first Canadian woman to win a gold medal in the summer Olympics since 1928

Canada at the 1928 Summer Olympics

- Gold:* Percy Williams — Athletics, Men's 100m* Percy Williams — Athletics, Men's 200m* Ethel Catherwood — Athletics, Women's High Jump* Ethel Smith, Bobbie Rosenfeld, Myrtle Cook, Florence Jane Bell — Athletics, Women's 4x100m Relay...

 and the first Canadian to win a gold medal in the summer Olympics since 1968

Canada at the 1968 Summer Olympics

Canada competed at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico. 138 competitors, 110 men and 28 women, took part in 124 events in 14 sports...

.

In the 1995 Ontario general election

Ontario general election, 1995

The Ontario general election of 1995 was held on June 8, 1995, to elect members of the 36th Legislative Assembly of the province of Ontario, Canada...

, she ran as a Progressive Conservative

Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario

The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario , is a right-of-centre political party in Ontario, Canada. The party was known for many years as "Ontario's natural governing party." It has ruled the province for 80 of the years since Confederation, including an uninterrupted run from 1943 to 1985...

 against Dalton McGuinty

Dalton McGuinty

Dalton James Patrick McGuinty, Jr., MPP is a Canadian lawyer, politician and, since October 23, 2003, the 24th and current Premier of the Canadian province of Ontario....

 for the riding of Ottawa South

Ottawa South (provincial electoral district)

Ottawa South is a riding in the Canadian province of Ontario, in the city of Ottawa. It is represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by the Premier of Ontario, Dalton McGuinty....

 but was defeated.

In 1985, she was made a Member of the Order of Canada

Order of Canada

The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...

. In 1984, she was awarded the Velma Springstead Trophy

Velma Springstead Trophy

The Velma Springstead Trophy is an award presented annually to Canada's outstanding female athlete. It is named in honour of track athlete Velma Springstead whose career ended prematurely when she died from pneumonia in 1927 when only 20 years old. The Women's Amateur Athletic Federation of Canada...

, an award presented annually to Canada's outstanding female athlete. In 1986, she was inducted into the City of Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame. In 1992, she was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame

Canada's Sports Hall of Fame

Canada's Sports Hall of Fame is a hall of fame established in 1955 to "preserve the record of Canadian sports achievements and to promote a greater awareness of Canada's heritage of sport." It is located at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, Alberta...

.

External links

• Linda Thom at The Canadian Encyclopedia
  The Canadian Encyclopedia
  The Canadian Encyclopedia is a source of information on Canada. It is available online, at no cost. The Canadian Encyclopedia is available in both English and French and includes some 14,000 articles in each language on a wide variety of subjects including history, popular culture, events, people,...
  
  
• CBC Radio archive clip