Doug Clement

After an exceptional career as an athlete in high school, Canadian Doug Clement attended the University of Oregon from 1952 through 1955 on a track scholarship and earned his Bachelor’s of Science. During this time he competed for his home country at the 1952 Summer Olympics and the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. At the former he finished fourth in the 4×400 m relay alongside Jack Hutchins, Jack Carroll, and James Lavery and was eliminated in round one of the 400m competition. At the latter he placed eighth in the 880 yards event, but earned a silver medal in the 4×440 yards relay alongside Terry Tobacco, Joe Foreman, and Laird Sloan. He returned to Canada to attend the University of British Columbia for a medical degree, but also remained athletically active, participating on the school’s rugby and track teams. He also made second appearances at the Summer Olympics and the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1956 and 1958 respectively. At the former he finished fifth in the 4×100 m relay with Tobacco, Sloan, and Murray Cockburn, and tried his hand at the 800m event, but was eliminated in the opening round. At the latter he failed to make it to the finals of the 220, 440, and 880 yard events and placed fourth with Tobacco, George Shepherd, and Joe Mullins in the 4x400 yard relay. He retired from active competition after graduating from medical school in 1959.

Clement then embarked upon a prestigious career as a medical researcher, but always kept his athletic roots at the center of his studies. In the late 1960s and early 1970s he founded the study of sports medicine in Canada through a series of papers and spread his teachings through teaching tenures at Simon Fraser University and UBC and the founding of a sports medicine clinic in Vancouver. In 1962 he and his wife Diane helped found the Richmond Kajaks track club and coached top international athletes for over three decades. He also coached track at UBC during the 1980s and has attended numerous international competitions in capacities ranging from coach to manager to medical staff. Among his numerous awards are inductions into the UBC and British Columbia Sports Halls of Fame, as well as the Canadian Olympic Sports Hall of Fame. The author of several books and numerous articles on the subject of sports medicine, he was made a member of the Order of Canada in 1992.

Personal Bests: 400 – 47.7y (1958); 800 – 1:51.4 (1955).