Town of Banff

Shirley Firth

Banff Sports Hall of Fame -
2008: Athlete

Banff Sports Hall of Fame - Shirley Firth

Voted six times as Canadian female Nordic skier of the year by Ski Racing Magazine, Shirley Firth’s 16-year racing career was filled with gold and silver medals. In her first Canadian Senior Championship in 1969, Shirley swept gold in the 5 km, 10km, and 3 x 5 km relay, and was on the podium, usually with gold or silver medals in the 5 and 10-km events for the next 15 years of national and North American championships. She (along with sister Sharon on the relay team) won gold in the 3 x 5 relay at the Canadian championships eight times in a row, a record that remains unbroken today. At the 1976 Olympics in Innsbruck, Sharon, along with sister Shirley and Sue Holloway, came 7th in the 3 x 5 relay, still the best-ever finish for a Canadian women’s Olympic cross-country relay team. When the 20 km race distance was first introduced at the nationals in 1977, Shirley won it.

1982 was Shirley’s best year on the ten-race World Cup circuit: she earned the highest points by any male or female Canadian cross-country skier ever, for an 11th overall standing. Along with sister Sharon, she’s the only Canadian woman skier to compete in four consecutive Olympic Winter Games.

In 1972 Shirley, along with her sister Sharon, was the first Nordic skier to be honoured with the John Semmelink Memorial Award by the Canadian Ski Association for her contribution to skiing in Canada. In 1987 she received the Order of Canada. She has been featured in three television documentaries, and was inducted into the Canadian Skiing Hall of Fame in 1990. Shirley is the recipient of the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal (2002) and the National Aboriginal Achievement Award (2005).