© 2009, Christian Cassidy
Football Hall of Fame Card (courtesy, Reese Halter)
Syd Halter had a huge impact on the local and national sports scene, though most sports fans wouldn't recognize the name. Here's the story of the Winnipegger who brought four regional sports leagues together under a single Canadian Football League.
Gerald Sydney "Syd" Halter was born in Winnipeg on April 18, 1905, and graduated from the Faculty of Law at the University of Manitoba in 1927. As a student, he managed the Bisons hockey team and was introduced to the world of sports management.
November 28, 1938, Winnipeg Free Press
After graduating, Halter began his career in corporate law and became involved in the reorganization of the Winnipeg Football Club. He held many positions on its board, including as treasurer and president, from 1935 to 1942
Halter also had stints as president of the Winnipeg Amateur Athletic Association (WAAA) and the Amateur Athletic Union of Canada (AAUC) at both the provincial and national levels between 1931 and 1946.
As national president of the AAUC, at just 33 years of age, he was portrayed as the young upstart who was coming in to modernize an antiquated organization for a new era.
February 12, 1942, Winnipeg Tribune
Halter was president of both the Winnipeg Rugby Football Club, (soon to be nicknamed the "Blue Bombers"), and the Amateur Athletic Union of Canada when World War II began. He left to serve in an administrative capacity with the Royal Canadian Air Force and after the war resumed his law career and his interest in sports.
In 1953, Halter was elected commissioner of the Western Interprovincial Football Union (WIFU) in which the Winnipeg Blue Bombers played. It was one of four major regional leagues in the country.
Halter felt that it was time to reorganize the sport of football in Canada and that "... all matters pertinent to it at this time can be handled on a national basis under the jurisdiction of a single central office” and then made it his mission to create a single Canadian Football League.
January 18, 1958, Winnipeg Free Press
Halter invited officials from the "big four" regional football leagues operating in the county together for a conference at Winnipeg's Royal Alexandra Hotel on Main Street in January 1958 to finalize a merger deal.
The three-day closed session meeting took place between January 17 to 19th. It began with an agreement to establish the Canadian Football League, initially called the Canadian Football Commission, with G. Sydney Halter, age 52, as its first commissioner. The following two days were spent figuring out how to merge various sets of game, team, and player rules and regulations into one.
Halter guided the new league through its formative years from 1958 to 1966. (That made him the man who had to make the tough decision to halt the 1962 'fog bowl' Grey Cup final game and resume play the next day.)
After his retirement as commissioner in 1966, Halter dedicated himself to the sport of horse racing and served for two stints as chair of the Manitoba Horse Racing Commission. Under his tenure, Assiniboia Downs expanded its thoroughbred racing season from 42 to 120 days and a rural harness racing circuit was created.
After Halter's death on October 24, 1990, there was a push to have Winnipeg Stadium renamed the G. Sydney Halter Memorial Stadium. Winnipeg Enterprises, however, stood firm in its practice of not naming any of the sports facilities, (such as the stadium, arena and velodrome), under their administration.
Halter was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1977 and has been inducted into numerous Halls of Fame including the Canadian Sports; Canadian Amateur Sports; Manitoba Sports; Canadian Football; International Jewish Sports; Canadian Horse Racing, Winnipeg Football Club, and Canadian Olympic.
From 2003 to at least 2011, the CFL presented a G. Sydney Halter Memorial Award to an amateur official who has demonstrated officiating excellence and has made great contributions to Canadian football officiating consistently over the years.
From 2003 to at least 2011, the CFL presented a G. Sydney Halter Memorial Award to an amateur official who has demonstrated officiating excellence and has made great contributions to Canadian football officiating consistently over the years.
When you sit down to watch the CFL playoffs this weekend, take a moment to remember the Winnipegger who brought the league together!
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