SportsCentre: Parliament Hill?

This entry is part 7 of 7 in the series Vol. 48 No. 3 (Autumn)
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SportsCentre: Parliament Hill?

While politicians coming to Canada’s Parliament are often said to be ‘entering the political arena,’ the depth of this sports analogy might surprise you. Sure, certain athletic events involving politicians receive much media attention, such as the famous charity boxing match between then-MP Justin Trudeau and Senator Patrick Brazeau. And yes, some politicians had notable sporting careers before or even during their time in office – MP Red Kelly scored two goals in a Stanley Cup game while serving as an MP! Further, at the time of writing, Parliament includes Canadian gold medalists from the Olympic and Paralympic games. But, there’s far more to the story of sports on the Hill. In this article, the author explores how Canada’s parliamentry precinct has been a site for celebrating and participating in all sorts of athletic activities.

Charlie Feldman

Charlie Feldman is the former President of the Canadian Study of Parliamentary Group and author of the forthcoming book Unparliamentary (University of Toronto Press) that explores unexpected moments on Parliament Hill.

Turning Pages

Before delving into some obscure bits of parliamentary sports trivia, let’s begin with one of the best known sporting events on the Hill: the MPs/Parliamentary Pages soccer match. Appearing in Hansard time and again, at one point a Deputy Speaker even announced: “It is my duty to inform

the House that in the pages versus MPs soccer game last evening the MPs won three to two in a double shootout.”1 As a procedural nerd, I do wonder from which Standing Order that “duty” arises. A year later, then Speaker Gilbert Parent suggested to the House that he should be the referee after an MP’s recounting of the game ended with the line “Yes, the pages fell victim to the old adage that says ‘old age and treachery will always overcome youth and skill’.”2

The MPs/Pages match also makes for its own interesting set of intriguing stories. For example, one party leader was reportedly spotted changing clothes in the bushes at Rideau Hall after one game,3 and after another match, an MP explained to the House that “because there were no injuries this year, I can say that it was an unqualified success.”4 That’s quite the metric of success, especially when you note that an MP once began a speech in the House with:

I would like to begin by explaining to taxpayers why I have a black eye. We were playing soccer yesterday, and although our wonderful pages are kind enough to bring us water here in the House, on the soccer field, things are quite different.5

Although soccer is certainly a Hill favourite these days, with MPs having also squared off against the diplomatic corps6 and the press corps,7 MPs and Pages once faced off while playing a different sport entirely.

A Softball Question

Speaker Pierre-François Casgrain was on the field for the Pages-MP softball match in 1936, but given some of the reporting in the Ottawa Journal following the game, perhaps he should have served as referee:

The Commoners, managed by Rev. Daniel McIvor (Lib) Fort William, voiced considerable disapproval of the umpiring of Major Millton Fowler Gregg, V.C., sergeant-at-arms, [sic] and Major Drew Thompson, gentleman usher of the Black Rod, brought a pop bottle to throw. He didn’t throw it, though.8

Although the Pages emerged victorious with a 13-6 win, players left the field with injuries varying from a sprained ankle to a black eye.9 Additional reporting tells us that some 500(!) spectators “dropped coppers and nickels into the hat” with the cabinet contributing $6 to a grand total of $27.65 raised.10 (If you’re curious, the Bank of Canada’s online inflation calculator puts that total figure at around $610 in 2025 Canadian dollars). The money was reportedly going to purchase sweaters for the victorious Pages.

Softball was once popular enough for MPs to field a team in a league with a schedule. This exchange appeared in Hansard in 1959:

Mr. R. J. McCleave (Halifax): Mr. Speaker, for the benefit of tourists and others seeking high class entertainment, could I ask the hon. member for Waterloo North the schedule of this year’s House of Commons softball team?

Mr. O. W. Weichel (Waterloo North): I may advise the hon. member for Halifax that the first game will be played on Wednesday, June 17 against the protective staff, and on Wednesday, June 24 we shall be playing our friends in the press gallery.

An hon. Member: Friends?

Mr. Speaker: I am not sure whether this is business of the house or orders of the day.11

‘High class entertainment’ is putting it mildly – in various reports, MP Tom Reid would accompany the team by playing the bagpipes “from the Railway Committee Room to the ball diamond on the west lawn of the west block.”12 And plans were afoot to make these games even more epic. In 1947, the timing would have worked to have visiting US President Truman throw the first pitch!13 Alas, it didn’t happen. However, Prime Minister Louis St-Laurent did throw the first pitch at the MP-Press Gallery game in 1952.

I should probably note that the quality of gameplay was not necessarily great. In 1958, Le Droit reported that the MP-Press Gallery game saw so many errors it started to resemble a comedy.14

Though these games could provoke laughs, they often supported a worthwhile cause. The 1950 installment raised funds for victims of flooding in Manitoba.15 Exceptionally, that game came up in Parliament – the chair of the House’s Special Committee on Radio Broadcasting played a news report of the game for members. The moment was captured in the Minutes this way:

Before proceeding, the Chairman invited the members present to listen to a recorded broadcast of the ball game which took place on Parliament Hill between Members of the Parliament and the Press Gallery. This broadcast was included in Thursday’s News Round-up at 10:15 p.m., and was given by Mr. Hugh Boyd.16

In various years, baseball replaced softball as the game of choice. An Ottawa Citizen headline from 1913 reads “Home Runs galore on Parliament Hill” and tells of “a crowd which at times numbered several thousand” coming to watch Commons-Press Gallery baseball, adding “And what a game it was.”17 Players included then Prime Minister Robert Borden.

A Motion to Strike (and Maybe a Spare)

Headlines from 1948 marked the end of a successful season for another parliamentary sporting league… the House of Commons Bowling League! MPs Hansell and McIvor presided over a ceremony in the parliamentary restaurant where they handed out the Mulock Trophy.18 Additional reporting indicates that the league included teams consisting of both MPs and secretaries. The Stenos No. 1 Team bested a team of Progressive Conservative MPs during the 1948 season.

While bowling might not be associated with Canada as much as other sports, I feel I must note that five-pin bowling was created by Canadian Thomas E. Ryan.19

Press reports in 1951 indicate that the league then had 13 teams.20 By 1957, league leader (in some reports depending on the year he’s the president, in others he’s the coach) MP Dan McIvor asked the Minister to recommend the league to MPs for their fitness:

Mr. Speaker, I should like to direct a question to the Minister of National Health and Welfare. Since we have in this house, for the use of the members of the House of Commons and the stenographic staff, an active five-pin bowling league, would the minister not consider it in the best interests of the physical fitness and health of the members to make use of this exercise?21

The following year, McIvor would quip that a different Minister should attend one of the league games “and see the value of being able to shoot straight.”22

It’s unclear when the bowling league ended precisely. One MP noted in an intervention in Hansard in 1961 that: “about 100 members and their wives, secretaries, messengers, the sergeant-at-arms, the assistant clerk, etc., were members of the bowling league.”23 That intervention called upon the Minister for Public Works to build better bowling alleys near the parliamentary precinct. The MP explained:

We know that the bowling alleys now at our disposal are so obsolete that several bowlers decided to retire from the league. Therefore, if the minister does not give us bowling alleys, we will not be able to find a sufficient number of bowling fans to play the game next year, as the other bowling alleys are too far away from the parliament buildings.

I therefore repeat my request to the minister that he consider having bowling alleys set up which would make all civil servants and others most happy. I am taking this opportunity of challenging the Minister of Public Works. I am sure he will be a member of the league.24

While there’s no evidence that bowling lanes on Parliament Hill were ever seriously contemplated, the question of a bowling alley for employees did create quite a fuss at Ontario’s legislature in 1928.25

The reference to civil servants in the 1961 Hansard is notable. In 1909, teams from all over the civil service competed in the Parliamentary Bowling League. In the league standings that year, the Langevin Block Interior Team led while the team from the Royal Mint was securely in second place.26 Langevin Block might have had a set of very sporty employees around that time –the year prior it’s reported they defeated a West Block team in a civil service cricket league match.27

A different kind of green

With all this discussion of five-pin bowling, it’s perhaps easy to overlook another type of bowling that once took the Hill by storm: Lawn bowling! An Ottawa Citizen article from 1934 reflects on how the Parliamentary Lawn Bowling Club was founded in 1904 when MP A.F. MacLaren had returned from Scotland with a case of bowls. With the help of colleagues, he approached House of Commons Speaker R.F Sutherland with a proposal to bring the sport to Parliament Hill. 28 Speaker Southerland reportedly greeted the idea enthusiastically and a pitch was established on the west side of the Hill.

The club took hold quickly, and by 1905 news that the Parliamentary Lawn Bowling Club was organizing for the year was heralded as a sign spring had arrived in the capital. A press report noted:

The club is particular about the name lawn bowling, which distinguishes it from other bowling clubs which do not need grass for their athletic exercises. When the Grounds Committee ropes off the rink and sparrows are forbidden to walk on it except in rubber shoes, spring may be considered to have come to stay.29

The following year, a newspaper carried this scoop:

The minister of public works has issued instructions to have the lawn put in shape as speedily as possible. A special cutter has been purchased similar to that used by the clubs in England, and it is the intention to string lights over the lawn in order that the members of the club may be able to play in the evenings.30

By 1915, other lawn bowling clubs were using the parliamentary green as well, included a civil service league.31 A write-up in 1921 tells of a match between “teams from the Bureau of Statistics and Natural Resources Intelligence Branch from the Department of the Interior.”32 Years before, there was an MP versus civil servants match; the Commoners won 34-17.33

From press reports it’s unclear when exactly this particular sporting favourite fell out of fashion for parliamentarians, but much like bowling on the Hill, lawn bowling did not stand the test of time.

The Sound of Sport

Parliament Hill hosts its share of athletic activities; not all of which involve parliamentarians on a regular basis. One that likely comes to mind for any longtime Ottawa resident was the weekly summer yoga that would fill the Hill with yogis and sometimes confuse passing tourists.34 Of course, the occasional MP would stop by. There is even an academic article about the impact of one particular politician’s yoga practice.35

Beyond Hill yoga, one Hill sport that’s perhaps more out of mind is also one that’s out of sight… because it doesn’t involve seeing at all!

Beep baseball (beepball) is a version of baseball for blind and visually impaired athletes wherein the ball beeps and bases buzz. In 1991, an exhibition game was held on Parliament Hill.36 It was followed by a tournament held on Parliament Hill in 1992 “to create awareness of the blind and diabetes as the leading cause of adult blindness.”37 Notably, the Peace Tower Carillon was set to play Take Me Out to the Ball Game,38 which would have been music to everyone’s ears. By 1994, the tournament was too big for the Hill and moved.

A one-off event that warrants mention for being a notable first was during Ottawa Pride 2010. Canada’s only two gay rugby teams (The Ottawa Wolves and Toronto’s Muddy York) faced off on the Parliament Hill lawn.39 As Parliament does not typically sit in August it is unlikely any parliamentarians attended, but some are apparently quite big rugby fans. In fact, a charity rugby match between the Canadian Forces Rugby team and the Ottawa Irish Rugby Club held in 2009 saw several MPs play. Defence Minister Peter MacKay broke his arm while playing for the Forces,40 and appeared with his arm in a sling in the House in the days that followed. MacKay had a string of Rugby injuries as he relayed to a reporter in 2001: “Broken my nose five times. Collapsed my eye socket. Broken an eardrum. Dislocated my shoulder and my knees.”41 OUCH!

A much larger rugby match held in 2012 saw several MPs and press gallery members square off with the pros as part of Rugby Canada’s Game on the Hill.42

Another first that’s likely to be a last for quite some time occurred in 2017 when an ice rink was erected on Parliament Hill as part of the Canada 150 celebrations. There was much buzz about whether the NHL might play a game there, as some parliamentarians had urged.43 The idea gathered steam but was eventually nixed by the Government.44 However, the Ottawa Senators did play an alumni game on the Parliament Hill ice.45

While no parliamentarians skated with the NHLers that night (as far as I can tell), MPs have been known to lace up. Conservative MPs once fielded a team that squared off against a team from the United Way for Charity in an MP’s riding.46 The MP team had a particularly notable hockey coach – Prime Minister Stephen Harper.47

Two years later, Conservative MPs would face off on the ice against their Conservative MLA counterparts in Alberta for charity.48 Unfortunately, a certain defense minister couldn’t play, his arm still recovering from the aforementioned Hill rugby match.

Sometimes the pros and parliamentarians do mix it up, like when pro golfer Stephen Ames and MP Jim Prentice joined forces for a charity golf tournament.49 The story of golfing on the Hill is largely one of parliamentarians supporting charities, whether it was the Hill Charity Golf Classic in 1996 organized by staff,50 various charities supported by MPs’ efforts,51 or a senator crusading to combat mental health stigma.52

When it comes to doing golf for charity, it really seems that Canada’s parliamentarians are … above par!

Speaking of politicians and pros mixing it up… the Saskatchewan Roughriders did a walk-through on the Hill in 2015 and were joined by the PM.53 This wasn’t the first CFL event on the Hill: as part of its all-star week in 1974, a kicking contest was held on Parliament Hill.54 The winner was 14-year-old Chapman Uko, whose prize was to give the kick-off that would “open the game between the Canadian Football League Players’ Association All-Stars and the Grey Cup Champion Rough Riders.”55

A Sad Sports Story

While this quick look back at some of the sporting history on Parliament Hill was meant to be lighthearted, it has to be said that not every parliamentary athletic moment on the Hill has been all fun and games. A particularly sad story – but one worth remembering – is that of MP Lionel Conacher. An all-around sportsman, his name appears on both the Grey Cup and the Stanley Cup (one of only three people who could claim that honour, if my pub trivia memory is correct). Conacher was a hero in football and hockey and excelled at all the other sports he played – from baseball to rugby to wrestling.56 As a parliamentarian who served both both provincially and federally, every press report suggests he was an all-around great guy.

MP Conacher’s story ends abruptly and sadly. He passed away during a softball57 game on Parliament Hill that pitted MPs against the Press Gallery, suffering a heart attack shortly after batting a triple.58 The Prime Minister led tributes in the House the following day, with many members taking part to celebrate the life of a parliamentary sports hero.59 While there was much sadness in the tributes (he was only 54, had five children, and he was supposed to watch one of his children graduate university the next day), members pointed out that some comfort had to be taken in the fact that he died doing the very thing he loved: playing sports.

While the game took a break for a few years after this tragic incident, parliamentarians decided they needed to play on. In 1958, the game returned to the Hill and Commons Speaker Roland Michener threw the first pitch. Prime Minister Diefenbaker was catcher and opposition leader Pearson was at bat.60 One has to appreciate that the spirit of camaraderie in sports can prove to transcend partisanship time and again.

That lovely sentiment having been expressed, it may not hold for what happens at the MP gym. A longer National Post piece from 2004 tells of MPs working out in caucus clusters and some hoping to avoid political talk only to find it sometimes unescapable, even when MPs are only towel-clad in the change or steam room.61

Conclusion

From bagpiping in the batters to lawn bowling under string lights, Parliament Hill has been more than just a political arena — it’s been a playing field for camaraderie, community, and cause. And parliamentarian athletes have taken many forms – from a Speaker of the Senate being a fencing aficionado62 (replete with newspaper picture of him practicing his fencing on Parliament Hill behind the Senate63) to a former Minister of Justice competing for Canada (while Minister!) at an international tournament in the sport of… ping-pong.64

Parliament Hill as a site has played host to many community sporting events over the years – both amateur and professional, serious and silly. On the amateur end are perhaps silly things like the people who dressed up like chess pieces to play a live human chess game on the lawn,65 to the very serious (after all, we’re in Canada!) snow-carving contest that was won by Team Manitoba with a rendering of Louis Riel.66 When the pros came to town they did all sorts of things, including a whiffle ball match played by members of the Ottawa Senators hockey, Lynx baseball and Rough Riders football teams.67

Sport on Parliament Hill hasn’t always been headline-making, but in a place where division can dominate, it’s worth celebrating the rare events that bring people together on common ground — even if that ground happens to be carefully manicured lawn turf, and even if some parliamentarian sporting moments on the Hill lawn might be suspected of being more for the love of the photo-op than the love of the game.68

Let’s hope future generations of parliamentarians continue to find time to play together, especially on Parliament Hill.69

Notes

  1. Debates of the House of Commons, 36th Parliament, 1st Session, p. 7598, June 4, 1998.
  2. Debates of the House of Commons, 36th Parliament, 1st Session, p. 15801, June 3, 1999.
  3. “Day’s Latest Undercover Operation.” The Toronto Star, June 11, 2001, p. A6.
  4. Debates of the House of Commons, 42nd Parliament, 1st Session, p. 11840, June 1, 2017.
  5. Debates of the House of Commons, 41st Parliament, 1st Session, no. 250, May 9, 2013, p. 16570.
  6. Debates of the House of Commons, 37th Parliament, 2nd Session, p. 400, 7 Oct. 2002.”My hon. colleague from Edmonton—Strathcona was talking about soccer and the fact that there will be a game on Wednesday evening. The diplomats here in Ottawa from the European Union will be playing against a number of us MPs.
  7. “Soccer on Canada’s Parliament Hill.” Canada Soccer, 20 May 2015, https://canadasoccer.com/news/soccer-on-canadas-parliament-hill/.
  8. “Pages Tame Members of Commons in Parliament Ball Game.” Calgary Herald, 5 June 1936, p. 8.
  9. Ibid.
  10. “Black eye and sprained ankle toll in pages’ 13-6 win over commoners.” The Ottawa Journal, 5 June 1936, p. 13.
  11. Debates of the House of Commons, 24th Parl., 2nd sess., vol. 4, 11 June 1959, p. 4562.
  12. “House of Commons Softball Squad Meets RA Tonight.” The Ottawa Journal, June 5, 1946, p. 19.
  13. “President Invited to Hit First Ball.” The Evening Times Globe (Saint John, NB), 10 June 1947, p. 23.
  14. Le droit, 7 August 1958, pg 3, photo caption.
  15. “Ministres, députés et journalistes aux prises sur la Colline: 15 à 6.” Le Droit, 9 juin 1950, p. 1.
  16. House of Commons Committees, 21st Parliament, 2nd Session: Special Committee on Radio Broadcasting, vol. 1, page 285, Minutes of Proceedings, June 9, 1950.
  17. “Home Runs Galore on Parliament Hill.” The Ottawa Citizen, 2 May 1913, p. 9.
  18. “House of Commons Bowlers end successful season.” The Ottawa Journal, Sat, May 22, 1948, p. 25. “H of C Bowlers Receive Awards.” The Ottawa Citizen, Mon, May 24, 1948, p. 11.
  19. “Fivepin Inventor Watches Unseen.” Graham, Bud.

The Globe and Mail, 22 Apr. 1947, p. 14.

    1. “Bowling season concluded by MPs.” Ottawa Evening Citizen, 22 May 1951, p. 24.
    2. Debates of the House of Commons, 23rd Parliament, 1st Session, vol. 2, p. 1330, 20 November 1957.
    3. Debates of the House of Commons, 23rd Parliament, 1st Session, vol. 4, p. 3801, 31 January 1958.
    4. Debates of the House of Commons, 24th Parliament, 4th Session, vol. 6, pp. 6837–38, 21 June 1961.
    5. Debates of the House of Commons, 24th Parliament, 4th Session, vol. 6, pp. 6838, 21 June 1961.
  • “J.J. Squires will be called before accounts body.” The

Hamilton Spectator, 9 March 1928, p. 31.

  1. “Civil Service Statistics.” Ottawa Evening Citizen, 4 December 1909, p. 8.
  2. “Behind the wickets.” The Ottawa Citizen, 25 June 1908,
  1. 8.
  • “Lawn Bowling had inception on Hill in 1904.” The

Ottawa Citizen, 8 Sept. 1934, p. 2.

    1. “Signs of Spring at the Capital.” Toronto Daily Star, 25 Apr. 1905, p. 8.
    2. “Lawn bowling.” The Ottawa Citizen, 11 May 1906, p. 8.
    3. “Lawn bowling game on Parliament Hill.” The Ottawa Citizen, 3 June 1915, p. 8.
    4. “Lawn Bowling on Parliament Hill.” The Ottawa Citizen, 27 Aug. 1921, p. 10.
    5. “Lawn Bowling.” The Ottawa Citizen, 6 July 1906, p. 8.
  • Waddell, Ian. “Yoga on the Hill, Then and Now.” The

Hill Times, June 20, 2016.

  1. Musial, Jennifer, and Judith Mintz. 2021. “”Because It’s 2015!”: Justin Trudeau’s Yoga Body, Masculinity, and Canadian Nation-Building.” Journal of Feminist Scholarship 18 (Spring): 24-42. 10.23860/ jfs.2021.18.02.
  2. Cann, Sadie. “Beep Ball, Disability, and Sports Memory in Ottawa.” Historical Society of Ottawa, 3 July 2024, www.historicalsocietyottawa.ca/publications/ memory-project/beep-ball-disability-and-sports-memory-in-ottawa.
  3. “WEEKEND BEST: [Final Edition].” The Ottawa Citizen (Ottawa, ON), June 20, 1992, F1.
  4. Brown, Dave. “Needled Traveller Vindicated: [Final Edition].” The Ottawa Citizen (Ottawa, ON), May 27, 1992, B1.
  5. Xtra’s Ultimate Pride Guide 2010. August 12, 2010, p.

10.

  1. “Political Casualty.” Edmonton Journal, May 29, 2009,
  1. A5.
  • Geddes, John. “Waiting in the Wings.” Maclean’s

(Toronto) 114, no. 19 (May 7, 2001): 28.

  1. Ivison, John. “No I in ‘Team,’ but One in ‘Justin’; Observations from a Different Kind of Scrum.” National Post, 5 June 2012, p. A4.
  2. “Jacques Demers wants to see a 2017 outdoor game on Parliament Hill.” Garrioch, Bruce. Ottawa Sun, (Online) 1 Jan. 2016.
  3. “Feds say no to NHL on Parliament Hill.” Garrioch, Bruce. The Kingston Whig-Standard, (Online) 5 Nov. 2016.
  4. “Ottawa Senators Alumni Classic.” The Ottawa Citizen, 20 Dec. 2017, p. C8.
  5. Lewis, Roy. “United Way of Leeds and Grenville launches 52nd campaign.” Kemptville EMC, 24 Sept. 2009, p. K5.
  6. Vongdouangchanh, Bea. “PM Harper coaches Conservative MP hockey team in Brown’s riding.” The Hill Times, no. 911, 29 Oct. 2007, p. 18.
  7. Lewis, Nick. “Tory MPs Show Mettle on the Ice.”

Calgary Herald, 6 July 2009, p. A4.

  1. Smyth, Julie. “No Confusing These Two on Golf Course: [National Edition].” National Post (Don Mills, ON), May 5, 2007, A5.
  2. Naumetz, Tim. “Reform Most Active Caucus During Summer Doldrums.” The Leader-Post, August 31, 1996,
  1. 14.
  1. Rabson, Mia. “MPs Spread Goodwill in Summer.”

Winnipeg Free Press (Winnipeg, MB), July 20, 2009, A6.

  1. Hill, Andrea. “Batters Using National Stage; Trying to De-Stigmatize Mental Health Issues.” Leader-Post (Regina, SK), September 5, 2013, A1.
  2. McCormick, Murray. “Roughriders, Prime Minister Take Over Parliament Hill.” Regina Leader-Post, 11 Oct. 2016, https://leaderpost.com/business/riders-on-the-hill-2.
  3. Haineault, Jean-Pierre. “Matches de ballon-panier entre le Canada et la Chine au Centre municipal ce soir.” Le Droit, 20 June 1974, p. 17.
  4. “Uko Kicks Way to All-Star Show.” The Ottawa Citizen, 20 June 1974, p. 25.
  5. “Lionel Conacher.” Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame. https://halloffamers.sportshall.ca/mobile.html#lionel_ conacher.
  6. Press reporting tends towards softball but there are some references, including in the Prime Minister’s speech the next day to the House, of it being a baseball game.
  7. “Canada Mourns Lionel Conacher.” The Windsor Star, 27 May 1954, p. 1.
  8. Debates of the House of Commons, 22nd Parliament, 1st Session, vol. 5, p. 5127, 27 May 1954.
  9. “Mike Manages MP Mates to Masterful 13-5 Win.”

Waterloo Region Record, 24 July 1958, p. 3.

  1. Smyth, Julie. “The Bodies Politic: To Talk or Not to Talk Shop, at the Parliament Hill Gym.” National Post [Toronto edition], 10 Apr. 2004, p. RB1.
  2. “Fencing on Parliament Hill.” The Globe, 27 Apr 1912, p. A3.
  3. “Not a case of ‘swords and coffee for two.’” The Globe, 27 Apr 1912, p. A3.
  4. Galloway, Gloria, and Brian Laghi. “Strange governor-general choices.” The Globe and Mail, 23 Jul 2005, p. A12.
  5. Vardon, S. Human chess game turns Parliament Hill black and white for Alzheimer’s research. CTV News, May 13, 2024. URL: https://www.ctvnews.ca/ottawa/ article/human-chess-game-turns-parliament-hill-black-and-white-for-alzheimers-research/
  6. Hughes, Graham. “Snow sculptures centre stage on Parliament Hill: Team Manitoba wins competition with bust of Riel.” The Ottawa Citizen, 16 Feb 1998, p. C1.
  7. Arnot, Alison. “Tulip Festival blossoms into four spring events.” The Ottawa Citizen, 13 Apr 1993, p. B2.
  8. Woods, Allan. “Harper Answers MacKay’s Gridiron Challenge.” The Ottawa Citizen, 17 June 2005, p. A4.
  9. I would be remiss if I didn’t note scholarship on politics and sports exists, including its gendered aspects. See: Cross, W. P. (2024). Sport as a Pathway to Political Office and its Gendered Effects. Representation, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/00344893.2024.2373162
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