McGill University Athletics

The Honorable Sydney Pierce was a Montrealer who competed as a hurdler for Canada at the 1924 Paris Olympics and went on to serve three decades in numerous countries as an ambassador to Canada.

Born Sydney David Pierce in Montreal on March 30, 1901, he lived to the age of 91 before passing away on May 17, 1992. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1922, a Bachelor of Civil Law degree in 1925 and an honorary Doctorate of Law in 1956.

Pierce helped lead McGill to five consecutive intercollegiate championships in track and field. A football player at McGill in the early 1920s, he tried out for the track team and quickly mastered hurdles.

In 1923, after only three months of practice, he won both the Canadian amateur and collegiate high hurdles championships. The following year, he won the high and low hurdles college titles, setting McGill records in both events.

He competed for Canada in the 110-yard hurdles at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris.

After graduating, he became a reporter for the Montreal Gazette, then lectured at  Dalhousie University in political science and later worked for The Associated Press.

Following his athletic career, Pierce entered government service and joined federal Department of Munitions and Supply in 1940 and later became chief of the economic division of the Department of External Affairs. In 1947, he was appointed Canada's ambassador to Mexico. From 1950 to 1951, he was Canada's representative to the OECD. He was also Canada's ambassador to Brazil, Belgium and Luxembourg. He also served as a Foreign Minister to the United States and Luxembourg, in addition to a stint as Deputy High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. He was Canada's chief negotiator at the "Kennedy" General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade negotiations from 1964 to 1967.