Davis, Victor

Victor Davis, (born February 10, 1964, Guelph, Ontario, Canada—died November 13, 1989, Montreal, Quebec), Canadian swimmer, an aggressive competitor who won four Olympic medals.

At the 1982 world championships in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Davis set a world record and won a gold medal in the 200-metre breaststroke. At the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, he won a gold medal in the 200-metre breaststroke, establishing a world record for the event that stood for five years. He also won silver medals in the 100-metre breaststroke and the 4 × 100-metre medley relay. He won a gold medal in the 100-metre breaststroke in the 1986 world championships in Madrid and a silver medal at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, as a member of the Canadian 4 × 100-metre medley relay team.

A controversial figure who once kicked over a chair in the presence of Queen Elizabeth II after the Canadian swimming team was disqualified from a medley relay, Davis nonetheless was respected by fellow competitors, who admired his dedication to the sport. Davis was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1984. He retired from competition in July 1989 and died later that year after being struck by a car.