Rebecca "Beckie" Scott[1]OCAOEMSM (born August 1, 1974) is a Canadian retired cross-country skier. She is an Olympic gold and silver medallist, and the first Canadian to win an Olympic medal in cross-country skiing.[2] She is the founder of a national organization dedicated to improving health, wellness and education outcomes for Indigenous youth through sport and play.[3] Scott was Chair of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Athlete Committee, and gained notoriety for her position during the Russian (2014–2019) doping scandal.[4] She served as an International Olympic Committee member by virtue of being elected to the IOC Athlete's Commission along with Saku Koivu between 2006 and 2014.[5] She is married to the American former cross-country skier Justin Wadsworth.[6] They have two children, Teo and Brynn.
Career
Beckie Scott during the torch relay for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, July 2012
Scott was born in Vegreville, Alberta, but grew up in Vermilion, Alberta. Supported by her parents, she began cross-country skiing at the age of five.[7] She entered her first competition at age seven and attended the Junior National Championships in 1988.[8] She went on to win seventeen World Cup medals in sprint, individual
Scott is a three-time Olympian, participating at the 1998 Winter Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan, the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah, and the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy. Her best-placed finish in Nagano was 45th, but Scott won a gold medal in cross-country skiing at the Salt Lake City games. She originally finished third in the 5 km pursuit, but she was upgraded to the gold medal when winner Olga Danilova and runner-up Larissa Lazutina were eventually disqualified for using darbepoetin, a performance-enhancing drug.[9] Scott was awarded a silver medal before receiving her gold medal in June 2004, almost two and a half years after the Olympics ended. She became the first Canadian and first North American woman to win an Olympic medal in cross-country skiing.
Scott is an Officer of the Order of Canada,[10] and has been honoured with a variety of awards in Canada. She has been inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame, the Canadian Ski Hall of Fame,[11] and the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame. She has a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Waterloo[7] and has twice received the John Semmelink Award, for demonstrating sportsmanship and ability in international competition.[12] She holds honorary Doctorates of Laws from the University of Alberta,[13] Mount Royal University and the University of British Columbia.[14] Scott was inducted into the Alberta Order of Excellence on October 17, 2019.[15]
On February 23, 2006, Scott was elected as an athlete member of the International Olympic Committee along with Finnishice hockey player Saku Koivu.[17] Scott retired on April 12, 2006, as the most decorated Canadian cross-country skier. 2006 was also her best season, with multiple victories and podiums on the World Cup circuit, to go with her Olympic silver in one of her races in Turin, and she lost out on winning her first World Cup overall season title to the great Marit Bjørgen by the smallest margin.
In September 2012, Scott was appointed to WADA's executive committee.[5] In September 2018, Scott resigned from the WADA compliance and review committee responsible for making a recommendation to end the Russian Anti-Doping Agency's suspension from WADA.[18]
Charity
In 2017, Scott established Spirit North, a charitable organization dedicated to improving health, wellness and education outcomes for Indigenous youth through equitable access to sport and play.[19]
^General, Office of the Secretary to the Governor (May 9, 2019). "Beckie Scott, O.C., M.S.M."The Governor General of Canada. Retrieved January 16, 2024.
