Founder's Spirit Award
The Founder’s Spirit Award recognizes alumni whose life and legacy embody visionary leadership and transformative impact, leaving a lasting mark on Trent University and the broader community. It honours those who, through bold leadership or quiet influence, reflect Trent’s core values of reconciliation, lifelong learning, and sustainability. Posthumous nominations are accepted in this category.
2025 Recipient
David Christopher Leach '70 (Peter Robinson College)
Widely regarded as the ‘founding father’ of rowing at both Trent and the wider Peterborough community, Olympian Chris Leach left an enduring legacy on his beloved sport as an athlete and leader.
Born in St. Catharines, Ontario, Leach was a competitive rower throughout high school and was selected to join the national rowing team. Before arriving at Trent as a mature student in 1970, he represented Canada at the World Rowing Championships and competed at the Olympic Games in Rome (1960) and Tokyo (1964).
Recognizing the untapped potential of the Otonabee River and Trent’s natural environment, Leach set out to establish rowing as a defining part of the Trent and Peterborough communities. Starting with no dock, boathouse, or funding, he worked tirelessly to build both the Trent University Rowing Club (TURC) and the Peterborough Rowing Club (PRC) into nationally recognized entities, each of which acknowledges Leach as its founder.
In 1971, Leach led efforts to establish the Head of the Trent Regatta as a showcase for the University’s newly established rowing club. What began with 13 boats has since grown into Canada’s largest event of its kind, drawing more than 800 boats, 1,400 athletes, and thousands of spectators each fall.
A gifted coach and mentor, Leach inspired countless rowers with his belief in hard work, determination, and the importance of infusing every challenge with a dose of fun and humour.
Leach passed away on May 4, 2025, leaving behind a profound and lasting imprint on Trent and the sport of rowing. This legacy makes him an ideal recipient of Trent’s inaugural Founder’s Spirit Award.
“For many of us, Chris was profoundly influential on our lives,” wrote a nominator. “He inspired an ethos of believing in oneself that many of us carried for the rest of our lives, and one that inspired our club motto: Step Back Non-Believers.”