Julius Gustav Albert SCHNEIDER

American-born Bert Schneider moved to Montreal, Canada at the age of nine and was athletically active in his youth in swimming, diving, skiing, water polo, and boxing. At the onset of World War I he attempted to join the Royal Canadian Army, but was rejected because he had not yet obtained Canadian citizenship. Unable to go overseas, he began training seriously as a boxer and gained attention as an unbeatable local star before going on to win the Canadian championships in the welterweight division in 1919 and 1920. Despite not being a citizen, he was selected to represent Canada at the 1920 Summer Olympics, and defeated Joe Thomas of South Africa, Aage Steen of Norway, and Fred Kolberg of the United States, on his way to the final bout against Alex Ireland of Great Britain. Schneider defeated Ireland and captured the title, Canada’s lone gold among the five boxing medals it earned at the tournament.

Schneider turned professional in January 1921 and won his debut bout against American Jerry Cole. Over the course of his career, he contested for one major title, the Canadian welterweight, but was defeated in his bid by George Fifield in October 1925. He retired in 1927 with a record of 18-23-2 and then worked with the United States border patrol for over thirty years. He was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame in 1975.