Facilities

The International Centre for Olympic Studies is located in the new Arthur and Sonia Labatt Health Sciences Building on the beautiful campus of The University of Western Ontario.

The Labatt Health Sciences Building is an 80,000 square foot facility with large (500 seat) and small classrooms, the Dean's Office for the Faculty of Health Sciences, the Bachelor of Health Sciences program, a 3D Virtual Reality Theatre, and a number of additional research and learning facilities.

The research assets in the International Centre for Olympic Studies include:

• An expanding library of films with surround sound theatre viewing capacity;
• Video and audio tapes, slides, texts, journal and pamphlet publications, minutes, reports, scrapbooks, graphic art materials;
• Olympic memorabilia;
• A growing collection of primary source documents pertaining to various aspects of Olympic history, sociology, philosophy, anthropology, and organization and administration.

Avery Brundage Collection

The Centre also maintains its own copy of the Avery Brundage Collection, making The University of Western Ontario the only institution in the world to own two complete microfilm copies of the 150 reel historical source.

Worrall Papers

The newest addition to the Centre is the Worrall papers. James Worrall has donated the personal papers and records from his lifetime as a Canadian Olympic athlete and flagbearer, member of the Canadian Olympic Association (1948-present), where he was president from 1961 to 1968, and member of the International Olympic Committee (1967-1989).

James Worrall, 23 June 1914 - 9 October 2011
James Worrall, a strong supporter of the International Centre for Olympic Studies, passed away on 9 October 2011, at the age of 97. Born in Bury, Lancashire, UK, Worrall emigrated to Montreal, subsequently receiving a law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School; he later practiced law in Toronto.
    James Worrall functioned as the Canadian team's flag barer for the opening ceremonies of the 1936 Summer Olympic Games, competing in the 100m and 400m hurdles competitions. He went on to serve as president of the Canadian Olympic Association (1961-1968), and as a member of the International Olympic Committee from 1967 to 1989. He also served on the organizing committees of both the 1976 Summer and 1988 Winter Olympic Games.
    James Worrall was appointed Officer of the Order of Canada in 1976. He was inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame in 1987, into the Olympic Sports Hall of Fame in 1991.
    In 2004, James Worrall donated the personal papers and records from his lifetime involvement in the Olympic Movement, the IOC, and the Canadian Olympic Association to the International Centre for Olympic Studies.
    Jim was a regular visitor at the Centre's International Symposia for Olympic Studies. His presence will be missed.