The Canadian Corps Sports Day

A grand event on July 1, 1918 on the Western Front

By July 1918, the war had been dragging on for nearly four years. Thousands had died, many more thousands were wounded. Back home, friends and family worried about their loved ones serving in France.

But for one day, a few months before the end of the war, all the danger and pain was forgotten.

It was the Canadian Corps Sports Day, an event that drew dignitaries, press and thousands of soldiers.

On Dominion Day 1918, Canadian soldiers celebrated the birthday of their home country by playing a lot of sports. For the soldiers, it was a great way to burn away the stress they were feeling at the front lines. For the military leaders, it was a way to keep morale up among the soldiers who had been fighting for years.

Among the attendees were Prime Minister Sir Robert Border, the former Governor General of Canada - Duke of Connaught, General John Pershing and General Arthur Currie. Along with the dignitaries, about 40,000 to 50,000 people crowded into the area for the events.

To provide a place for everyone to watch the events, a massive stadium was built by Canadian Military Engineers, which could seat 6,000 people. The YMCA provided food and drink, which included 50,000 cups of soft drinks for free, and a further 5,000 plates of eggs and chips.

Music was played for attendees, and the events included football (soccer), baseball and track and field. In the air, pilots such as Billy Bishop delighted the crowd with his daredevil antics.

No scores were kept, or at least not recorded, as most everything as being played just for fun between the various divisions and battalions.

Following the grand event, everyone made their way back to their positions and posts. Of the 40,000 who attended and watched the festivities, hundreds would never make it home from the war and thousands would carry the injuries from coming battles in the Hundred Days Offensive for years, or even the rest of their lives.

But for one shining day, they could enjoy forgetting about the war and just enjoying sports among their fellow Brothers In Arms.