A versatile athlete, Sandy Robertson excelled in baseball and basketball in the 1940s and 1950s, as well as enjoying rowing, rugby and soccer. In the 1960s he went on to become a successful squash champion.
Sandy was named “Vancouver’s Sportsman of the Year” and UBC’s “Athlete of the Year” in 1946. He was elected to the Vancouver Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969. Sandy is also the father of BC Sports Hall of Famer Bruce Robertson, who was inducted for swimming in 1978.
The elder Robertson pitched with the St. Regis (1941-42) and Arnold & Quigley (1943-1945) baseball teams of the Vancouver Senior League. He was signed by the Boston Red Sox in 1945.
He played basketball with UBC Thunderbirds from 1943-46 (named Best First Year Player in 1943 and MVP in 1945) and with the all-star Laurie Pirates that won the 1945 Western Canadian championship.
In 1946, Robertson was offered a pro contract with the Portland Beavers of the Pacific Coast League but decided instead to play pro baseball with the Louisville Colonels (American Association) and with Durham (Carolina League).
Robertson played pro baseball with the Vancouver Capilanos (Western International League) from 1947-52, earning most valuable player in 1950.
While playing on the Vancouver Meralomas Robertson won the 1947 Canadian basketball championships. He played with the Vancouver Clover Leafs basketball team from 1948-53, taking four Canadian championships (1948-50, 1952). He earned MVP honours in 1948. The Clover Leafs were BC champions in 1951 and Western Canadian champions in 1953.
Robertson played soccer with the Vancouver City soccer team in the Pacific Coast League in 1952.
From 1962-71, he was involved in squash, winning 21 individual regional (Northwest) titles. He took the BC championship title in 1963 and 1965 and became the first Canadian to win the Pacific Coast championship in 1964. In 1968, he was ranked number three in Canada.
Robertson is also inducted in the UBC Sports Hall of Fame. For his UBC biography, please visit www.ubcsportshalloffame.com