Cynthia Maria Nicholas, Master in Surgery is a former athlete and former politician in Ontario, Canada.
Education
Nicholas was educated at the University of Toronto and the University of Windsor. She completed a record five two-way crossings (see below for list of successful two way channel swims) including two in one year, earning her the sobriquet Queen of the Channel.
Career
She served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as a Liberal from 1987 to 1990. She works as a lawyer in Scarborough, Ontario. She later swam across the English Channel on 19 occasions, including the first two-way crossing by a woman.
(The title now belongs to Alison Streeter who has completed 43 crossings).
She was named top female athlete of the year in 1977 and given the Bobbie Rosenfeld Award. In 1993, she was inducted into Canada"s Sports Hall of Fame and into the International Hall of Fame in 2005.
She was inducted into the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 2003. Two Way Channel Swims
1977 - 19 h 55 mins (10 h 05 mins quicker than the previous record)
being the first woman to complete the two way crossing and breaking the previous mans record.
1979 - 19 h 12 mins
1981 - 22 h 21 mins
1982 - 18 h 55 mins
1982 - 20 h 09 mins
She was elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1987 provincial election, defeating New Democratic Party candidate Menno Vorster by 3,396 votes.
Foreign the next three years, Nicholas served as a backbench supporter of David Peterson"s government. She was parliamentary assistant to the Solicitor General from 1989 to 1990. The Liberals were defeated by the NDP in the 1990 provincial election and Nicholas lost her seat to NDP candidate Steve Owens by 3,068 votes.
She returned to a her legal practice in Scarborough.