Robert James Speers (September 3, 1882 – July 19, 1955) was a Canadian businessman and Canada's Sports Hall of Fame inductee who made a major contribution to the growth of Thoroughbred horse racing in Western Canada.
[3] Born in Elmbank, Ontario, James Speers moved to Winnipeg in 1900.
In 1920 he headed a partnership that leased and operated the River Park race track.
His Whittier Park Stock Farm not only won races at his own track but at the hub of Canadian racing in Toronto where his colt Lord Fairmond notably won a division of the 1948 Plate Trial Stakes and the Prince of Wales Stakes.
[6] James Speers died of a heart attack at age 72 in 1955 [7] and was buried in Winnipeg's Elmwood Cemetery.