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As a junior water polo player in British Columbia, Kitimat-born Gordon Van Tol earned the nickname Dinger.
If you saw him in the water, you certainly understood why.

"It's water polo slang for when a guy shoots at the net, and puts it in off the post. He was such a sharpshooter," said Ottawa's David Hart, who was involved with the rebuilding of the Canadian senior men's water polo team here following Canada's boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.

At the 1984 Summer Olympics, Van Tol, who lived in Ottawa for almost the past 30 years, was definitely a goal scorer. In seven games in Los Angeles, he scored one goal in three pool matches, and four goals in three classification games.

Canada finished 10th overall at the 1984 Games. But if the national team hadn't allowed The Netherlands to score two goals in the final 90 seconds for a 10-9 victory, the Canadians would have placed in a top-six position.

Van Tol, a fit record-setting swimmer with the Nepean Masters Swim Club who played an exhibition water polo match for the Carleton University alumni earlier this month, died Monday from a heart attack. He was 49.

"He was a great playmaker," Hart added. "He was one of those guys who was as good on defence as he was on the attack.

"Gord also was very intense, focused and one of the classiest individuals you'd ever meet. Those qualities endeared him to his teammates and the players on other teams.

Roy Gunell, one of Canada's most accomplished referees and an international referee for more than 30 years, called him 'a class act.'"

Van Tol, who worked for Assantes Capital Management, also occasionally volunteered to assist the Ottawa Titans Water Polo Club.

He used his goal-scoring ability to help the Titans finish fourth at the 1987 Canadian senior men's A championship, and was named to the all-star team.

From 2003 to 2007, Van Tol gave motivational talks to young players, helped those with national team aspirations and worked at summer camps.

During Van Tol's national water polo career, he also won a bronze medal at the 1983 Pan Am Games, was sixth at the 1983 World University Games, and 14th at the 1982 world championships.

Gabor Csepregi, the Canadian men's head coach from 1980-84, invited Van Tol to join the team in 1980 at age 20. Van Tol was a starter three years later in 1983, but retired from the national team after the 1984 Olympics.

Van Tol, who earned a BA in commerce at Carleton University, was a naturally talented athlete and also played hockey, basketball and soccer.

Csepregi called him reliable, balanced and a solid person.

"In a critical moment, I could put him in the heat of a game," he said. "Had he stayed in the game, he would have been one of the best in Canada and North America. He was a natural athlete, who had great talent.

"I met him 10 years ago at the Nepean Sportsplex and he said water polo and the team brought him so much. He said he acquired so much skill to help him in his business, especially discipline."

Van Tol also used his swimming talent to excel as a masters-aged swimmer. In 2005, he joined Barry Doucette, Richard Arsenault and Josh Swedlove to set an Ontario masters long-course 4x200-metre freestyle relay record in the 160-199 (combined age) division. Their time was 10 minutes, 2.6 seconds.

"Those who knew Gord will remember him for his extremely positive spirit and gentle manner," said Anthony Woods, president of the Nepean Masters Swim Club, in an e-mail.

"A former Olympian, Gord was one of those people you could always count on to be happy at 6 a.m. I know from the flood of e-mails ... that I am only one of a great deal of people (who) will miss him terribly."

Steve Papai, a coach who shared the same training lane with Van Tol, remembered him "as the nicest guy you'd ever meet."

Van Tol is survived by his wife Michelle and two daughters. Funeral arrangements haven't been completed.