Chantal Petitclerc

Athlete

• Born: December 15, 1969
• Place of Birth: Saint-Marc-des-Carrières, Quebec

Contribution: Chantal Petitclerc is a Canadian athlete and wheelchair racer. Her many accomplishments include numerous Paralympic medals and multiple world records. After an accident as a teenager left her paraplegic, she rose to international fame through her passion and dedication to her sport.

Early Life and Education

Chantal Petitclerc was born on December 15, 1969, in Saint-Marc-des-Carrières, Quebec. When she was thirteen, she and a friend built a bicycle ramp out of an old barn door. As the two attempted to prop up the door, it fell on Petitclerc and broke her spine, paralyzing her from the hips down. The accident became a driving force in Petitclerc’s life; while she was still in high school, her gym teacher encouraged her to take up swimming in order to build strength, and the sport introduced her to the joy of racing. She went on to study social sciences at Cégep de Sainte-Foy before transferring to the University of Alberta, where she majored in history.

Athletic Career

Petitclerc discovered her passion for wheelchair racing while training at the Centre de Réadaptation François-Charron. It was there that she met Pierre Pomerleau, a famous trainer of wheelchair athletes. He became Petitclerc’s first trainer and prepared her for competition.

Petitclerc began competing in 1988 in Sherbrooke, Quebec, where she earned the distinction of most promising racer. She won the Winnipeg Marathon in 1989 and the Toronto Marathon in 1990, then entered her first international competition in 1991. The following year, Petitclerc competed in the Paralympics in Barcelona, where she earned two bronze medals.

In 1995, she once again competed in Canada, winning the Montreal Marathon. The following year, she entered the Paralympic Games in Atlanta. Petitclerc won two gold medals and two silver medals, broke the 200-meter Canadian record, and set a new 100-meter world record for wheelchair racing. In 1997, Petitclerc returned to marathons and once again won in Toronto.

Over the next decade, Petitclerc surpassed her earlier accomplishments. She competed at the Sydney Games in 2000 and won two gold and two silver medals. She also added another marathon victory to her list, winning the Ottawa Marathon in 2000. Three years later, in 2003, Canada’s governor general awarded Petitclerc the Meritorious Service Medal.

In 2004, Petitclerc entered the Paralympics in Athens. There, she won five Paralympic gold medals and set three more world records. In addition, at the Olympics that year, which featured wheelchair racing as a demonstration sport, she won the 800-meter race. She was even chosen by fellow Canadian competitors to carry the Canadian flag during the closing ceremonies. Maclean’s named her Canadian of the Year, and La Presse newspaper named her Personality of the Year. The following year, she received numerous honors, including the Laureus World Sports Award and an appointment to chevalière (knight) of the National Order of Quebec.

In 2008, Petitclerc competed in the Beijing Games and won five gold medals. During these games, she set two new world records and one new Paralympic record. Petitclerc was the first female Paralympian inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame, in 2010, and the first Canadian in history to win Olympic, Paralympic, and Commonwealth Game gold medals.

Petitclerc received the Lou Marsh Trophy, awarded each year to Canada’s best athlete, in 2008; the following year, she became a companion of the Order of Canada and was given an honorary doctorate from the University of Ottawa and a star in Canada’s Walk of Fame. In 2012, she was named Canada’s chef de mission for the 2014 Commonwealth Games and awarded a second honorary doctorate, this one from the University of Alberta, her alma mater. She also served as Canada's chef de mission for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Paralympic Games.

Also in 2016, Petitclerc was added to the Senate of Canada at the request of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. She used her office to advocate for the rights of disabled persons and for overall health for Canadians.

Personal Life

Petitclerc married electro-acoustic composer James Duhamel in 2011. Their son, Elliot, was born in December 2013.

Bibliography

Ewing, Lori. “Chantal Petitclerc Named Canada’s Chef de Mission for 2014 Commonwealth Games.” Toronto Star. Toronto Star, 29 Sept. 2012. Web. 5 Aug. 2013.

Harris, Kathleen. "Chantal Petitclerc, Murray Sinclair Among 7 New Trudeau-Appointed senators." CBC News, 18 Mar. 2016, www.cbc.ca/news/politics/senate-appointments-liberal-1.3496977. Accessed 18 Sept. 2024.

Kingston, Gary. “Canada’s Golden Girl.” Ottawa Citizen. Postmedia Network, 24 Sept. 2008. Web. 5 Aug. 2013.

Morris, Jim. “Wheelchair Racer Chantal Petitclerc Voted Athlete of the Year.” Toronto Star. Toronto Star, 26 Dec. 2008. Web. 5 Aug. 2013.

"Senator Petitclerc, Chantal." Senate of Canada, sencanada.ca/en/senators/petitclerc-chantal/. Accessed 18 Sept. 2024.

Todd, Jack. “Chantal Petitclerc: The Drive to Succeed.” Gazette [Montreal]. Postmedia Network, 25 Jan. 2007. Web. 5 Aug. 2013.

Wong, Jan. “Chantal Petitclerc, 2004.” Globe and Mail. Globe and Mail, 17 Nov. 2009. Web. 5 Aug. 2013.