Mark Leduc
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's Boxing | ||
Competitor for  Canada
| ||
| Olympic Games | ||
.svg.png){kind=icon} | 1992 Barcelona | Light Welterweight |
Mark Leduc (May 4, 1962 – July 22, 2009) was a boxer from Canada, who won a silver medal at the 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics.
Amateur career
- Amateur Record: 158-26
- Won an Olympic Silver Medal 1992 for Canada.
Olympic results
- Defeated Godfrey Wakaabu (Uganda) 9-2
- Defeated Dillon Carew (Guyana) 5-0
- Defeated Laid Bouneb (Algeria) 8-1
- Defeated Leonard Dorin (Romania) 13-6
- Lost to Héctor Vinent (Cuba) 1-11
Professional boxing career
Leduc turned pro in 1992 and had limited success. He retired in 1993 with a record of 4-1-0 after losing to Michel Galarneau.
Retirement and coming out
In 1993, Leduc spoke about being a gay athlete in CBC Radio's documentary "The Last Closet", which aired on the weekly sports series The Inside Track;[1] as he was not yet ready to officially come out, the interview was aired anonymously and recorded through a voice filter. Another Canadian athlete who would also subsequently come out as gay, Mark Tewksbury, also granted an anonymous interview to the same program.[1] In 1994, Leduc officially came out as gay in the TV documentary For the Love of the Game, one of the few boxers ever to do so.[2] He also later volunteered as a speaker and mentor for various LGBT youth groups.[1]
He attended Toronto’s Pride Parade in 1999 as grand marshal with Savoy Howe. Leduc worked for and volunteered with the Toronto People with AIDS Foundation, later becoming a set-builder and construction worker in the film industry.
Leduc died on July 22, 2009 in Toronto. He had collapsed in the sauna of a local hotel, and doctors suggested that his death may have resulted from heat stroke.[3]
References
- 1 2 3 Iorfida, Chris (July 24, 2009). "Leduc remembered as Olympic champ, gay role model". CBC Sports. Retrieved 2012-02-21.
- ↑ Koymasky, Matt & Andrej (July 25, 2009). "Mark Leduc". The Living Room: Biographies. Retrieved 2012-02-21.
- ↑ Wong, Danielle (July 24, 2009). "Mark Leduc, 47: Gay athlete, Olympic medallist". Toronto Star (Torstar). Retrieved 2012-02-21.