FREDERICTON – The Canadian Paralympic Committee mourns the passing of three-time Paralympian Hal Merrill who died last week. He was 60.
A three-time Paralympic Games bronze medallist in Para athletics from Charter’s Settlement, N.B., Merrill was also known as a great ambassador for the Paralympic Movement and for Canadians with a disability, especially in his home province.
He was inducted into the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame in 2012 and was the province’s male athlete of the year in 1996 and 2000. “He just never went around ‘why me? Why me?’ and it actually, in his own words, made his life better because it got him into sports,” said his wife Tracey Merrill to the Telegraph-Journal.
Merrill won bronze medals in shot put and javelin at the 1992 Paralympics, a third bronze in shot put in Atlanta four years later. He also competed at Sydney 2000 where he posted fifth place finishes in the javelin and discus.
“He was always giving back to the community,’’ said Sally Hutt, executive director of Para Sport NB. Merrill was a 10-year national team member and won 12 international medals overall in his career. He broke world records three times. Born in Fredericton, Merrill grew up in New Maryland. He was injured in a car crash at age 15. The CPC extends its condolences to his family and friends.