McGregor was born in Forest, Ontario - a town of 3000 people an hour west of London - on March 11, 1994. Like any Canadian kid, he had a passion for hockey that carried him through to the AAA level, but a spindle cell sarcoma diagnosis after breaking his leg at the age of 15 led to McGregor receiving nine months of chemotherapy before the decision was made to amputate his left leg two months before his 16th birthday. Needless to say, the dream of playing hockey looked like it may have ended at that point.
McGregor was never one to give up, though. He learned to walk again thanks to a prosthetic leg, and joined a standing amputee hockey team as he looked to continue his athletic pursuits. His former AAA coaches urged McGregor to try sledge hockey as well, and he showed incredible skill on the sled after joining a team in Ontario in 2011. In 2012, his upward trajectory saw him land on the Canadian National Para Hockey Team at age 18 where he made his debut at the 2012 World Sledge Hockey Challenge, helping Canada win a silver medal.
In 2013, he continued to impress as he was the youngest member of the Canadian team that won the gold medal at the 2013 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships. In 2014, he represented Canada for the first time at the Paralympic Games in Sochi, Russia where he helped Canada capture a bronze medal. Since that time, he's been a mainstay on the Canadian roster, helping the team capture one gold medal and two silver medals at the IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships and a silver medal at each of the 2018 Paralympic Games and 2022 Paralympic games. In 2019, Tyler McGregor was named as captain of the Canadian National Para Hockey Team.
Off the ice, McGregor is an advocate for mental health through Movember Canada, he previously raised $25,000 for the Terry Fox Foundation, and he's working towards his goal of $100,000 for the Terry Fox Foundation this year with his Sledge Skate of Hope across ten provinces. Being that Terry Fox was born in Winnipeg, it seems almost perfect that McGregor is coming here on Saturday to help raise funds for a charity that has raised $850 million for cancer research initiatives.
His passion for hockey and the similarity of his own injury to that of Terry Fox's injury prompted McGregor to give back in his own way.
"You know, I knew I wanted to give back to the Terry Fox Foundation and honour his legacy. And then I wanted to align it with another one of my passions, that being hockey," McGregor told CTV London. "In each of the 10 provinces, I am going to skate 42 kilometres, so the length of a marathon, which is what Terry did every single day, which is incredible to think about."
Honestly, what Tyler McGregor is doing is rather incredible, and he's already sitting at $43,363 of the $100,000 goal he set. This is why you should come out on Saturday if you can - he can use the support in terms of cheering him on and achieving his goal! If you can't make it down to The Forks on Saturday, though, you can still help out by donating through Tyler McGregor's donation page. His skate on Saturday will go up and down the Nestaweya River Trail, though, so bring your skates and join Tyler as he goes 42 kilometers on Winnipeg's most famous waterway!
"It’s amazing," McGregor said to Joanne McQuarrie of The Columbia Valley Pioneer of the crowds coming to see him skate the 42 kilometers. "It's been very uplifting — it seems each marathon has grown bigger in terms of participation."
It's our turn this weekend, Winnipeg, so let's get out and support Tyler's Sledge Skate of Hope as he inspires us to donate some serious cash to the Terry Fox Foundation for cancer research!
Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!
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