Jamie McEwan, the whitewater canoe racer whose skill inspired a generation of paddlers, lost his
battle with cancer on Sunday, June 14th. He was 61. In 1972 Jamie, then 19, won a bronze medal in
C-1 Slalom at the Olympic games in Munich, Germany. That medal, the first won by an American,
inspired many younger paddlers (including several future medalists) to train hard and become
champions. Twenty years later, he teamed up with partner Lecky Haller to finish 4th in C-2 Slalom
at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. His astonishing career continued when, in 2001, he made the U.S.
Whitewater Team paddling C-2 with his son Devin. He also participated in serious river
expeditions to Mexico, British Columbia, Bhutan, and Tibet. Recently he helped create
the Whitewater Slalom Foundation, which supports for a network of Regional Junior Whitewater
Teams to encourage youth participation in the sport. He will be greatly missed by all who knew
him.
