Earle Connor

Earle Connor (born July 30, 1976) is a Canadian Paralympic amputee sprinter. Connor holds several athletics world records in the class of T42, or above-knee, amputee.

Early life

Earle Connor was born July 30, 1976 in Castlegar, British Columbia to Dave and Diane Connor. Because he was born without a left fibula, his left leg was amputated above-the-knee when he was 3 months old. At the age of 9 months Earle was fitted with his first prosthetic leg.

Growing up in rural Saskatchewan, Connor played all available sports, excelling at hockey, tennis and baseball, and graduated from Rosthern Junior College. Connor was the first amputee ever drafted into the Canadian Junior Hockey system as a goaltender.

Paralympic career

Connor was inspired by watching television coverage of the 1996 Summer Paralympics to become an amputee sprinter with the goal of competing at the 2000 Summer Paralympics. At the 2000 Paralympics in Sydney, he took gold in the 100-metre final, but finished second in the 200 metres when a misstep on the first corner cost him a few seconds.

He returned to the Paralympics in 2008, winning gold in the men's T42 100 m sprint and setting a new Paralympic record time of 12.32 seconds.

On April 5th, 2016 he was suspended from competition for four years by the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport after nandrolone was found in a urine sample. While the suspension is in effect, Connor may not participate in any sport that is part of the Canadian Anti-Doping Program. This ban includes a ban on training with teammates until until July 29th, 2019.

He had failed a similar test in 2004, resulting in a ban which caused him to miss the 2004 Paralympic Games.

Connor disappointed a group of friends in SE Calgary very much in 2016. They thought more of him and hope he has learned a lesson from his actions.

• 1997: Canadian Disabled Athlete of the Year (also won in 1998 and 1999)
• 2000: inductee, Calgary's Sports Hall of Fame