Denis Orval Lapalme (April 29, 1959 – November 1, 2021) was a Canadian amputee athlete and actor, most noted as a competitor and medalist at the

Paralympic Games The Paralympic Games or Paralympics is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disability, disabilities. There are Winter Paralympic Games, Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 ...

.Robert Lagacé
"Denis Lapalme heureux d'avoir vécu dans le «secret» sur grand écran"
''

L'Acadie Nouvelle ''L'Acadie Nouvelle'' is an independent French newspaper published in Caraquet, New Brunswick, Canada since June 6, 1984. It is published from Monday through Saturday and is the only French-language daily newspaper in New Brunswick. History ...

'', October 13, 2015. Born in

Timmins Timmins ( ) is a city in northeastern Ontario, Canada, located on the Mattagami River. The city is the fourth-largest city in the Northeastern Ontario region with a population of 41,145 at the 2021 Canadian census and an estimated population of ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Lapalme lost both legs in a train accident in childhood.Randy Phillips, "Lapalme leads way to Defi crown". ''

Montreal Gazette ''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the only English-language daily newspape ...

'', May 5, 1997. As an adult he was based principally in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

, where he has worked as a civil servant.

Athletic career

He competed in swimming at the

1976 Summer Paralympics The 1976 Summer Paralympics (), branded as Torontolympiad – 1976 Olympiad for the Physically Disabled, was the fifth Paralympic Games to be held. They were hosted by Toronto, Ontario, Canada, from 3 to 11 August 1976, marking the first time a ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, winning a bronze medal in the men's 100-metre freestyle and a silver in the men's 100-metre breaststroke. At the

1980 Summer Paralympics The 1980 Summer Paralympics (), branded as the Olympics for the Disabled, were the sixth Summer Paralympic Games. They were held in Arnhem, Netherlands, from 21 to 30 June 1980. Background The Soviet Union, hosts of the 1980 Summer Olympics, wer ...

Arnhem Arnhem ( ; ; Central Dutch dialects, Ernems: ''Èrnem'') is a Cities of the Netherlands, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands, near the German border. It is the capita ...

, Netherlands, he competed in both track and swimming, winning gold medals in the men's 100-metre sprint, javelin and 100-meter backstroke, a silver medal in the 100-metre breaststroke, and a bronze medal in the 100-metre freestyle. Lapalme competed on the men's wheelchair basketball team at both the

1988 Summer Paralympics The 1988 Summer Paralympics () were the first Paralympics in 24 years to take place in the same city as the 1988 Summer Olympics, Olympic Games. They took place in Seoul, South Korea. This was the first time the term "Paralympic" was used officia ...

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

and the

1992 Summer Paralympics The 1992 Summer Paralympics (; ) were the ninth Paralympic Games to be held. They were held in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. In addition, the 1992 Paralympic Games for Persons with mental handicap were held immediately after the regular Paralymp ...

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, Spain. but the team did not medal at either event. He also competed nationally and internationally in other track and wheelchair basketball competitions below the Paralympic level, including at the

IWAS World Games The World Abilitysport Games (known as the IWAS World Games before 2023) are a parasports multi-sport event for athletes who use wheelchairs or are amputees. Organized by World Abilitysport (formerly IWAS), the Games are a successor to the origina ...

in 1979. Although no longer active as a Paralympic competitor after 1992, he remained involved in sports as late as the early 2010s as captain of the Ottawa Sledgehammers, the city's

sledge hockey Sledge hockey, also known as Sled hockey in American English, and Para ice hockey in international competition, is an Parasports, adaptation of ice hockey for players who have a physical disability. The sport was invented in the early 1960s at a ...

team. Lapalme died on November 1, 2021, in Hull, Quebec at the age of 62 of brain cancer.

Acting

Following the end of his Paralympic career he was cast in his first acting role, as Jerome of Sandy Cove in

Phil Comeau Phil Comeau (born 1956) is a Canadian film and television director, born in Saulnierville, Nova Scotia. He lives in Moncton, New Brunswick and Montreal, Quebec. Biography Phil Comeau is a film and television director and scriptwriter, based i ...

's 1994 film ''

Jerome's Secret ''Jerome's Secret'' () is a Canadian drama film, directed by Phil Comeau and released in 1994. The first-ever Acadian feature film, it dramatizes the story of Jerome, a mysterious man who washed up on a beach at Baie-Sainte-Marie, Nova Scotia, m ...

''."The Acadian Tale About A Mysterious Amputee". ''

Canada AM ''Canada AM'' is a Canadian morning television news show that aired on CTV from 1972 to 2016. Its final hosts were Beverly Thomson and Marci Ien, with Jeff Hutcheson presenting the weather forecast and sports. The program aired on weekdays, an ...

'', March 30, 1995. He subsequently had small parts in the films '' Bleeders'' and ''

Two Lovers and a Bear ''Two Lovers and a Bear'' is a 2016 Canadian drama film written and directed by Kim Nguyen and starring Tatiana Maslany and Dane DeHaan. It was screened in the Directors' Fortnight section at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. The film was release ...

'', and an episode of the television series '' F/X: The Series''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lapalme, Denis 1959 births 2021 deaths Track and field athletes from Ottawa Canadian amputees Canadian male film actors Canadian male television actors Paralympic swimmers for Canada Paralympic wheelchair basketball players for Canada Paralympic track and field athletes for Canada Paralympic gold medalists for Canada Paralympic silver medalists for Canada Paralympic bronze medalists for Canada Athletes (track and field) at the 1980 Summer Paralympics Swimmers at the 1976 Summer Paralympics Swimmers at the 1980 Summer Paralympics Wheelchair basketball players at the 1988 Summer Paralympics Wheelchair basketball players at the 1992 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 1976 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 1980 Summer Paralympics Sportspeople from Timmins Swimmers from Ottawa Male actors from Ottawa Amputee actors Canadian sledge hockey players Javelin throwers with limb difference Canadian male wheelchair racers Franco-Ontarian people Canadian actors with disabilities Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field) Paralympic medalists in swimming 20th-century Canadian sportsmen