Marnie Elizabeth McBean, (born January 28, 1968) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

former

rower Rowing, often called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars (called blades in the United Kingdom) are attached to the boat using rowlocks, while paddles are ...

. She is a three-time Olympic gold medallist. In 2023, she was appointed to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada () is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, they compose the Bicameralism, bicameral le ...

Rowing career

A graduate of the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO; branded as Western University) is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thame ...

, McBean competed at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics (, ), officially the Games of the XXV Olympiad (, ) and officially branded as Barcelona '92, were an international multi-sport event held from 25 July to 9 August 1992 in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Beginning in 1994 ...

in the coxless pairs and eights events, winning gold medals in both. In 1994, McBean won the Princess Royal Challenge Cup (the premier women's singles sculls event) at the

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a Rowing (sport), rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It diffe ...

, rowing for the Western Middlesex RC. At the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

she competed in the double and quadruple sculls, winning gold in the double and bronze in the quadruple. With her long-time rowing partner Kathleen Heddle, she was the first Canadians to win three Olympic Gold medals. In addition to her other exploits, McBean won a Silver medal in the prestigious single scull event at the 1993

World Rowing Championships The World Rowing Championships is an international Rowing (sport), rowing regatta organized by International Rowing Federation, FISA (the International Rowing Federation). It is a week-long event held at the end of the northern hemisphere summer ...

. At the

2000 Sydney Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

, McBean was set to represent Canada in the single scull and she had hoped to win a fourth gold medal. After travelling to Australia, a back injury which eventually required an operation forced McBean to withdraw from the Olympics and McBean decided to retire from international competition.

Accolades and personal life

In 1997, McBean was inducted into the

Canadian Sports Hall of Fame Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (; sometimes referred to as the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame) is a Canadian sports hall of fame and museum in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Dedicated to the history of sports in Canada, it serves as a hall of fame and muse ...

. In 2002, McBean was awarded the

Thomas Keller Medal The Thomas Keller Medal is given by the World Rowing Federation (FISA) for an outstanding international career in the sport of rowing. It is the highest honor in rowing and is awarded to any athlete within five years of his/her retirement from the ...

FISA The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA, , ) is a United States federal law that establishes procedures for the surveillance and collection of foreign intelligence on domestic soil.

, the International Rowing Federation, for her outstanding career in international rowing. In 1997, she was awarded the

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: Singapore *Pingat Jasa Gemilang, or Meritorious Services Me ...

(civil division). In 2013, she was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

. She has been appointed as ''

chef de mission In diplomatic usage, head of mission (HOM) or chief of mission (COM) from the French "chef de mission diplomatique" (CMD) is the head of a diplomatic representation, such as an ambassador, high commissioner, nuncio, chargé d'affaires, permanen ...

'' of Canada's team at the 2020 Olympic Games, to be held in Tokyo. After retiring from active competition, McBean began coming out as

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

in her personal life. She met her partner Deanah Shelly in 2010, and the couple married in April 2014. They have a daughter named Isabel. In 2015, McBean was presented the Bonham Centre Award from The Mark S. Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies, University of Toronto, for her contributions to the advancement and education of issues around sexual identification.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:McBean, Marnie 1968 births Living people Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Canadian female rowers Canadian people of Scottish descent Officers of the Order of Canada Olympic bronze medalists for Canada Olympic gold medalists for Canada Olympic rowers for Canada Rowers from Vancouver Recipients of the Meritorious Service Decoration Rowers at the 1992 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 1996 Summer Olympics University of Western Ontario alumni Olympic medalists in rowing Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Canadian lesbian sportswomen Canadian lesbian politicians Pan American Games gold medalists for Canada Pan American Games gold medalists in rowing Thomas Keller Medal recipients LGBTQ rowers Rowers at the 1995 Pan American Games Rowers at the 1999 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1995 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1999 Pan American Games 20th-century Canadian LGBTQ people 21st-century Canadian LGBTQ people Canadian senators from Ontario Canadian LGBTQ senators Independent Senators Group Women members of the Senate of Canada Canadian sportsperson-politicians 21st-century Canadian women politicians 21st-century members of the Senate of Canada 20th-century Canadian sportswomen