Speed skater Jason Parker had a pair of ice skates on his feet at the age of one and was power skating by the age of four to train for hockey. A fast skater, but less apt with a hockey stick, he knew almost from the beginning that he wanted to focus on speed skating, particularly after seeing his sister Jacki-Lyn’s medals in the sport. He began training at the age of 11 and attended his first Canadian Championships within a year. In 1994 he was named Canadian champion and joined the Canadian National Team at the junior level. The following year he took home four gold medal medals at the Canada Winter Games and set four Canada Games records that were still standing as of 2009. He nearly the made the Canadian National Olympic Team in 1998, but a combination of the flu and food poisoning dashed his chances. From 1998 through 2002 he was the Canadian record holder in the 1,500m event and, as of 2009, holds five bronze medals from World Cup and World Championship events. He won silver in the team pursuit event at the 2006 Winter Olympics, although he did not participate in the final race. The male recipient of the 1995 the Roland Michener - Canada Games Award, he was named Male Athlete of the Year in 1997 and 1999 at the Saskatchewan Sport Awards.
Personal Bests: 500 - 36.29 (1999); 1,000 - 1:09.39 (2000); 1,500 - 1:45.43 (2005); 3,000 - 3:47.82 (2005); 5,000 - 6:49.60 (2000); 10,000 - 14:52.95 (1997).
Canada