Bruce Pirnie

Bruce Pirnie was born in Boston, Massachusetts and grew up in the nearby town of Dover. When Pirnie was nine his family moved to Vermont before he moved to South Dakota to attend Yankton College. Whilst at college he was a good sportsman and focused on track and field. In a bold move he gave up his US citizenship to compete in the shot put for Canada. He was selected to compete at the 1972 München Olympics where he also captained the track and field team. Although he qualified for the final, he was unable to improve on his first round effort, finishing a disappointing 17th.

After the Olympics, however, Pirnie’s performances improved, and he won bronze at the 1974 Commonwealth Games, followed by gold at the 1975 Pan American Games, the same year as his gold medal he set a Canadian record in the event with 19.88 metres. The following year he competed at the 1976 Montréal Olympics but again had a poor performance at the Games, finishing 20th. Pirnie then had a successful coaching career that included being the head coach at the University of Manitoba, director of the National Coaching Institute, and the national development director for Athletics Canada. He was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame in 1987.

Personal Best: SP – 19.88 (1975).