Accomplishing individual bests in school, at home, at work and through life, and doing it the “Canadian way,” are messages Tyler McGregor left with Harris Mill Public School students on Nov. 30.
McGregor, 21, a Paralympic sledge hockey player for Team Canada, was invited to talk to students at Harris Mill and at Rockwood Centennial Public School about perseverance and self-motivation.
“Tyler lost his right leg when it was amputated because of something called spindle cell sarcoma, which is a form of cancer,” RBC branch manager Lisa Porterfield told students as she introduced McGregor.
“He began playing sledge hockey in 2011 and previously he played AAA hockey.”
A London native, McGregor said that he watched the OHL draft he would have been qualified for on his computer at the hospital when he was out of his amputation surgery.
He was 15 years old.
“After … waking up from my surgery I remember just being scared to look down,” McGregor told students.
“I don’t know how many visitors came into the hospital … I was just so insecure about the fact that I lost my leg, I put a pillow in the place of my leg just to kind of make it look like my leg was still there and I did that for the entire week.”
It took his mom telling him his life would go on and that he was healthy for him to believe it. But it wasn’t easy.
He depended on his family for motivation and he thanked his younger self for falling in love with hockey.
“Even though I was probably a terrible skater, couldn’t even shoot a puck, somehow I still enjoyed it and allowed myself to fall in love with it and pursue a career in that and I’m very thankful for that,” McGregor said.
In 2013, McGregor was a rookie member of the team Canada sledge hockey team that won gold in the world championships in Korea.
“It was frustrating because I was used to playing hockey at a high level and I was used to being a good player and then suddenly I started a new sport and I was back to square one,” McGregor said.
“I was the worst player on the ice. I couldn’t balance or even shoot a puck for the first three weeks I couldn’t get the puck off the ice so it was frustrating but I enjoyed the challenge that it brought me and that’s kind of what I think made me fall in love with this.”
His next year in sledge hockey was an Olympic year with its own unique set of challenges.
“Everything you do on a day-to-day basis is just magnified by a thousand and you know suddenly there’s a ton of media in your face and for me … I grew up in the town of Forest, Ontario and I’d never been in front of a camera before, I’d never been in front of a crowd speaking before so it was a crazy whirlwind of stuff coming at you,” he said.
In addition, his training schedule was increased because he said the team’s goal was to bring home a gold medal. Unfortunately, team Canada lost to the U.S. in the semi-finals in Sochi, but won the bronze medal game. Now, McGregor said, the team is working to become a contender at the 2018 Paralympics in PyeongChang, South Korea.
Tyler is also pursuing post secondary education, taking two classes this semester at the University of Guelph in leadership and organizational management.
“I fully understand that when I’m 30, 35 years old I might not have the opportunity to go represent Canada at the Olympics so you have to think about, you always have to think about what’s next and I truly believe in the value of education and I think it’s super important,” he said.
McGregor also indicated that Sports have helped with is work ethic and his efficiency in his studies.
“When you’re a student with a full training schedule … I don’t have 20 hours a week to study so if you have four hours you have to make the most of that so you just get rid of all distractions, get rid of the TV, get rid of your phone and just focus on homework.”
McGregor is currently part of Team Canada and is looking forward to 2018 Paralympics.
“It’s always an honour to play for your country and to be able to play the sport I love and the sport I always dreamed of playing,” he said.
