Mark Tewksbury, the Canadian gold medallist in the men's 100m backstroke from the 1992 Summer Olympic Games in Barcelona, Spain, has been named Canada's chef de mission for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London, Great Britain.
In 1992, Tewksbury, born and raised in Calgary, defeated American Jeff Rouse by .06 seconds to capture gold. He also won gold in the 100m backstroke at the 1987 Pan Pacific Championships in Brisbane, Australia.
Other Olympic medals for Tewksbury included winning a silver medal in the men's 4x100m relay at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea and a bronze medal in the men's 4x100m relay at the Barcelona Olympics in 1992.
A board member of the Gay and Lesbian Athletics Foundation, Tewksbury announced to the Canadian public in 1998 he was gay. Over the last decade, he has been a major advocate worldwide for gay rights.
According to CTV News, Tewksbury says being in the top 12 in the medal standings is the Canadian goal. At the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, Canada finished 15th with 18 medals-- 3 gold, 9 silver and 6 bronze.
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