Mark Anthony Graham

Mark Anthony Graham (May 17, 1973 in Gordon Town, Jamaica – September 4, 2006 in Panjwaii, Afghanistan) was a Canadian Olympic athlete and soldier who died while participating in Operation Medusa during the NATO mission in Afghanistan.

Graham grew up in Hamilton, Ontario, lived in Calgary, Alberta and had been stationed at CFB Petawawa in Ontario. He attended Chedoke Middle School and then Sir Allan MacNab Secondary School in Hamilton, then the University of Nebraska and later Kent State in Ohio on track-and-field scholarships.^[1]

Athletic career

Graham was a member of the Canadian track and field 4x400 relay team that participated at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, where the team finished thirteenth. He won silver medals at both the 1993 and 1994 Canadian Track and Field Championships, and retired from the sport in 1994.^[1] Also played varsity basketball at Conestoga College during the 1998 - 1999 season, starting power forward and centre.

Death

On September 4, 2006 Graham was killed in a friendly fire incident when two USAF A-10 Thunderbolts fired on his platoon, having mistaken them for Taliban insurgents.^[2]

External links

• Canadian Olympic Committee profile

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Alex Dobrota & Omal el Akkad, Friendly fire claims former Olympic athlete, Globe and Mail. September 5, 2006
2. ^ "Friendly fire that killed Canadian was 'freak accident': major". CBC.ca. September 4, 2006. http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2006/09/04/afghanfriendly.html. Retrieved 2 May 2011. 

Persondata
Name	Graham, Mark
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Date of birth	May 17, 1973
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Date of death	September 4, 2006
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