“FRIENDLY GIANT”: Long-time track coach, Olympic athlete Bruce Pirnie passes away

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Long-time local track coach and former Olympic athlete and Pan Am Games gold medalist Bruce Pirnie passed away last week.

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“He’s going to be missed,” said friend and former training partner Maureen Dowds, who broke the news of Pirnie’s declining health and then passing early Thursday morning on Facebook. “His big smile, his big bear hug. He’s just like a friendly giant.”

Born in Boston on Sept. 20, 1942 and educated at Yankton College in South Dakota where he was inducted in their Hall of Fame in 2008, Pirnie ventured north after graduation and soon settled into the local throwing community, dominating the Canadian shotput scene in the 1970s.

After winning many provincial championships, Pirnie was selected to a world “All Star” International Amateur Athletic Federation team in 1971. He qualified for the 1972 Olympics in Munich and was selected captain of the track and field team.

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Following a silver in the 1973 Pacific Conference Games and a bronze at the 1974 Commonwealth Games, he struck gold at the 1975 Pan Am Games in Mexico City. Pirnie was again named captain of the track and field team in 1976 as Canada hosted the summer Olympics for the first time in Montreal.

Dowds recalled that when her father was transferred to Winnipeg with the military in 1964, Pirnie helped her adjust to her new home. “I was not happy to come here but then I met this tall guy with a big heart and a lovely voice playing guitar over at a friend’s house on Berry Street,” said Dowds, who began training with Pirnie and won a bronze medal in the shot put at the 1967 Pan Am Games and finished fourth at the 1975 Pan Am Games.

But it was as a coach where Pirnie really made his mark. After coaching and teaching at Nelson McIntyre Collegiate, he moved to the University of Manitoba High Performance Centre as its throwing coach. From athlletes from grade school to International Peace Gardens campers to university to Special Olympics and Paralympians, Pirnie was happy to pass on his throwing know-how.

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Even in retirement, his Facebook proclaimed his home in Arnes, Man., as a place “with cats in the yard and throwing circles in the field”.

“Bison Sports and the University of Manitoba Track & Field family were saddened to hear of Bruce’s passing,” said track and field head coach Claude Berube on behalf of Bison Sports. “Bruce was an integral part of the program from the mid 1980’s to the early 2000’s. He contributed to the program as a volunteer coach, an assistant coach and Head Coach through some very strong years for both the Women’s and Men’s team. His expertise in the area of throwing had a huge impact on the success of the throwing program for many years and he was continuing to share his knowledge with young throwers. Bruce was one of the driving forces that made the Bison Track & Field program one of the top teams in the country. “

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Pirnie was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame in 1987, one year before Dowds joined him there. “He was there for me and I was there for him,” said Dowds, among the people Pirnie singled out during his acceptance speech. They were both inducted into the inaugural class for the Athletics Manitoba Hall of Fame last year.

When Dowds was president of the Canadian Association of Athletes with Intellectual Disabilities, Pirnie would coach athletes in Special Olympics and Paralympics. In 2008, he served as Canadian Paralympic head coach.

“He just tackled anything,” said Dowds. “It was a challenge for him and he really did great things with those athletes.”

Despite being in hospital, Pirnie was able to watch Canadian thrower Ethan Ratzberg strike gold in the men’s hammer throw at the Paris Olympic Games.

“Every day that I went up to see him (in hospital), we talked about all the people who were posting and following what I was posting on my Facebook page. I think I had 170 people and I would read them to him.”

glen.dawkins@kleinmedia.ca

X: @SunGlenDawkins

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