Raymond (Ray) Jacques Seguin
Sport: Track & Field
Year Inducted: 2006
Raymond “Ray” Jacques Seguin went to great heights during his track and field career.
Seguin, a graduate of Cornwall’s La Citadelle High School, was not only eastern Ontario’s premier high jumper in the 1980’s, but also one of Canada’s best junior jumpers.
He was good enough to become one of just a few eastern Ontario track and field stars to gain a full track and field scholarship from a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division 1 university. Prestigious Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, Texas awarded Seguin a full scholarship, worth $100,000US.
While at La Citadelle, Seguin also performed for the Cornwall Legion Cougars track team. He was Ontario high jump Champion 10 times (junior, senior, indoor, and outdoor). He also won the Alberta Provincial Championship in 1997. He won a gold medal at the Legion Nationals for boys 17 and under in 1986.
In all, he competed in 15 National Championships, seven World Championship trials and two Olympic Trials. At the 1991 Canadian Senior Championships, he placed fourth. He was ranked in the top 10 in Canada for 10 years.
In 1987 and 1988, he was ranked the number one junior in Canada, and in 1989 was a member of the Canadian National senior team becoming the first athlete in Cornwall Legion Cougars history to earn a berth on the senior National team. He competed in the first ever Francophone Games in Casablanca, Morocco. Canada was one of one of 56 nations represented at the Games and Seguin had the best Canadian result, placing seventh.
Raymond made a mark at SMU, setting multiple school records: indoor record at 2.14m in 1989, indoor freshman record at 2.14m in 1989, indoor sophomore record at 2.13m in 1990, indoor junior record at 2.13m in 1991, indoor senior record at 2.14m in 1992, and outdoor senior record at 2.14m in 1992.
He earned a silver medal at the 1990 South Western Conference Indoor Championships, a bronze medal at the 1992 Conference Indoor Championships, and a bronze medal at the 1992 Conference Outdoor Championships. He placed second at the Mt. SAC Relays in Los Angeles in 1991, and took silver at the prestigious Penn Relays in Philadelphia with a field of 72 jumpers.
He earned seven Varsity Letters in four years at SMU, was selected to the All-Southwest Conference team four times, and to the Freshman SWC team in 1989.
Raymond lived and worked in Dallas at the Dallas Morning News as the assistant creative director and also wrote freelance articles for Canada’s Athletics Magazine.
Raymond Seguin died on January 25, 2011 from pancreatic cancer, he was 41 years old.
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