Once Barrie Shepley got involved with triathlons he was in it for the long haul.

The Harrow native was Canada’s first Olympic triathlon coach in 2000 when the discipline made its debut in Sydney. Unexpectedly, Canada’s own Simon Whitfield won Olympic gold and launched Shepley’s career as Canada’s expert voice on the sport.

Shepley has served as a commentator at six Olympic Games for CBC, CTV and TSN and he’s announced races across the world for the International Triathlon Union.

He’s coached medallists at the Pan Am Games and World Championships and was inducted into Triathlon Canada’s Hall of Fame in 2008.

Eager to grow the sport, he helped found Triathlon Ontario while still a student at McMaster University. He also helped establish Kids of Steel in 1989, a national program that introduces youth to the elements of biking, running and swimming. Whitfield himself is a former Kids of Steel participant.

For several years, Shepley trained fellow Harrow native Lionel Sanders, a professional triathlete and Ironman racer.

He has trained athletes for the famously-gruelling Hawaii Ironman and the iconic Boston Marathon.

In 1991, Shepley, his wife Caron and a business partner established Personal Best Health and Performance in the Toronto area. Each year, they run a warm-weather camp for triathlon, biking and yoga in Tucson, Arizona.

Shepley started running in high school and quickly progressed from cross-country to distance racing to triathlons. He wrote a book, Chasing Greatness, chronicling his experiences in sport and life.  

Shepley now takes his place in the builders’ category of the Windsor/Essex County Sports Hall of Fame.