Director Host City (Montreal) - Mark Tewksbury's accomplishments in the pool speak volumes about him as an athlete. He remains one of Canada's most recognized and accomplished Olympians. Mark’s athletic career includes three Olympic medals and seven world records. He was Canada’s Athlete-of-the-Year in 1992 and has been inducted into the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame and the International Swimming Hall of Fame.

Today, Mark’s direction in life speaks volumes about him as a person. For his ethical leadership and active humanitarianism he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Western Ontario in 2001. Mark’s years of volunteer work with organizations such as the Special Olympics, the Children's Miracle Network and people living with AIDS have also been recognized.

Mark has become a public figure respected for his fairness, frankness and honesty. Not afraid to stand up for values he believes in, Tewksbury has used his celebrity to take a number of difficult stands. He was one of the first Gay sports heroes to come out publicly in 1998. In 1999 Mark co-founded OATH, Olympic Advocates Together Honorably, giving athletes and advocates a place to unite to work constructively on promoting reform in the Olympic movement. More recently, Mark has been celebrated for his work as an Olympic swimming analyst covering the 2004 Athens Games for Canada ’s national broadcaster, with tough, fair and passionate commentary.

A native of Calgary , Alberta , Mark has lived in the United States , Sydney , Australia and Toronto , Canada . He has a degree in political science from the University of New South Wales . He currently lives in Montreal , Québec where he is Co-President of the organizing committee for the 2006 1st World Outgames. He makes his living in the communications field through motivational speaking, writing and television work.