As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Special Olympics this year, we are taking a look back at the #50moments that have defined the Special Olympics movement here in B.C. and throughout the world.

Marc Theriault has a wealth of experience when it comes to Special Olympics. For the past 22 years, the SOBC – Surrey athlete has shined atop the podium, representing his community, province and country.

One of Theriault’s defining moments came when he was the first SOBC athlete to win four gold medals at four World Games in three sports. As a Special Olympics athlete since 1995, Theriault has competed with dedication and excellence in a wide range of sports including figure skating, softball, soccer, bowling, curling, and athletics.

In 1999, he won gold with the Kelowna Grizzlies softball team at the World Games in North Carolina. In 2001, Theriault won gold in men's singles figure skating at the World Games in Alaska. Then in 2005, he won gold at the World Games in Nagano, but this time in the pairs figure skating event with Alexandra Magee. Finally, Theriault competed with the Surrey Vipers soccer team in 2007 at the World Games in Shanghai, winning gold.

An extraordinary athlete and teammate, Theriault once again won gold in the men's singles figure skating in 2009 at the World Games in Idaho, 2013 in PyeongChang, and 2017 in Austria. He also landed the first double jump at a World Games in Special Olympics history in 2001.

His illustrious career also led him to be inducted into the SOBC Hall of Fame in 2008.

The Surrey athlete’s many accomplishments in both summer and winter have not gone unnoticed. North America’s first Olympic Museum opened in Richmond in November of 2015 and came calling on Theriault to help decorate the halls.  The Richmond Olympic Experience (ROX) at the Richmond Olympic Oval is the first member of the International Olympic Committee’s Olympic Museums Network to be located in North America.

Among the ROX’s displays is a tribute to the achievements of SOBC – Surrey athlete Theriault, as well as memorabilia from the Special Olympics Canada 2014 Summer Games held in Vancouver and Richmond, and background on the Special Olympics movement changing lives through the power of sport.

Theriault provided commemorative materials to the museum to help illustrate his story, including his uniforms, skating outfit, skates, and cleats from his appearances at the 1999 Special Olympics World Games in softball, the 2001 World Games in figure skating, and the 2007 World Games in soccer.