Mark Graham from Hamilton, Ontario was killed over the weekend in Afghanistan. He was killed by friendly fire from US warplanes on September 4, during Operation Medusa west of Kandahar. He was 33 years old.
I hadn’t seen Mark in years, but we grew up together in Hamilton. I think the first time I met him was at the YMCA Camp Kidaca, a summer day camp on the Hamilton Mountain. Mark was the kid who could run the fastest and jump the furthest, and he always had a smile on his face. We played together on the MacNab Recreation Centre basketball team in the Hamilton Recreation League, and Mark was the star forward. He had this natural athleticism where everything looked effortless. Off the court he was the same way, always laughing, always easy to be around. He had one of those laughs that you could hear from across the gym.
When I arrived at Sir Allan MacNab Secondary School, Mark was already there as the track star. He went on to become a four-time OFSAA 400m champion and won the 200m gold in 1991, beating future Olympic gold medalist Robert Esmie. We didn’t see much of each other through high school, but everyone knew who Mark was. After winning his final provincial 400m title in 1992, he was selected to run on Canada’s 4x400m relay team at the Barcelona Olympics. He later earned athletic scholarships at the University of Nebraska and Kent State.
In 2004, Mark enlisted in the Canadian Forces and served as a Private with the 1st Battalion of The Royal Canadian Regiment. His platoon was mistakenly attacked by an American fighter pilot during an operation to capture a Taliban stronghold. Thirty-seven soldiers were injured in the strike. Mark did not survive.
He was a genuinely good person with a great sense of humour, and I’m very sad that our paths will never cross again. His legacy lives on in Hamilton through the Mark Graham Memorial Invitational Track Meet, held annually at MacNab, and a scholarship fund for graduating student athletes.
Update: Mark’s family has set up a great tribute site here:
A Wikipedia page has also been set up here:
My update Jan 24, 2026: I think of Mark often, but when Donald Trump’s comment about Canada not being on the front line came out, it really hit hard. Around 40,000 Canadian Armed Forces members served in Afghanistan, over 2,000 were injured, and 159 Canadians were killed. Mark was one of the unlucky ones. Never forgotten.