Francis Lawrence Lukeman (June 20, 1885 – December 23, 1946), was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

athlete. He was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

Biography

In Stockholm at the 1912 Summer Olympics Lukeman finished fourth in the pentathlon but was awarded the bronze medal after

Jim Thorpe James Francis Thorpe ( Sac and Fox (Sauk): ''Wa-Tho-Huk'', translated as "Bright Path"; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete and Olympic gold medalist. A member of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was the first Nativ ...

of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

was disqualified from the gold medal. Thorpe's disqualification was eventually overturned but Lukeman were permitted to retain his bronze medal. In the

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

at the 1908 Summer Olympics in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Lukeman took second place in his first-round heat with a time of 11.7 seconds. He did not advance to the semifinals. He won in his preliminary heat of the

200 metres The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

, placing first overall. Lukeman served in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, at various times in the 3rd Regiment Victoria Rifles of Canada,

14th Battalion (Royal Montreal Regiment), CEF The 14th Battalion (Royal Montreal Regiment), CEF was a battalion of the First World War Canadian Expeditionary Force. History The 14th Battalion was authorized on 1 September 1914 and embarked for Great Britain on 27 and 29 September 1914. ...

, 242nd Battalion, CEF, which was absorbed into the

Canadian Forestry Corps The Canadian Forestry Corps (''Corps forestier canadien'' in French) was an administrative corps of the Canadian Army with its own cap badge, and other insignia and traditions. The Canadian Forestry Corps was created 14 Nov 1916. The badge of t ...

, where he served out the end of the war as an (Acting) Regimental Sergeant Major. He returned to Montreal after the war. "In his combat overseas, he was gassed twice. In 1945, he had his leg amputated and remained bedridden at the Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue Military Hospital ( Ste. Anne's Hospital), dying in 1946." Francis Lukeman
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References

1885 births 1946 deaths Olympic track and field athletes of Canada Athletes (track and field) at the 1908 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1912 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for Canada Canadian decathletes Anglophone Quebec people Athletes from Montreal Canadian Army soldiers Medalists at the 1912 Summer Olympics Canadian military personnel of World War I Olympic bronze medalists in athletics (track and field) Olympic male pentathletes Olympic decathletes {{Canada-athletics-bio-stub