Dr. Laurent Duvernay-Tardif has received one of the nation’s top honours, earning an appointment to the Order of Canada on Wednesday.
The native of Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Que., was a sixth-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft out of McGill University. He played 73 career regular-season NFL games along the offensive line with the Kansas City Chiefs and New York Jets, making 65 starts. He retired from professional football in September 2023 at the age of 32.
The six-foot-five, 315-pound blocker won Super Bowl LIV with Kansas City on Feb. 2, 2020 when his team defeated the San Francisco 49ers by a score of 31-20 in Miami. Not long after, he turned his attention off the field to combat the COVID-19 pandemic as a physician, having graduated from McGill’s medical school in 2018.
Duvernay-Tardif opted out of the 2020 NFL season to work as an orderly in a long-term care facility in Quebec. He also served on the NFLPA COVID-19 task force in order to ensure a safe return to play for his fellow players. He received several accolades for his work, winning the Northern Star Award and Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year.
The former blocker has also launched the Laurent Duvernay-Tardif Foundation with his longtime partner, Florence, to ensure physical activity and creativity are part of a child’s development and educational success.
Duvernay-Tardif was one of 88 new laureates announced by Governor General Mary Simon.
