An Eckville student is celebrating an international podium finish after helping Canada secure bronze in goalball at the 2025 Youth Parapan American Games.
Seventeen-year-old Merrick Smith, a Grade 12 student at Eckville Jr./Sr. High School, returned home from Santiago, Chile, where he competed from Oct. 31 to Nov. 9 as one of six athletes selected to represent Canada.
Smith, who was diagnosed at age nine with retinitis pigmentosa — a degenerative condition that causes peripheral vision loss and difficulty seeing in low light — turned to goalball after losing the ability to play hockey. The Paralympic sport is played in silence, with all athletes wearing blindfolds and tracking a bell-filled ball through sound and touch.
“I don’t really think it’s like any other sport,” Smith said. “You have three people on each end, and everyone is blindfolded. You have to listen to where the ball is going and slide to block it.”
Eckville student Merrick Smith (fourth from left) is pictured among his teammates following the bronze medal ceremony for goalball at the 2025 Youth Parapan American Games. Photo submitted/Wolf Creek Public Schools
Smith has spent eight years in the sport, commuting regularly to Edmonton and Red Deer for practices, camps and competitions. His commitment paid off when he was named to the national team for the international event.
During the bronze-medal match against Mexico, Smith took a hard bounce shot to the face, leaving him with a bloody nose. After medics cleared him, he returned to the court, and Canada scored twice in the final minute to edge Mexico 10–9.
Back home, the school community followed every game.
“We were cheering every goal,” said principal Dean Pilipchuk. “We lived every swing of that game.”
Smith received a standing ovation at the school’s next assembly. Pilipchuk said the celebration reflected how the school sees him — as a regular student.
“If you walked into our building and didn’t know him, I don’t think you’d be able to pick Merrick out from anyone else,” he said.
Merrick Smith poses with his mom, Rose Marie, at the 2025 Youth Parapan American Games in Santiago, Chile. Photo submitted/Wolf Creek Public Schools
The school has gradually adapted since Smith’s diagnosis, including adding Braille to doors and keeping hallways clear — changes that became habit rather than obligation.
“It’s not about looking after someone,” Pilipchuk said. “It’s about respect.”
Smith’s mother, Rose Marie, said Wolf Creek Public Schools and the staff at Eckville Jr./Sr. High have been “super fortunate” and consistently supportive.
“Wolf Creek has been an amazing resource for us,” she said. “They’ve always been very supportive and accommodating.”
Team Canada’s roster also included Red Deer native Caden Johnson along with others from across the country.
** With information from Wolf Creek Public Schools.
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