PRORODEO Sports News February Digital Edition

PASSINGS

DR. ED LETOURNEAU, TWO-TIME NFR BULL RIDER, PASSES AWAY PRCA Staff

D r. Ed LeTourneau passed away on Sunday, Jan. 18. He was 90 years old. LeTourneau qualified for the National Finals

flourished for almost 50 years.” In addition to a successful career in rodeo, which led to his induction into the Bull Riding Hall of Fame in

2022, LeTourneau was an all-around athlete and an ac complished veteri narian. LeTourneau put himself through veterinary school at the University of California Davis while competing in arenas across the country and earned his veteri nary degree by the spring of 1962. As a student, he also excelled on the mat, leading to his 1981 induction to the Cal Aggie Athletics Hall of Fame for his contributions in wrestling from 1954-58. He stayed for an additional year as an intern at the UC-Davis Large Animal Clinic. Dr. LeTourneau went on to open an equine practice in Oakdale, Calif., before settling in Madera, Calif. “He is an amaz ing role model for

Rodeo twice in bull riding in 1959 at the inaugural NFR at the Dallas State Fair Grounds, and in 1961 also in Dallas. He finished fifth in the 1959 world standings and sev enth in 1961. In 1959, LeTour neau won Rounds 8 and 10 and he split second in Round 2 and Round 9. He finished second in the NFR average. When he returned to the NFR in 1961, he split fourth in Round 2 and was second outright in Round 4. He placed fifth in the average. “I was privileged to have Ed as a traveling partner in my plane,” the late ProRodeo Hall of Famer Larry Mahan said in a Jun 2014 Facebook post. “The many hours in the air between rodeos gave me a chance to get to know this

most unusual of bull riders. First and foremost in my recollection was his positive attitude, intelligence and absolute joy of life. “But it was his sense of humor and dedication to the sport of rodeo that cemented our friendship, which has PRCA File Photo

our Western culture and youth,” Mahan said in his post. “What an honor it is for me to know Ed and call him a friend.”

54 PRORODEO SPORTS NEWS DIGITAL MAGAZINE FEBRUARY 2026