Olympic Preview: The Canadian Story

Posted by thesportsjunky on July 27, 2012 · 2 Comments 

The Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics were a watershed moment for Canada as one country came together like never before. Canadians have never been a brash people who flaunt their successes in the faces of everyone else. Instead Canadians have been a fiercely proud people yet have been so in their own homes away from the cameras. The Vancouver Olympics brought this pride that had always been there out into the public eye for all to see. There were people on the streets at every event looking for the next Canadian hero to emerge. A large part of this display of pride was the new hope of winning medals at the Olympics. The Canadian Olympic Committee began investing heavily in the athletes leading up to Vancouver in order to make sure that they would have a good showing at home. The Own the Podium initiative paid off big for Canada as the Canadian Olympic team won more medals than ever before and finally won a Gold medal at home. Now the attention turns to the Summer Olympics which have never been a strong suit of Canadians. With a new attitude from the fans the Canadians will be under more pressure than ever to perform as all eyes will be on them to perform up to the level of the winter athletes. It will be a tough challenge as many Canadian athletes are not ranked among the top 10 in the world but that hasn’t deterred many of them. Instead of seeing Vancouver as added pressure many athletes are looking at the performance as inspirational. They have seen their fellow athletes perform at the highest level in Vancouver and will be out to do the same. There are not tremendous expectations for the Canadians but there are many hoping that they can surprise us and move out of the basement of the medal standings to achieve a top 12 finish.

It will be a long road for the Olympians but there have already been a few that have emerged as the major medal hopes for London. There will be veterans and rookies all looking to get their moment of glory after training for years to make it to this point. Veterans like Adam van Koeverden who will enter his third Olympic games looking to heal the wounds of a disappointing 2008 showing. Athletes like miss Canada herself Clara Hughes who will enter her fifth Olympic games and her third Summer Games. She will be looking for a medal at the road race to become the most decorated athlete in Canadian history. Then there are the rookies who will be making their first appearance in the Olympics like Paula Findlay and Tony Nyhaug. Findlay is one of the brightest young stars in the Canadian Olympic Team as the 22-year-old has already been recognized as one of the best in the triathlon. An injury has hurt her chances though as she has only raced twice in the last year but will fight through the pain to race for the gold in London. Tony Nyhaug will be a member of the relatively new sport in BMX Biking as he looks to surprise many with a medal performance. There will also be the veterans who are rookies in the Olympics as some athletes have waited a long time for their chance at Olympic Gold. One of these athletes is Mary Spencer who has been fighting for years in the boxing ring and will finally get her shot when Women’s boxing makes its debut in London. All of these athletes will carry the hopes of the Canadian fans and although many may not win medals they will all remain heroes. It will be a challenge for Canadians at the Olympics but as history has told us Canadians never give up especially when everyone tells us we have no shot.

Filed under Olympics · Tagged with Adam van Koeverden, Canada, Canadian Olympic Committee, Canadian Olympic Team, Canadian Outlook, Clara Hughes, London 2012, London 2012 Canadian Outlook, London 2012 Olympic Preview, London 2012 Olympics, Mary Spencer, Olympic Preiew, Olympics, Own the Podium, Paula Findlay, Tony Nyhaug, Vancouver 2010