Anyone who knows me well, knows I’m obsessed with the Olympics. Ever since seeing the ski jumpers in Lillehammer in ’94 (my first Olympic memory), or watching Donovan Bailey win the 100m in Atlanta ’96 (with my fingers and toes crossed – hey, it worked!), I’ve been captivated. And, while this Olympics was marred in controversy, from a spectator’s perspective, it did not disappoint. Here are a few of my favourite Tokyo 202(One) Olympic moments:
Joint High Jump Winners
Few things gave me more feels this Olympics than the joint high-jump winners from Italy (Tamberi) and Qatar (Barshim). Good friends who have both recovered from potentially career-ending injuries, both jumped the same height in the same number of attempts. When asked “Do you know the rules from the jump-off?” Barshim asked “Can we have two Golds?”. When the response was “It is possible” they both looked at each other before clasping hands in celebration and the Italian jumping – this time for joy. It isn’t lonely at the top, after all.
Sifan Hassan Goes the Distance (24,500m To Be Exact)
Sifan Hassan was one of the main stories of the Games for me. She won an elusive “treble” in track – bronze in 1,500m, gold in 5,000m, and gold in 10,000m. To do this, she had to do multiple rounds of heats and semi-finals in addition to the finals – running a total of 24,500 meters in six races over nine days. Most famously, she was tripped in the last lap of her 1,500m preliminary heat. Instead of calling it a day, she scrambled to her feet, caught-up, and went on to win. Truly remarkable!
Seeing Familiar Faces Compete!
It felt really cool this year to know not one, but two Canadian Olympic competitors. My former roommate, Liz Gleadle, competed in her third Olympics in the javelin, while Olympic newbie Alison Jackson got a last-minute spot in the cycling road race. The road race itself was a spectacle to watch, with Anna Kiesenhofer pulling out an unexpected victory using her mental fortitude and strength to essentially time trial herself to the finish. (And, btw, the second place finisher thought she’d won, because Anna got so far out in front.) Liz finished 11th in jav, while Alison pedaled her way to 32nd, and won her bunch sprint.
South African Breaks the Breaststroke World Record
Swimming is always among my favourite Olympic events, as it’s a sport that is seldom shown on TV throughout non-Olympic years. So, like the swimmers, I dove right into the action and seldom come up for air while it’s on. Of course, seeing our Canadian swimmers continue to crush it was remarkable, but one of my favourite moments was watching Tatjana Schoenmaker break the World Record in 200m breaststroke. Even her competitors were amazed, and felt fortunate to bear witness, with one of the coolest, multi-country celebrations I’ve ever seen.
Canada Strikes Gold in Soccer
Having followed the Canadian women’s side since U19 Worlds in Edmonton in 2002, this Gold Medal moment was nearly 20 years in the making. Marred by defeats against the States, in often heartbreaking fashion (*ahem* London 2012), this victory felt like sweet, sweet justice and redemption. Seeing Christine Sinclair finally reach the top of the podium was so, soft satisfying. But, let’s not talk about those PKs…’cuz yikes.
Penny Oleksiak Peaks Again at the Olympics
“If you know me, you know I’m going to be good for the Olympics.”
— Penny Oleksiak before leaving for Tokyo.
^THIS. Penny Oleksiak is one clutch mofo. Having battled a back injury, and struggled on the world stage since Rio, Penny peaked again right at the Olympics and won bronze in 200m, silver in the 4×100 freestyle relay, and bronze in the 4×100 medley relay. Plus, she finished fourth in 100m freestyle, in one of the deepest fields I’ve ever seen, against the likes of McKeon, Sjostrom, Campbell, and Haughey. Never count Penny Oleksiak out – she is now the most decorated Canadian Olympian ever.
Well, now I’m evaluating what to do with my life since the Games are over. I guess countdown to the US Open tennis?
