Sixteen out of the 22 medals won at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games were won by women. The first twelve days, the Canadian medal count was only won by women. With sports being such a male dominated world, our women showed that we not only deserve just as much recognition but, we obliterated the expectations at these years’ Games.
Swimming became a gigantic win for us as our beloved 16 year old Penny Oleksiak was a bullet in the water and making an entire country excited for the future in the pool. Oleksiak walked away with 1 gold (women’s 100m freestyle), 1 silver (women’s 100m butterfly) and 2 bronze medals (women’s 4×100 freestyle race and women’s 4×200 freestyle race). Penny wasn’t the only Canadian making a splash; or lack thereof in the water. Canada’s diving duo Roseline Filion and Meaghan Benfeito solidified their eleven year partnership with a bronze medal. Filion also gave Canada a bronze in the 10-meter platform competition.
Another youngster making their Olympic debut was Markham, Ontario’s Andre De Grasse that undoubtedly became a force to be reckoned with on the track. Giving the seemingly unbeatable Jamaican superstar Usain Bolt a run for his money, he was also Canada’s first male to get on the medal board for the Red and White taking home a bronze in the 100- meter. The 21 year old added a silver in the 200- meter and another bronze in the men’s 4×100- meter relay while leaving an everlasting joy throughout Canada.
Our Canadian men and women proved that we will forever be consistent and be competitive. This rang true when the Canadian Women’s Soccer team took home consecutive bronze medals at the Olympics. Sinclair flexed as a strong leader and showing that Canada does not give up while showing the highest level of class in the sport.
Soccer was not the only platform for success as we watched our rugby sevens women breeze through to a bronze in their Olympic debut. Giving girls a chance to work hard to represent their country in a sport that now can be a leading force in building elite athletes, rugby is on the map to become one of Canada’s favored games to watch.
While Canada is still on a high from the Olympics, our athletes are not done. Beginning September 7th, our men and women will compete in Rio at the Paralympic Summer Games. Personally knowing a good number of the athletes competing, it will an exciting ride to watch these elite individuals battle for a podium spot.
When I think of a Canadian to keep an eye out for, I think of Niagara Falls born Shelley Gautier. Having won twelve world championships, 2015 and 2015 Female Cyclist of the Year and coming back with a strong showing in London, Gautier has her sights on the podium and rightfully so. When she isn’t on the forefront of bringing athletic opportunities to the disabled community through the Shelley Gautier Para-Sport Foundation, she is vigorously training to make sure she is successful in Rio. She will be competing in the road race trials in the T1 class on September 14th and while there is not a lot of cable coverage of the Games, you can catch over 700 hours of live streaming of multiple events.
Keep an eye out for her race on September 16th! Gautier is zoned in with focusing on her mental game just as much as her physical training preparation leading up to Rio. If you’re not an athlete, you will only see the strength training aspect of athletics but a lot goes into being mentally strong. An athlete cannot let their competition cloud their focus and Gautier seems like it is just her out on the course and how can you argue with being a twelve time world champion. She is a part of a small group of athletes that can say that they have been on top of the podium more times than you can count on both hands. Shelley hopes that this experience and also not being a rookie to the Games can give her the competitive and mental edge with her target on the podium.
Mark your calendars ladies and gentlemen. Watching Gautier take on the world is a must see performance that will instill the pride that each of us have with being from this great country.
You can also follow her journey on her foundation’s Facebook page: Shelley Gautier Para-Sport Foundation.
