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PARIS – Canada’s record performance at the Paris Olympics was not without its challenges, but the athletes provided some unforgettable sporting moments.
Nine gold medals and a total of 27 medals were both records for Canada at the non-boycotted Summer Olympics, breaking previous records set three years ago in Tokyo and three years ago in Barcelona.
“There have been highs, lows, surprises, lots of surprises, joy and sadness, and we saw it all here in Paris,” Canadian Olympic Committee President Tricia Smith said Sunday.
Canada ranked 11th out of 84 nations that won medals in both total and gold. The United States is poised to make a strong showing as hosts in Los Angeles in 2028 after topping the standings in Paris with 122 medals, including 38 gold.
Canadians won medals in 15 different sports, equaling the previous record set at the boycotted 1984 Summer Olympics in LA
Swimming’s eight medals and track and field’s five accounted for nearly half of Canada’s output in Paris. Including medalists, Canadians finished in the top five 49 times.
Summer McIntosh led the way in the pool with three golds and four medals overall. Ethan Katzberg’s hammer throw gold was a first, and he was followed two days later by teammate Camryn Rogers who took the women’s crown for a sweep of the Stade de France.
McIntosh and Katzberg, who left France after their events, were invited to wear the Maple Leaf during the closing ceremony in Paris on Sunday evening.
“It was an incredibly successful Olympic Games for Canada and that’s really great to see,” Katzberg said.
Phil (Wizard) Kim crowned Canada’s achievement with the first Olympic gold medal in the men’s sprint event Saturday at Place de la Concorde.
Aaron Brown, Jerome Blake, Brendon Rodney and anchorman Andre De Grasse claimed an unexpected victory in the men’s 4×100-meter track relay. De Grasse said his hamstring was not fully healthy after missing the 100- and 200-meter finals.
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With his seventh career medal, the sprinter joins swimmer Penny Oleksiak, who has won the most career Olympic medals.
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Christa Deguchi won Canada’s first gold in judo. Katie Vincent won gold in the women’s sprint canoe after its introduction in Tokyo.
A scandal involving drone spying on women’s soccer shocked the Canadian Olympic Committee just days before the opening ceremony and was an embarrassment for a country that claims to embrace fair play.
The COC sent the head coach of the women’s team, Bev Priestman, and two team members home.
Despite being deducted six points by FIFA, the women went 3-0 in the group stage, eventually losing to Germany on penalties in the quarter-finals of the tournament.
“I certainly don’t think this was the way any of us wanted to start the Games, but I’m very pleased with the way we’re closing them,” COC executive director David Shoemaker said at a news conference at Canada Olympic House.
“I felt like it was a stain on our face at the beginning of the Games and now that I’m sitting here almost three weeks later, I can feel that the athletes on the field of play have done a tremendous amount of good to remedy that situation (including) the footballers themselves.”
It appears the aftermath will continue for a long time to come, as rumours emerged from Ottawa of Canada Soccer being subpoenaed to appear before a parliamentary committee hearing.
De Grasse’s personal coach, Rana Reider, had his credentials revoked by the COC before the Canadian ran the 200-meter semifinals. Three women who Reider previously coached are suing him in Florida for sexual or emotional abuse.
Reider has not been charged with a crime and the allegations have not been proven in court. He was on probation with the US Center for SafeSport until May.
“We found out, I believe it was Sunday, August 4th, while Andre was sprinting, that (Reider) was indeed subject to a safety order from USA Track and Field and his qualifications were revoked overnight,” Shoemaker said.
“It was shared with us by USA Track and Field through Athletics Canada.”
The COVID-19 virus that forced the postponement of the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo to 2021 and imposed strict measures was still present in Paris. Several athletes, including American top sprinter Noah Lyles, tested positive.
According to Shoemaker, the COC considers avoiding illness a “performance advantage.”
Eric Myles, Canada’s top sports official, said eight members of the team’s delegation tested positive upon arrival in Paris, but that the virus was under control and there is no suspicion the disease hampered the athletes’ performance.
The athletes’ village offered a bike-sharing program to all residents, but the Canadian team brought its own bikes to avoid dirty handlebars, Shoemaker said.
By moving the Tokyo Games a year later, three Olympic Games were squeezed into four years, including the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing. And the 2026 Winter Games in Cortina-Milan, Italy, are not for another 18 months.
According to figures released by the federal government in early July, the Canadian taxpayer is the largest investor in top-level sports, with an annual amount of $266 million.
The COC and the Canadian Paralympic Committee requested $104 million in this year’s federal budget for the national sports organization system, but this did not happen.
“I do worry about the future,” Shoemaker said. “I worry about the performance in Milano-Cortina, and certainly for LA ’28.
“There has been no increase in base funding for the 62 federally funded state sports organizations in 19 years, and so they are having to do so much more with so much less, including the demands placed on them to create the safe, barrier-free, healthy sports system we all want.”
Winning Olympic and Paralympic medals in both winter and summer sports is a tall order in a geographically vast country.
“I was thinking about it today, when I just passed 27 medals, and that’s very close to where we are in winter sports,” said Anne Merklinger, CEO of Own The Podium.
“It’s important for Canadians that we provide opportunities in summer sports, in winter sports, in Olympic sports, in Paralympic sports. I believe that’s what’s important for Canadians. We have to do that, and it’s non-negotiable. There’s a lot to be done, but nothing should be put on the pile of too difficult things.”
The COC offers bonus money for medals of $20,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze. Healthcare technology entrepreneur Sanjay Malaviya of Hespeler, Ontario, has donated a $5,000 match for each medal won.
The Paralympic Games in Paris begin on August 28 and end on September 8.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published August 11, 2024.
