Whitfield to carry flag for Canada 0
By Tim Baines, Ottawa Sun
Simon Whitfield stood wrapped in the Canadian flag in front of the Eternal Flame on Parliament Hill, knowing that in 15 days he will lead a procession of hopes and dreams into the Olympic Stadium in London.
Named Canada’s flag-bearer for the opening ceremonies Thursday, the 37-year-old Whitfield certainly is deserving of the honour. A three-time Olympian, he’s won gold and silver medals in triathlon.
“I’m overwhelmed right now,” said Whitfield, who arrived in a London-style cab. “I think of all the incredible, deserving flagbearers. This is an incredible honour.”
It was an “Aw, shucks” moment for Whitfield, who swam, cycled and ran his way to a shocking gold-medal win when triathlon made its Olympic debut in Sydney in 2000. After an 11th-place finish in 2004, Whitfield bounced back with a silver medal in Beijing in 2008. He’s ranked eighth in the world by the International Triathlon Union.
“It was a huge thrill for me to receive the call from my Olympic hero, Mark Tewksbury, asking me to be Canada’s flag-bearer,” said Whitfield. “Once I got over the shock of how cool it was that Mark called, my thoughts turned to all of the incredibly talented Canadian athletes on this team. It’s an honour to have the opportunity to carry our flag while representing the sport of triathlon, but more importantly, it’s a privilege to be the one who will lead this amazing team of Canadian athletes who have dedicated their lives to achieving their Olympic dream and represent our nation on the world’s greatest sporting stage.
“I have vivid memories of (Tewksbury) leaning on a lane rope, celebrating his gold medal (in the 100-metre backstroke at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona). I was overwhelmed when I got the call. And when I get overwhelmed, I go for a run.
“There was no better place to run to (after getting the call) than the Terry Fox statue in Vancouver. Terry is the epitome of the Olympic athlete – spirit, courage and toughness.”
During that run, while listening to east-coast rockers Hey Rosetta! through his headphones, Whitfield thought of other Canadian athletes who have worked so hard for their Olympic moment – boxer Mary Spencer, gymnast Karen Cockburn, divers Alexandre Despatie, Emilie Heymans, soccer player Christine Sinclair, (“what a champion”), the men’s rowers, 65-year-old equestrian rider Ian Millar (“who I’m going to call Sir, with all due respect ... 10 Olympics, incredible.”) ... on and on.
Said Whitfield: “And when I got to the statue, I high-fived Terry, and I said: ‘Comment ca va, champion, eh?”
The Canadian Olympians will fall back on words like “fierce, proud, world-class, unbreakable, relentless and world-class,” marching proudly into a league of nations on July 27. The guy leading the way, the guy whose journey started in small triathlon events in the Kingston area, well, that’ll be Simon Whitfield — proud Canadian.
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