jeudi 24 avril 2008

Canadian Winter Olympians look to close the gap

TU THANH HA - National - April, 24
[...] And so, with the Vancouver Winter Games looming, [...] 27 other Canadian medal hopefuls who were feted in Montreal yesterday, the talk was about that little extra they needed to climb a berth on an Olympic podium. [...]
"Success doesn't just happen," Own the Podium chief executive officer Roger Jackson, a former gold medalist Olympic rower, told the athletes yesterday. "It requires an enormous amount of organization and work." [...]
Short-track speed skater Tania Vicent of Laval, Que., a three-time Olympic medalist, said it was also important to foster a team spirit that broadens beyond one's specific discipline.
Over her 15-year career, she had befriended other athletes, from other Winter Olympians to national team swimmers, with whom she shares weight-training facilities in Montreal.
"It helps," Vincent said. "You want to reach that same level of euphoria. It adds to the excitement when you share your experience."
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