'Grandma' puts aging issue on ice Quebec's Tania Vicent says if she's sitting on her couch for the 2010 Olympics, it won't be for lack of trying

Gary Kingston, Vancouver SunAugust 7, 2009
Tania Vicent fidgets with an earring and good-naturedly admonishes a couple of reporters for pointing out that she will be 34 by the 2010 Olympics and an old-timer on the Canadian short track speed skating team.

"Oh God, you guys, you're making me ill right now," says the Laval, Que., native who some younger teammates affectionately call Grandma. [...]

Vicent thought about retiring after the last Olympics because she was "getting up there" and needed hip surgery that forced her to miss all of the 2006-07 World Cup season.

"But I didn't want to feel guilt sitting on my couch and going 'Oh my God, it's Vancouver Olympics. I should have tried. It's home.

"I didn't want to have that feeling, so I'm giving it my all to be there. If I am sitting on my couch, at least I'll know why I'm sitting on my couch."