Canadian Athlete Family Program

Clara Hughes, Canada's Flagbearer

Today it was officially announced that Clara Hughes will be the flagbearer for the Canadian Olympic Team in what can not exactly be called surprising.

It’s not surprising because it is hard to find any fault with the reasoning of naming an athlete like Hughes to lead Canada’s team into the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

And it’s very deserving not only because Hughes had to decline any offers to carry the flag at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin when she came down with illness, but because when you think of the face of Canadian Olympics as a whole Clara Hughes may be one of the few that instantly comes to mind.

An athletic phenom

Clara Hughes is the only Canadian Olympian and the fourth ever athlete in history to win multiple medals in both Summer and Winter Olympic Games, with a Gold, Silver and Bronze as a speed skater and Double Bronze as a cyclist.  She also has an impressive list of accolades outside the Olympic Games with multiple medals in the Pan Am Games, Commonwealth Games and a World Championship Medal for cycling. And on the ice she has multiple World Championship medals, World Cup victories and holds the World Record for the 10,000 M Race.

Medal contender

Clara has participated in four Olympic Games thus far in her career, two Summer and two Winter. This will mark her fifth appearance at the Games and at the age of 38 she in not only making an appearance, but she remains a threat to capture a medal once more in speedskating in 2010.

Bolstered by the luxury of home ice advantage the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Winter Games presents a great possibility for Hughes to add another medal to her already impressive trophy case.

There were other athletes nominated for the honour and it’s certainly not fair to say that Hughes was the only choice because all the nominees are very worthy and capable to do the job. However what is fair to say is that our nation’s flagbearer is completely worthy of the task as well as completely deserving of the honour.

Clara Hughes will carry the Canadian colours into the 2010 Winter Games, and rightly so!

Speed skater Clara Hughes chosen to carry Canadian flag at Vancouver Games (The Canadian Press)

Photo Credit: SixFourG on Flickr

Top Spot, Torch Bearing & Making the Team - Athlete Blog Watch

The road to the Games is a long one and no one knows that better than the athletes themselves. On their personal blogs, they share the thrill of victory, the agony of their feet and the day to day living, training and perseverance that go into being a top athlete.

Here are a few of the Canadian athlete blog posts that inspired us this week:

Skeleton racer Melissa Hollingsworth became World Champion last week at the World Cup race in Igls, Austria! Congratulations, Melissa!

In her post World Champion!!!, Melissa talks about the series of races that took her to the top and how she (and her sled, White Lightning) needs to focus on her ultimate goal of gold in Whistler:

With all of the battles I’ve had on the Whistler track, crashes, stitches, broken sled and a concussion; the only way I overcame it was to put everything aside and focus on White Lightning, the Whistler track and myself. That will be what I do on Feb 18 & 19, 2010. Put aside the 145km/hr speeds, 12 000 fans trackside, the millions of Canadians expecting a gold medal. For those 4 Olympic race runs I will be completely selfish and it will only be about me, White Lightning and the Whistler track…

In her post The Olympic Flame, freestyle skier Kristi Richards blogs about her journey with the torch in Osoyoos earlier this week and about the presentation of her Canadian Olympic team jacket - she's one of three women to be named to Canada's mogul team!

Wow.  What an experience.  I have never felt so proud and filled with ecstacy as I ran with the torch at dawn in Osoyoos yesterday.  The feeling of being united as one nation and one world was what I felt as my torch was lit by the previous torchbearer on the desolate tarmac of Highway 97.  It amazes me that this flame came all the way from the original site in Greece, and travels without extinguishing all across our country.  I felt such a strong connection to the spirit of the Olympics.

Snowboarder Justin Lamoureux talks about how he and his teammates qualified for the Canadian team at the World Cup in Stoneham, QC in his post 2010 Olympics!

This past weekend we had our last olympic qualifier event at the world cup in stoneham, quebec. Everyone's goal on the pipe team was to have 2 top fives (out of 5 events) as it meant priority selection for the Olympic team. Coming into this past weekend, i was the only rider with those results. But it by no means meant i was safe. With canada having only 3 spots for the guys pipe team it was still possible for me to get knocked off the team.

Justin also posted a great video of his runs at the World Cup:

We'll be highlighting Canadian athlete blog posts every week, so stay tuned!

Another Reason To Cheer

As sports fan have we lost our way and forgotten how to properly support our teams? If so the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games will serve as a great refresher course in root, root, rooting for the home team.

Word has begun to circulate about the list of banned items you’re not allowed to bring into the Games and it is actually quite important information. For all those planning on showing up to an event please check out the list here first, you do not want to have to turn over a number of items you brought from home at the gates upon arrival.

 

Thunder Struck Down

Newspaper articles have been published regarding thundersticks, the all too common fact of our sporting reality these days, along with air horns and trumpets appearing on the banned items list.

Some people are left perplexed for what to do since at most major sporting events these days fans are handed something to make noise with as they walk through the gates, and many times that is in fact a pair of thundersticks. So as a person that has found himself in many loud, cheering based situations at various sporting events of all kinds over the years I feel I may be able to offer some helpful advice.

  

Back in the good ol' days...

The answer lies back in those good old days of yore, and the answer is actually quite simple: CHEER! Cheer, shout, yell, scream, jump up and down, and do it all in support of your side. There is a time and a place for everything and a venue like the Games is perfect for that loud outburst of emotion that would surely have you escorted from most places on a regular business day. 

Thundersticks haven't always been around; in fact, thundersticks are very recent, especially on the North American sporting scene. And before the introduction of those inflatable plastic rods, which migrated from South Korea and many Asian baseball leagues to North America just after the turn of the millennium, we the people ourselves would resonate arenas and stadiums; clapping our hands, stomping our feet, and just shouting out loud. We continuously brought the house down on a regular basis we were just that good.

This move can actually be seen as returning an element of fun and rivalry that sporting events may have lost recently. The 2010 Winter Games will surely turn into an unofficial worldwide cheer off; without the assistance of any of the amplifying devices we’ve began to rely so heavily upon it’s now a honest question of which nation's fan base can make the most noise to support their athletes.

SHOUT!

And also returning to the mix is the fun of creating new cheers as well as yelling out the classics with the crowd. That great feeling you get when, even if everyone already knows the cheer, you've rallied some people in your section to get it started and now it has spread across the entire venue.

As well as that sheepish, embarrassing yet fully enjoyable moment when you realize that you have gone one extra round further than everybody else in a cheer and you can hear your voice stand alone. It truly is all about the small things in life isn't it.

Personally I am not only ready to step up to the challenge to represent Canada with every breath of air my lungs can muster, I’m looking forward to doing it while watching our Canadian athletes cruise on down that path to victory. And I'm looking forward to seeing people from other nations doing the same for their athletes as well, it should be an amazing experience.

It's back to the fans to provide all the atmosphere and excitement and it's fairly obvious that once again, without question, we will bring the house down. And we'll be doing it all on our own too!

 

Watch for my follow up article, "What to do when you Lose your Voice within 10 hours of Arriving at the Games", over the coming weeks.

Make that 500 +1 families Petro-Canada is reuniting at the games

WOW! What an honour and a dream come true to be a part of Petro-Canada's Family Program! I still can't believe I am going to the 2010 Winter Games -- in Vancouver of all places! 

It has been a family celebration ever since we found out our fantastic news. Not only will my sister Steph be joining me, but we will also be able to see our sister Lindsey (& our newest family member -- her new fiance), who moved out to Vancouver in the summer. What a special opportunity to experience the Games with both of my "big" sisters! The three of us are kinda like "the 3 sports stooges".  It just wouldn't have been the same if we weren't all together. So make that 500 +1 families Petro-Canada is reuniting at the games. Thank you.

Since being awarded the Family Correspondent, I am having flashbacks of my family in competitive sport. Ever since I can remember, I have been either in a van on the way to the rink, in the rink, or on the way back from the rink. With my dad, Ron, coaching my sisters in competitive ringette and myself in competitive hockey there was usually a game or practice evey other night. Our number one fan was always there in the crowd and we knew it because she wasn't afraid to cheer as LOUD as she could, that would be our mother Nancy. 

Since childhood I have dreamed to see Martin Brodeur play for Team Canada. I can remember when I was playing road hockey and/or all-star ice hockey pretending to be Martin Brodeur making the game winning save. He has always been my idol as a goalie growing up. My dad always told me you need to get you and challenge the shooter like Marty! Stand up like Marty! I couldn't argue--he is the games number one winning goalie! So, when I heard that we were going to be seeing the Men's Canadian Hockey Team take on Norway ... Well, I reacted like I would have when I was 9 with one exception (Excessive jumping & screaming ... and then enjoyed a cold canadian brew. LOL.)

Hockey is my passion along with golf. I have always been involved in multiple sports, including skiing and curling, and I think that is similar to many Canadians growing up. That is why we all have a shared interest in the 2010 Winter Games and put our big Ol' Canadian hearts behind all our athletes. I am especially excited to follow our hockey, curling, speed skating, ski and snow board teams. Steph and I will be trying to keep everyone as up to date as possible on our adventures! Don't worry I'm sure there will be no shortage of great pics, vids and interviews! (We'll be the ones in the ridiculous hats cheering madly like our mom taught us). 

We can't wait to get in our metaphorical "Family Van" and start cheering on our Canadian Athletes!!!

Please join our ride by sending us questions you'd like us to ask the athletes' families or send us tips on what you'd like to see us do at the Games. (Keep it PG 13 people) We'd love to hear from you!

Cheers to 2010,

B-Town (Rob)

How We Got Here To Begin With...

Once upon a time, it was my dream to be a writer.  Not necessarily a best-selling writer, or even a journalist, but a writer of stories that people would read and enjoy.  Now, by becoming one of Petro-Canada’s Family Correspondents, I think my dream has come true, at least in part.  This blog is a venue to tell stories – the stories of those families whose children/relatives are realizing their own dreams: to compete at the Olympic Games.

So I guess the first story I have to tell is our own or How We Got Here To Begin With. I have to credit my husband Denis with getting it all rolling.  Dreaming of attending the Olympics in some fashion, he got very excited when he found the Facebook contest for the Petro-Canada Family Correspondents.  The objective was to make use of social media and become correspondents to their Family Program. We needed to create a 30-second video and upload it to enter. It was the middle of December, about a week before we left Ontario for a Christmas vacation in Newfoundland. The contest was closing just after Christmas so the pressure was on to get a video done as soon as possible.

With our video camera and lots of creative enthusiasm away we went!  We had lots of winter sport footage already from our own home videos, there was snow on the ground and the Olympic torch was due to arrive in our hometown of Aurora in a few days. We wrote a script and shot video in the front yard of our house, proclaiming to Canada who we were and how excited we were about being the correspondents.  We shot video of Denis at the torch relay (how exciting to be able to see that!) and the finishing touch was me saying “we have family from coast to coast” with my hair going horizontal in the wind on top of Signal Hill in St. John’s.

It was fun getting this video together and it brought back a lot of great memories: going to a natural luge course in central Ontario, where, incidentally we did our first Olympic family interview with the Family of Clay Ives (Doubles Luge Bronze in 2002); skating in downtown Toronto with friends and family; skiing at Devil’s Glen in Ontario where we were shooting Denis in a Santa costume for a movie his daughter was making.  I think the best part of that day was when the little kids ran up to him to ask if he was the “real Santa”.  We have a lot of fun in the winter… :)

Once we had all the shots, Denis put it together on his laptop, finishing while we were in Newfoundland. Do you know how long it takes to make a 30 second video? Probably about 30 hours. I kid you not.  With all the things we wanted to say and show, it was hard to edit it down. But he did a great job of saying in 30 seconds what it is taking me a long time to say on the keyboard: We are Denis and Anne-Marie. We have family from coast to coast and we love Canada and winter sports.  We will bring you the stories of the families of the Olympians. And now that we’ve been selected, I can end here by saying it will be our privilege and our honour to do so. Stay tuned…

Just like Petro-Canada, we put family first

Since winning the Family Correspondent Contest, besides being completely over joyed with the "GRAND PRIZE", I can't stop reminiscing about my families dedication to my life in sport.  As long as I can remember, my parents were either shuffling 3 of us to 3 different practices multiple days a week, coaching games, leaving work early to watch a  "big" game, dishing out money for new equipment and travel, nursing an injury or patiently listening to the exact play by play of that evenings game over a home cooked meal. (Actually, most of these still happen to this day.)

How did they find the time? The money? The energy? The patience? 

To this day I am completely amazed and thankful for my parents dedication and steadfast commitment to our lives in sport. We are better people and a closer family because of it.

So when we quoted in our video, "Just like Petro-Canada, we the Brown Family put Family First", it's the honest truth. That's why we are so thrilled to be representing the Family Program for Petro-Canada. We have benefited first hand from having our family with us as we competed-- hands down it positively impacts your performance and enhances your mental strength. On the World stage, it can only be greater. 

As I said in THE HERITAGE NEWSPAPER-- "The advantage for the athletes (having their family's with them at the Games) is that they can focus on competing and they don't have to worry about the stress of whether their family members get there,"  "They know they will have the support of their families."

Read the Full article at: http://emckingston.ca/20100121/lifestyle/Family-first+attitude+helps+siblings+win+trip+to+Olympics

We will surely see the positives results from Petro-Canada's investment in our athletes families in the Canadian medal tally-- but long term, having your parents watching you LIVE at the biggest sporting event of your life--now that's priceless. Just ask me. 

"...And that's the Brown Low Down"

Photo Credit: Mark Kerr, Kingston EMC

Family Correspondents: Bringing us all together

I can't believe this is happening!

I'm fairly certain that I can put quotations around that, I've certainly said it enough recently. This has now become a regular part of my vocabulary. Thank you Petro-Canada once again for this tremendous opportunity!

My brother Daniel and I happened upon this Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games contest on Facebook, put together a video and were fortunate enough to be selected as Family Correspondents. But it did require a little assistance from a few others along the way, and in thanking them we found our focus and direction heading down the path to Vancouver.

With a little help from our friends

Our filming took us to the Glen Eden Ski Hill in Milton, Ontario where we rounded up some extras in the form of a ski class. We went to a bar in our hometown of Dundas, Ontario, named The Thirsty Cactus, and were able to snag some people during a World Juniors game. And we also recruited some family and neighbours as well.

That family and neighbours bit was actually pretty funny, we wanted them to react like Canada just did something amazing but it was during a Canada World Juniors game. The score was already 11-0 Canada and we just decided to let the tape run: 25 seconds later Canada scores again! When they turned to us and said 'alright we're ready' we were already done.

We also received help from Toronto indie group Make Your Exit, who granted us permission to use their song "Leave This Town" for our video which was a great help.

We had told everyone that if we won we would come back, thank them and let them know where to follow the coverage. When we did return the excitement that everyone had for us was amazing, you would think they were going themselves!

Media Day the First

And that helped to truly cement everything. This past Friday, our first media encounter, my brother and I made an appearance on the CHML 900 morning show in Hamilton. All the well wishes heading in, all the feedback afterward, we knew we would be in charge of bringing the news of the families of our Canadian athletes to Canadians nationwide but had not yet stopped to realize that nation was listening! 

Our first meeting with the press, our first step on the road to the 2010 Winter Games, went over quite well (you can find our interview attached below).

Thanks to everyone out there who is following us, it's your support that will make this Family Correspondent program a true success. Don't hesitate to give us feedback, send us requests or comments and enjoy the posts, tweets, and videos to come. 

Thanks for following the Petro-Canada Family Correspondents! 

Mike Radoslav

How I came to be a Petro-Canada Family Correspondent

You know as a kid when you said, "Ok, this is for the World Championships of The World", and then you scored the winning goal on your grandpa on your backyard rink? (INSERT VICTORY FIST PUMP & STICK RIDING) Of course you do. Every Canadian has felt that moment.  Well, this was the same feeling we had when we GOT "the call" from Petro Canda, telling us we won a trip to the Olympics as the Petro-Canada Family Correspondents.

Let me back up for a minute. Here is how we got here:

1. Thankfully I was creeping on Facebook and came across the Family Correspondent contest from PETRO-CANADA.
2. Read the Rules, watched the videos and ACCEPTED the challenge with my younger brother Robbie. AKA Rob--his grown up name. (This was a plan so we could share the experience with our big sis who moved to Vancouver in August. We are 3 peas in a Pod.)
3. Then we made Petro-Canada Microphones out of Hanna Montanna dollar store Microphones and found Petro Canada 1988 Olympic Champagne Glasses at the Salvation Army to feature in the vid.
4. On Christmas Eve, with Canadian outfits, hockey gear, microphones and Petro-Canada glasses in hand we headed to the local outdoor rink where my finance, Greg, shot the video for us. Yes, many people thought we were nut. Nothing new.
5. Christmas Day, our friend edited the video (with the "clutch" bobble-head photos) and we submitted our entry on the last day. Oops. Just added to the dramatic ending. See video below!
6. Interview happens 2 days later where we brag about how super fantastic our sporty & supportive family is. (LOL)
7. One weekish later...I checked my voicemail from Robbie and hear this..."HOLY MOLY...ANSWER YOUR PHONE....WE ARE GOING TO THE OOOLLLYYYMMMMPICCCSSSS" . (I am keeping this PG 13)
8. It's Official. WE ARE THE PETRO-CANADA FAMILY CORRESPONDENTS. Pure JOY.

Hi, I am Steph Brown. A rookie to the blog scene but a regular at telling the fun adventures of my life. I hope you will join me  and my brother "Robbie"  on our OLYMPIC Adventure with Petro-Canada as theIr Family Correspondents. Just be sure to bring a funny hat.

Over the next few weeks--get to know us, laugh at us, give us feedback,buy your gas from Petro-Canada, send us questions to ask Olympic families, and above all else have a lil' fun with us.

Big, HUGE, Petro-Sized thank you to Petro-Canada for this wonderful opportunity. To learn more about how Petro-Canada is giving the experience of a lifetime to the families of all our Canadian athletes go to www.iwilldreambig.com (Click on Family Program)

"...And that's the Brown Low Down"

(After studying "Anchorman", we learned that a handle is key.)

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LOCAL NEWSPAPER ARTICLE:

http://www.thewhig.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2260214

World Cup, Winter Wonderlands and Winterberg: Athlete Blog Watch

The road to the Games is a long one and no one knows that better than the athletes themselves. On their personal blogs, they share the thrill of victory, the agony of their feet and the day to day living, training and perseverance that go into being a top athlete.

Here are a few of the Canadian athlete blog posts that inspired us this week:

Biathlete Zina Kocher sums up her race and talks about having her family at the finish line in her post World Cup Week 2:

Last week I had a fairly successful World Cup #2 in Hochfilzen, Austria. Friday in the Sprint, I finished 18^th with 1 penalty. There is ALWAYS something that an athlete is dissatisfied with or at least acknowledges the requirement for continued improvement. After my race, I was satisfied with many aspects of the race, and yet deeply frustrated that I had missed my very last shot! If only…

My wonderful parents, along with some fellow Kocher fans from Germany came to this World Cup and definitely helped me cruise up the final hill to the finish with their loud cheering!

In Germany to attend her World Cup races, bobsleigh team member Heather Moyse talks about her great race performance and her international travel mishaps trying to get home for the holidays in her post Off-Ice Adventures:

There are still three more races for the World Cup circuit, with the Olympic team not being announced until after two of those. So much can still happen between now and then, and that means that I can’t take anything for granted. I am extremely happy about how things have been going, and excited about ending the first half [of the season] with a push record, a track record, and a gold medal, but…… I mustn’t get ahead of myself!

Finally, alpine skier Kelly McBroom talks about the heartbreak of her ski teammates who were injured in races and training this month - having gone through the same thing last year, she can empathize. She also shares her stunning vacation photos from a trip up to Lake O'Hara in her post Elizabeth Parker Hut:

I injured myself almost one year ago, I am back on snow, I have gone through the rehab and the painful moments and I have been through it. I feel very strongly for all of my injured teammates because I know what they're going through and I know what lies ahead and how hard it really is being on the sidelines. It sucks, plain and simple. Especially now, with the Olympics so close. It just breaks my heart.

There is nothing really one can say, or one can do to make it better. It has to come from within. My advise is; push, fight and keep fighting even when you don't think you can push anymore. It takes drive, dedication and optimism to get to where you want to be and it will be a long road, but one that will end and you will get through it.

We'll be highlighting Canadian athlete blog posts every week, so stay tuned!

Congrats to Our Family Correspondents

We’re excited for the winners of our Family Correspondent Contest: Rob & Stephanie Brown, Mike & Daniel Radoslav and Anne-Marie Finn & Denis Van Decker!

We’re looking forward to having them report LIVE from Vancouver, and share the experiences of families participating in the Canadian Athlete Family Program.  You can see their winning videos below.  

Plus, make sure you're following them on Twitter:

• Rob Brown - @4RGB8
• Stephanie Brown - @Stephb10
• Dan Radoslav - @DJR_7
• Mike Radoslav - @picante
• Anne-Marie Finn - @BigFamilyDream

We’d also like to thank the rest of our finalist family members - Jean-François Frenette, Eric Arseneau, Nicole Stuber, and Sonia Stuber. To show our appreciation, these finalists will receive a Petro-Canada 2010 Olympic Fan Package which includes a set of Petro-Canada glassware, a variety of coin cards, Petro-Canada pins, and $100 in gas. 

Congratulations to our winners, and thank you to everyone who participated in our Family Correspondent Contest. We’re looking forward to seeing the Petro-Canada Family Correspondents in Vancouver shortly. Stay tuned for more details.

Updated on Jan 9 to include additional winners.