Yves Hamelin is well aware of what it at stake
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Short-track's first family hopes to capitalize
- February 4, 2010 2:35 PM |
- By Michael Traikos
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By Michael Traikos, National Post
Yves Hamelin is well aware of what it at stake.
These Olympic Games will not just be about representing Canada on home soil. For Hamelin, who is short-track speed skating's national team program director, a family's reputation will also be on the line.
Hamelin's two sons, Charles and François, are on the team, as is Charles' girlfriend, Marianne St-Gelais.
The family connections have made the Hamelins an obvious story heading into the Olympics, because all three have the opportunity to bring home multiple medals.
But if the Canada's short-track speed skaters falter, the next family Sunday dinner could involve more shoving than a typical lap around the oval.
"We must try to make the most of the pressure and the encouragement," Charles Hamelin recently told reporters. "All the Canadian athletes want a medal, especially in Vancouver. But we can't put too much pressure on ourselves."
A silver medallist in the 5,000-metre relay at the 2006 Olympics in Turin, where he also placed fourth in the 1,500-metre distance, Charles Hamelin has the potential to break out in Vancouver. And at a recent World Cup event in Montreal, the native of Ste-Julie, Que., proved he could handle the hometown crowds by winning the 500- and 1,500-metre races, finishing third in the 1,000-metres and helping Canada finish second in the relay.
Montreal was a sort of mini-Olympics. Charles Hamelin skated against American star Apolo Anton Ohno and the usual favourites from China and Korea. And the 25-year-old showed the world that Canada is a country to be reckoned with.
"The World Cup in Montreal was the best competition of my life as a short-track speed skater," he told reporters. "It was a great moment to have right before the Olympics. It shows that we're ready to compete hard against the other countries at the Olympics."
Now comes the real challenge: Getting back on the podium when the stakes are even greater.
Aside from Charles Hamelin, a lot is expected of the Canadian team. Kalyna Roberge was a silver medallist in the relay at the 2006 Olympics, where she finished fourth in the 500-metre race. Up-and-comer Jessica Gregg was named Speed Skating Canada's Female Athlete of the Year. And the dreadlocked Olivier Jean is considered to be a force in the 500-metre race and relay.
"If we win one medal at the Olympics, we can't say we'll be satisfied, because it won't be true," François-Louis Tremblay, a silver medallist in 2006, said when the team was announced in the summer. "The way I look at goals is that you can choose to set safe, reachable ones, but why wouldn't you choose to set extraordinary ones? If you can get there, why not shoot for that?"
About the Author
- Bruce Arthur Bruce Arthur is the National Post's national sports columnist. A Vancouver native, he has been with the Post since 2001, and a columnist since 2005. He is covering his second Olympics, after the 2008 Games in Beijing. He expects these Games to be slightly less propagandistic, and for China to win slightly fewer medals.
- Joe O'Connor Joe O'Connor is a roving sports feature writer with an open-ended beat. He joined the National Post in 2002, and has spent the past seven years bouncing from sport to sport, offering fresh perspectives and delivering unique stories wherever he goes. Whether it has been getting Don Cherry to open up about his love life; George Chuvalo to talk about heartbreaking loss; or racing down the side of a mountain with former Crazy Canuck, Dave Irwin, the veteran Postie chases a story wherever it leads. Before joining the newspaper he was a two-time silver medalist at the National Magazine Awards. Vancouver will be his first Olympics.
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