Ryan Cochrane shows no mercy on Mercer in tuneup

As a tuneup for his bid for the Olympic podium, it's hard to say just yet what impact his duel in the pool with Rick Mercer will have on Canada's Ryan Cochrane.

Cochrane, an Olympic bronze medalist in Beijing in the men's 1,500-metre freestyle and silver medalist in the event at last year's worlds, definitely enjoyed the CBC satirist's visit to the Victoria pool where he trains ahead of this week's Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Swimming Trials in Montreal.

As this video from the Rick Mercer Report shows, Mercer had to be hooked up to a pulley system to keep pace with Cochrane. That didn't work, either.

“He's pretty funny in person and it's kind of just go, go, go the whole time,” said Cochrane. “I was killing myself laughing because I thought he was drowning beside me when we were doing the racing. He's like 'I have a safe word. So if I yell the safe word, stop. But no matter what else I yell, just keep going.'

“It was awesome. I think it's really great for our whole team, just the publicity from it. I was just happy to get in a world edge-wise because he's a bit of a talker.”

Cochrane's coach, Randy Bennett, was asked about Mercer's potential as a swimmer.

“I thought Simon (Whitfield) summed it up pretty well on the show. When Rick asked if he had any chance of getting better, he said 'No.'”

Soul Searching Trip: Having seen the work Right To Play is doing internationally, Canadian speed skating great Kristina Groves was very interested to see the programs they are implementing in First Nations communities in Ontario. Her recent trip led to a lot of soul searching afterwards and this blog post for CBC that is definitely worth a read.

Here's an excerpt:

On the first night of the trip I was honoured to sit with the Assembly of First Nations Grand Chief Shawn Atleo at a dinner organized by Right To Play.  I asked him what the greatest difficulty facing Canada’s Aboriginal people was.  His answer surprised me.  It was not alcoholism, drug abuse, suicide, education, healthcare, or unemployment, but rather the very root of all of these problems – a systemic lack of self-confidence.

The basic premise of the Right To Play First Nations PLAY (Promoting Life skills in Aboriginal Youth) program is the development of youth leadership, and by extension confidence, through local community mentors. The youth themselves identify the needs of their own communities and then work together to implement new ideas and activities. There has been steep learning curve. I learned about the challenges they’ve faced in just getting kids to show up, to speak, to engage.  These are early days, but there are already plenty of successes to celebrate.

And then comes me, an Olympic athlete with weird skates and shiny medals, hoping to share and teach and learn. I’m not sure what I expected, but what I encountered was to me a sort of chaos: kids running around yelling, not paying attention, playing silly games.  To the staff this was a thing of beauty – kids running, playing, yelling!! 

Amidst the chaos, while attempting in vain to teach some of the kids to skate, terrified that one of them would fall and hit their head, I wondered to myself if I had made a mistake in being there, talking to kids about the Olympics and trying to teach them to speed skate when they had little hope of understanding my life, in much the same way I had little hope of understanding theirs.  I was doubtful that a connection could be made, in so short a time, across a gap so wide. 

After the community feast in Sheshegwaning First Nation, as we were preparing to drive back to Sudbury, one of the girls I met asked me if I was ever coming back.  I replied that yes, maybe one day I would make it back there for another visit.  Still unsure of my impact I asked the girl why she wanted me to come back.  And she said, “Because nobody ever comes here.” 

 

From the Olympic Games to the Hunger Games

There’s the Olympic Games. And then there’s The Hunger Games.

The Hunger Games is a smash bestselling book series which opens on movie screens around the world Thursday, but the books have been making the rounds among the Canadian women’s rowing team for many months now. According to veteran Darcy Marquardt, about 80 per cent of the squad got hooked on them.

Maybe it’s because they can relate to the book’s dark theme as they fight for spots on the Olympic team.

The first book in the trilogy, The Hunger Games, is described thusly on websites selling it:

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the other districts in line by forcing them to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight-to-the-death on live TV.

One boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and sixteen are selected by lottery to play. The winner brings riches and favor tohis or her district. But that is nothing compared to what the Capitol wins: one more year of fearful compliance with its rule. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her impoverished district in the Games.

“They’re fascinating books,” said Marquardt. “It’s a really interesting story. It’s written for a younger audience I think, but the draw is just the story, the struggles of a teenage girl to find herself and also prove to the world that she’s strong enough to be this heroine they want her to be. I think especially girls latch onto it because of the desire to stand up for what you believe in.”

As Marquardt points out, there’s certainly an element of survival of the fittest to their endeavour. They’ve been in Florida this week fighting it out in the first stage of their selection trials for the women's eight, expected to be a strong contender for the podium at the 2012 London Olympics.

“Sometimes you’re friends, sometimes it’s people in your training group that you know but ultimately there’s only so many of you that can succeed and be on the team, kind of survive say. There may come a point where you have to beat one of your own teammates to get ahead. I see the parallel there. It’s quite timely with this week being the first official step in our selections for our women’s eight.”

At least it’s not a fight to the death like it is in The Hunger Games.

“It’s certainly not to the death, but it’s crushing to the people who don’t make it,” Marquardt said.

Marquardt said the books have been a good distraction.

“It’s not too demanding, it’s a very easy read and things are happening all the time so it keeps your mind off of any other stresses that we tend to have at this time of year with selection looming and ongoing and anticipating even what the day of training will sometimes entail. It’s great to chat about something else.”

For many girls and women who read the book, one of the big questions tends to be Gale or Peeta? They're the two young men trying to win Katniss’ heart.

“I think it’s pretty divided (on the team),” said Marquardt. “One of my teammates, Natalie Mastracci, thinks Katniss has her blinders on for not seeing what a great guy Peeta is and how well he treats her throughout the whole series. I think it’s probably 60-40 with 60 for Peeta and 40 Gale. It’s not a sweep either way.”

The team will likely go see the movie en masse.

“That’s the plan, take up a whole row. I hope it lives up to expectations.”

(The photo above is a still from the movie with Jennifer Lawrence playing Katniss)

Canadian men's water polo team hopes youth is served

Somewhere in his parents’ basement in tiny Drinkwater, Sask., lies a souvenir t-shirt Robin Randall picked up at the last Olympic water polo qualifying tournament held in Canada some 22 years ago.

Randall was 12 at the time, already hooked on the sport, and watching some games in Calgary may well have cemented his future as goalkeeper on Canada’s national team.

“It was one of the things that probably inspired me to take it as far as I have,” said Randall.

Randall and his teammates will soon find out if they’re going to be able to take it as far as the 2012 London Olympics when Canadian hosts the qualifying tournament again, this time in Edmonton from April 1-8.

“It’s a really special opportunity because there hasn’t been an Olympic qualifier since 1992 when it was in Calgary,” said Randall. “I remember that because I was 12. There’s a lot of guys on the team who wouldn’t remember that because they weren’t born yet.”

That’s the thing about this Canadian squad. They’re a young group, average age only 22. But head coach Dragan Jovanovic has been aggressive in getting them battle ready with numerous invitational tournaments and other opportunities.

The team finished a disappointing 11th at the 2008 Beijing Olympics after being a surprise qualifier, their first appearance after 24 years, and Jovanovic believes they’re capable of much more.

The only wildcard for him is the home crowd – these guys aren’t used to playing in front of one.

“For some teams, that’s an advantage,” said Jovanovic. “For this team, I’m guessing we’ll see if it’s an advantage or disadvantage on April 6.”

That’s the date of the quarterfinals. There’s two pools of six teams in the tournament and Canada is happy with their draw and confident they can advance out of their pool as one of the top four teams, maybe even finish first. The teams then cross over for the quarterfinals, with first in one pool playing fourth in the other and so on. A win in the quarterfinal guarantees an Olympic berth.

“I wouldn’t trust my Olympic hopes on the shoulders on anyone else in this world but the 12 other guys on my team, myself and the coaching staff, of course,” said Randall.

The team includes rising star Nicolas Constantin-Bicari, only 20 and touted to have the potential to be a Wayne Gretzky of water polo.

“There’s no one I’ve seen that’s been able to check him and effectively shut him down completely for the whole game,” said Randall.

In fact, Randall finds himself very wistful at times looking around at all the young talent on the team.

“Having had the perspective of being around for a few generations, it’s really awesome to see the potential,” he said. “In a way, sometimes I get a little sad. It’s kind of bittersweet because I know as much as I love the sport, you can’t play forever. You can’t play the kids games forever.

“At some point I’ll have to step down or be asked to leave – hopefully it’s not that – but at some point I’ll move on for sure and I don’t want to do it with all this young, special talent coming up the pipe. It gets me a little emotional sometimes.”

Hopefully, Randall gets to experience some of those emotions in London.

 (Photo of Robin Randall by Todd Korol/Reuters)

Clara Hughes primed for a soup-er Olympic cycling season

If you’ve read any of Clara Hughes’ recent blog entries, you can tell the Canadian Olympic legend is in a good place as she embarks on the road to the London Olympics.

She’s even started posting soup recipes. She’s the self-proclaimed ‘Master of the Soups.' Those lucky enough to sample the results of her kitchen labours would not begrudge her that title.

But the main course is her preparation for the London Games and, according to the man who should know, her cycling coach Chris Rozdilsky, everything is right on target.

Hughes chose Rozdilsky as the architect of her cycling comeback last year after a decade away from the sport after shopping around extensively. He doesn’t sugarcoat things and said from the start "If it wasn't Clara Hughes, I would say it's pretty much impossible."

Well, he thinks it’s very possible right now.

What has Rozdilsky enthused among other things is they’ve been able to streamline her program and tap into a lot of support after trying to do everything themselves in her first season back.

Where Hughes raced as an independent last year and could not get into the big European races against the best cyclists, she’s now with one of the world’s top teams in Specialized-Lululemon. They’ve been racing this week in San Dimas, Calif and she'll soon be off for a bit European swing.

“Ever since that (signing with Specialized-Lululemon), it’s really kind of cleared her head, because now she doesn’t have to worry,” said Rozdilsky. “When she goes to a race, she’s going to be fully supported and she’s going to have teammates who are trying to do the same thing she’s doing at the highest level of sport. It’s a very motivating environment.

“Whenever they go into a race, they’re trying to win the race. It doesn’t matter who wins the race, but they’re trying to win the race for sure. That’s her. That’s what she wants to do. She’s not going into anything to participate. She’s going in to try to win whatever she’s entering.”

Rozdilsky, who works out of the PowerWatts studio in Montreal, said their setup last year “was this crazy matrix of planning and training and travelling and media.”

“That’s what kind of took the edge off her at worlds,” he said. “It was too many external things that at the end of the day it affected her performance -- and we can’t let that happen again.”

Hughes was fifth in the time trials at the world championships in Belgium and finished way back in the road race after a brave attack that provided the big excitement in what was mostly a dull affair.

“After the race, we said ‘Okay, performance was mediocre. Why was it mediocre?’ We went through the exercise of saying we’re going to change this, this, this and this.”

One of the changes is aligning with B2ten, which backed by independent Canadian businessmen helps this country’s athletes with goods and services to aid them in the climb to the Olympic podium. The group is handling a lot of the logistics, planning and management for Hughes, as well as media requests.

“We decided let’s go full speed forward, we need help, we found the people who can help us,” said Rozdilsky, adding it’s enabled him to focus more on coaching.

“We were really able to refine what she needs to do. Her body really responded well. She’s starting the season in really good shape, physically strong, physically lean, mentally ready to do battle. All systems are go.”

 

Van Koeverden backing "Be Fair 2 Rare" campaign

On a day where scarves are definitely an asset in Toronto, Olympic world champion Adam van Koeverden would like you to consider buying one with a special message: Be Fair 2 Rare.

Today is International Rare Disease Day, marking the one-year anniversary of the Be Fair 2 Rare campaign launched by the iBellieve Foundation. The campaign, aligned with the Canadian Organization of Rare Disorders, seeks to increase awareness, funds and advocacy for the rare disease community in Canada.

These diseases aren’t as rare as people think when you consider that 1 in 12 Canadians suffer from one of over 7,000 different rare diseases.

Yet Canada is the only developed country in the world that doesn’t have a national health care policy supporting research into cures. Canada also doesn’t support existing therapies, meaning patients can’t access therapies that could save or dramatically improve their lives.

Rare diseases are usually life threatening or life altering – and children represent 75 per cent of those afflicted.

The force behind the Be Fair 2 Rare campaign is Simon Ibell, whose former work as an athlete co-ordinator at Right To Play and friendship with the likes of Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki has created numerous connections in the sports world.

Ibell has Hunter syndrome, or mucopolysaccharidosis II (MPS II), a rare metabolic disorder. In a great feature on Ibell, the Star’s Megan Ogilvie wrote of the disease: “People with MPS diseases lack an enzyme needed to break down long chains of sugars, called mucopolysaccharides, in their cells. Over time, the sugar chains, which are used to build bone and connective tissue, accumulate to dangerous levels. The backlog of waste damages organs and can lead to death.”

Also championing the campaign is Olympic and world kayaking champion Adam van Koeverden, who blogged about the cause today. He didn't bring his scarf with him to the team's current training camp in Florida, though.

“I’m 100 percent involved because of Simon Ibell,” said van Koeverden. “He’s a good friend of mine. He’s an inspiring guy. He’s brought to light a lot of very interesting facts and figures and realities about the world of rare disease.

“By nature, rare diseases don’t get a lot of consideration or attention because they’re so rare. But as a group, they’re so significant that they really can’t be ignored. Similar to Simon in that he’s so smart and inspiring and concise in his messaging that he can’t be ignored, either.

“Simon is a great role model for activist leaders, for people who engage athletes and the community of Canadians, as most Canadians do. Simon’s just reaching out to develop some awareness and I think it’s a fabulous campaign.”

The campaign is looking for people to sign the petition to support the adoption of a federal rare disease policy at their website www.befair2rare.com, where donations can be made and scarves can be purchased. The scarves also also be sold at Roots.

 

 

Be Ware: Young diver on the rise as London 2012 beckons

Canadian diver Pamela Ware fared pretty well for someone who didn’t even expect to make the semifinals in her major international debut at the Olympic pool in London.

She almost made it to the podium.

The 18-year-old from Ottenburn Park, Que., pulled off a surprising fourth-place finish Friday against the best of the best in a World Cup that served as a dress rehearsal for the real thing this summer.

Her personal best of 341.39 points also gave her the Canadian Olympic qualifying standard. Veteran Emilie Heymans was a disappointing 10th with 307.35 points.

“To be honest, when I got here I wasn’t even expecting to make semifinals so just making semifinals I was extremely happy,” said Ware.

Nerves weren’t the factor that Ware anticipated they would be.

“It was my first World Cup so I expected to be extremely nervous, but then I started competing and I was only nervous on my third dive of the event, of the prelims, semifinals and finals, because my third dive is my hardest dive for me,” she said. “I was just really nervous and I didn’t want to miss it.”

Nailing that dive set the table for the rest of the competition.

“It loosened me up a lot. I had absolutely no stress after that. I was confident and felt really good in the pool.”

New contenders are always emerging in an Olympic year. Ware is looking like she may be one of them.

(THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Diving Canada, Mike Ridewood)

Canadian ski ace Jan Hudec definitely not napping on the job

Jan Hudec is interrupted by a phone call just before nap time.

What? How the heck can the guy sleep at a time like this?

He’s on an incredible roll with another podium Friday, his first ever in Super-G, a second-place finish in Crans Montana, Switzerland – kayaker David Ford aptly suggested via Twitter that they replaced his legs with bionic ones on his seventh knee surgery.

The Canadian team is also on an amazing run, five podium finishes in five races – the Fab Three of Hudec, Erik Guay and Ben Thomsen have combined for that.

Sure the guy’s earned his rest, but being able to grab a few winks before the medal ceremony in Crans Montana bespeaks of one cool customer.

There’s no question Hudec has got his mojo back after a long time in the alpine wildnerness, plagued by knee and back problems. As he acknowledges, he reckons he can keep it going as long as his body holds up. Right now, he is in the zone.

“I think that’s how it happens in sports for sure,” said Hudec, who kindly agreed to postpone his nap for a quick interview. “Once you kind of get the feeling of what it feels like to be fast, to be winning, it’s something you can kind of recreate day after day or it’s a little bit easier to re-create. You get that feeling. It’s something you wake up in the morning with.

“It was nice to keep it going for the team today and I know tomorrow Erik wants to keep it up and get on the podium (in another Super-G in Crans Montana).”

Make no mistake about it, what the Canadian men’s downhill team is accomplishing right now is something special. They’re a small unit because of injury, battling against the European alpine giants like Switzerland.

“I think people are watching us more closely and seem to be more interested than usual, but so far I think we’re still the likeable Canadians,” said Hudec. “Everyone still gives us the big handshakes and are very friendly. I think a lot of people even in other countries – especially France and Switzerland – are very excited for us to do well. It’s nice to have that support from general ski fans as well.”

As the speed team’s head coach Johno McBride described it, the skiers are thriving on a good energy on the squad and a sense of confidence.

“It’s been fun for the last few weeks because when one guy isn’t completely on top of his game somewhere – like Erik and I in Sochi, for instance – Ben was right there chomping at the bit,” said Hudec, referring to Thomsen’s second-place finish on the 2014 Olympic course. “He took the pressure off us and kept the ‘team momentum’ going.

“Obviously I want to say I can keep it going but you’re up against 80 of the top skiers in the world and about 20 of them can win on any given day. It’s one of those things where you try to do it every day and if you don’t, you hope one of your teammates can. That’s what we’ve been feeding off of the last couple of weeks is feeding off each other.”

Okay, Jan, thanks for this. Now get that nap.

(AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

 

Olympic skeleton champ Montgomery tries Crosby's wild ride

It’s a wilder ride than you’ll get in most amusement parks, but rather than scrambling your brain it’s supposed to help rewire it for the better.

Sidney Crosby has done it many times. So, too, now have Olympic skeleton champion Jon Montgomery and his teammate and wife Darla Deschamps.

With the help of Crosby’s trainer Andy O’Brien, Montgomery and Deschamps were able to get treatment from Dr. Ted Carrick, the man who pioneered chiropractic neurology at Life University in Atlanta.

Deschamps suffered a concussion last December while training on terrible ice conditions in Lillehammer, while Montgomery went to Atlanta to get a baseline test.

Deschamps thought she had a mild concussion but she tested for a major concussion. Montgomery also tested for symptoms of dysfunction in the brain, probably due to 10 years of skeleton runs.

“It was similar to the kind of things they see in wakeboarding and motorcross where they repeatedly wipe out,” said Montgomery.

When Montgomery and Deschamps did exercises where a pattern was introduced in front of them and they tried to follow a moving line or dot, there was no reflex reaction in their eyes.

“Darla’s and my eyes were pretty much flatline – they weren’t moving,” said Montogmery. “It didn’t have that natural reflex.”

Montgomery and Deschamps both got to experience the GyroStim, a gyroscope which turns patients every which way in a pattern that is designed for their specific brain issues. They spun three times a day for four days – Crosby was there at the same time. It was a return trip for Crosby, who first underwent the uncoventional therapy in August.

“I guess the first time that Sid was in the machine, he was not feeling very well at all,” said Montgomery. “He went back to the hotel and didn’t return for more therapy that day.”

Montgomery said Carrick’s therapy is designed to re-train the brain.

“He has recognized ways to build a new grid for the brain or create new pathways to achieve the proper neuro firing patterns that have been compromised in brain,” said Montgomery. “He used an analogy that makes a lot of sense to me. It’s like a busy highway that has a blockage in it, it’s had an accident and been shut down.

“Other doctors would just say you have to wait in traffic until that blockage becomes unimpeded. If it never becomes unimpededed, guess what, you’re never getting through. Dr. Carrick’s approach is he turns on his GPS and finds a new route to get around this pathway that has been shut down.”

Montgomery became a believer after the treatment and from the marked improvements he saw in other patients treated there.

“The brain is an incredibly adaptive piece of equipment and it will find new ways to accomplish the same end result when something’s been compromised,” he said. “By stimulating the brain with this GyroStim machine, they essentially create new pathways for those neuro firing responses to send signals to the desired end location.

“The way it works I believe is there’s one constant in our lives – that’s gravity. By spinning the human body on a multi-place axis and essentially denying the body of the one constant, you’re able to stimulate the brain in a previously unachievable manner.”

Montgomery said he and Deschamps experienced a “massive improvement” in the natural reflex response in their eyes after the treatment. While Deschamps said some of her concussion symptoms came back during the treatment, she showed a huge improvement the following week as her dizziness and nauseousness disappeared and her energy levels rose.

Montgomery knows there’s doubters out there, especially after Crosby was knocked out with concussions symptoms again shortly after returning.

“The reason there’s an element of skepticism out there is simply because people don’t understand it. It’s my firm belief this stuff won’t be fringe medicine anymore. It will be widely accepted.”

Montgomery and Deschamps said it’s also going to be important in moving forward to change the mentality in skeleton racing. She was injured while doing multiple runs – she said four times as many as usual -- on unfavourable track conditions.

“We’ve got to be responsible and say when enough is enough and not be pushed to do more simply for the sake of doing more,” Montgomery said.

 

Priscilla Lopes-Schliep ready to rumble on road to London

Priscilla Lopes-Schliep gets to have butterflies in her belly again.

The Whitby hurdler, who gave birth to daughter Nataliya in September, will have her first post-pregnancy race on the road to the 2012 London Olympics on Saturday at a meet at the University of Sherbrooke.

The way her coach Anthony McCleary describes it, there was just no holding the Olympic bronze medalist and world champion silver medallist back any longer, given how hard she’s worked in practice and the remarkable progress demonstrated.

“She’s ahead of what I actually thought,” said McCleary. “I thought we’d be struggling to get over the hurdle, but we’re not doing that anymore. She finds it pretty easy. She’s pretty much done everything that we’ve asked her to – and better.

“Her mental state is a lot better than where it was and the determination is there. I’m not going to deny her if she says she wants to try it.”

She’s certainly sounding ready.

"I am looking forward to racing, it's been a long time since I've stepped foot on the track in a competitive field,” said Lopes-Schliep in a statement. “I'm up against some of the best in the world on Saturday and anything can happen. This is a stepping stone for me to my ultimate goal of representing Canada at the London Games and pushing for a medal.”

Lopes-Schliep will race in the women’s 60-metre hurdles in an invitiational race at the Quebec university championships. She’ll be up against training partners Nikkita Holder and Phylicia George, ranked ninth and 11th in the world respectively.

This is a big race for George, who needs to run 8.00 to qualify for the indoor world championships. She’s run 8.03, but in Canada the standard is much tougher than the IAAF qualifying mark of 8.18.

“To have a chance to do it on Saturday with three of my training partners pushing me, means all the more,” said George.

Holder has already qualified but said she’s looking to dip under the 8-second barrier against a strong Canadian field.

McCleary said that Holder and George have provided Lopes-Schliep with a great measuring stick in training.

“She has two of the world’s best here with her, which helps her and gives her that drive,” he said. “She’s hanging with them. That’s part of her confidence level. She’s geared up and ready for it.”

It’s highly unlikely for Lopes-Schliep to nail the world indoor qualifying time in her first race back, but McCleary also believes it isn’t out of the question. Generally, she opens the season at around 8.30 seconds, which would suit everybody just fine.

“If she hits that mark, we know we’re on the right track,” McCleary said.

(The photo is of Lopes-Schliep winning at the Diamond League Final in August 2010 -- she was ranked No. 1 in the world at the time)

 

That guy you see running on DVP might be Simon Whitfield

Simon Whitfield’s final tuneup for the 2012 London Olympics will be along the DVP and Gardiner Expressway.

Whitfield was in town Wednesday to help unveil plans for the Toronto Triathlon Festival on July 22 on a course that snakes through the city’s downtown core and along eastbound Gardiner and northbound Don Valley Parkway.

“It’s a showcase event,” said Whitfield. “Chicago has had the biggest race in the world for years. New York City has a big race. L.A. has a big race. Now, Toronto will have this great race. I’m really excited and honoured to be up here. It’s a big thrill.”

Whitfield won’t be doing the Olympic distance in Toronto – he’ll be doing the “sprint,” which at .75k of swimming, 20k of cycling and a 5k run is half the Olympic distance. He sees the Toronto race as a perfect way to get ready for the Aug. 7 men’s Olympic triathlon in London.

“For me, the Olympic year is about keeping the things we can control as low key as possible,” said Whitfield, Olympic champion in 2000 in Sydney and silver medalist with a stirring run in 2008 in Beijing. “This is a great opportunity for that.

“Instead of getting to a race in Hamburg, which is all-on, all-pressure, WCS (World Championships Series) racing. Just to be in Toronto, I find it much more relaxing. Gets you in a great head space for an Olympic campaign, I suppose.”

Those anticipating another big traffic jam – the grumbling over the marathons never seems to cease -- are unlikely to be in that same great head space.

The race is being run by Triathlon Canada and Sports Focused Consulting, run by Jeff Chong, son of former councillor Gordon Chong, Mayor Rob Ford’s righthand man on the fractious subway issue.

Ford once proposed moving all such races off city streets and into parks, but Chong seems to have been able to sell city council on its merits despite being turned down at the public works committee.

Chong said the race was three years in the making and that there is a projected $1.6 million economic benefit to the city and $2.3 million for the province in the first year.

“I also think that as a city we should be at a level that other cities are at that host things like this,” said Chong. “What we’re creating here is going to be a signature event that allows us to play in the big leagues as it were with respect to some of these bigger types of races.”

Chong said the event will start at 7 a.m. and the triathletes will be off the course early “before people on a Sunday morning are going to even know about it.”

“Quite frankly, the city is the show here,” said Chong. “We wanted to show off the best of what the city has to offer. Going through the Gardiner, passing the Air Canada Centre, the CN Tower, those sort of things. The speed you can generate coming down the DVP … those are the sort of things we were looking for.”

Alan Trivett, executive director of Triathlon Canada, said they hope to hold the Canadian championships in Toronto in 2013 and 2014, as well as a sanctioned International Triathlon Union event in 2014 as a test event for the 2015 Pan Am Games.

Whitfield, who turns 37 in May, would like to stick around for a crack at the Pan Ams.

“I’m competitive so I try to forget I’m getting older. I just like racing. Pan Am Games, Toronto. Who wouldn’t want to be there?”