It came four years later, almost to the day, but Canada finally has a medal in the Olympic women’s 100-metre hurdles.
That it was Whitby’s Priscilla Lopes-Schliep and not Pickering’s Perdita Felicien standing on the podium is one of the more interesting Canadian stories of the Beijing Olympics.
The Durham dynamo, a powerful five-foot-four package of pure rippling muscle, blazed across the finish line in 12.64 seconds Tuesday night to earn a bronze medal by a whisker.
Ms. Lopes-Schliep, a delightful, sweet-natured young woman off the track, is a ferocious, intense bulldog once she gets into the starting blocks. With an outside shot at medalling in the final, she came through to capture third place. That she didn’t even run her personal best leaves us all wondering just how low she can go and whether Olympic and World Championship gold awaits down the road.
The Whitby athlete has long raced in the shadow of her more famous Durham neighbour. Ms. Felicien, after all, was 2003 world champion and won a silver in the worlds last year. She was the favourite to win gold in Athens four years ago before her disastrous first-hurdle stumble that was felt across the country. Ms. Felicien was determined to rebound in Beijing, but it was not to be.
Ms. Felicien was felled by injury this year and relegated to commenting on the Olympics rather than competing on the team.
Now, Ms. Lopes-Schliep has proven by her clutch performance on the world’s biggest stage that she is a star in her own right, an athlete to reckon with on her own terms.
Her story is proof that plenty of hard work can elevate a local girl into the elite club of top female athletes around the globe. Years of dedication have been rewarded with an unforgettable race that will put her name into the exclusive club of Canadian track and field Olympic medallists.
It’s a small club and it’s not unreasonable to hope that two women from Durham can’t share the Olympic medal podium in London in 2012. We can hardly wait.
-- Metroland Durham Region Media Group
Recommend :
More Editorials
Deficit-free plan offers real leadership for CanadiansCome rain, come sleet, come hail or recession, no deficit shall we run, says our finance minister. That was the message presented by Jim Flaherty in the House of Commons ...
Reaching out to Ajacians a laudable goalAjax Council is making out-reach to its citizens a more important part of its strategic plan, a move we heartily endorse. It's hard to believe that half of the current ...
Region sets clear direction for recyclingThe Region of Durham wants to have a clear look at what residents are, or are not, sending to landfill disposal. A pilot project will take place in about 750 households in ...
Oshawa EI numbers frighteningMerry Christmas. Statistics Canada has confirmed what we already knew: staggering amounts of people in Oshawa are unemployed. Only StatsCan has shown us the numbers and ...
Don't drink and driveThe annual Festive RIDE (Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere) campaign is on and one week in, the numbers are not encouraging. Twelve people were charged with drunk driving by ...
Now is no time to spend money buying buildingsLast week much discussion took place at Clarington council regarding the Total Hockey experiment that was put in place by the previous municipal council. As many may recall, ...
Need a doctor? Fourteen physicians are looking for patientsAt first blush, the statement seems paradoxical -- Oshawa is short at least 28 physicians but there are 14 doctors looking for new patients. The question comes to mind, if ...
Pickering, Ajax councillors right to question Metrolinx planAjax and Pickering councils have some legitimate concerns about the 25-year Metrolinx plan, concerns that must be taken into account and addressed. Released recently by ...
Give as generously as you can this Christmas seasonAmid all the grim news about layoffs and tough times in our economic outlook comes the realization that for some, this will be a truly difficult Christmas. Those among us who ...
Tough laws meant to keep young drivers saferA tough new bill just introduced in the Ontario legislature has the express goal of making it safer out there for our young drivers. It follows up on the graduated licensing ...