Caileigh Filmer of Victoria, who is 19, will no doubt have other Olympic moments. At 31, those Olympian opportunities get narrower for fellow-Islander Jamie Broder in beach volleyball. Even at 27, two-time Olympic medallist-Ryan Cochrane of Victoria is considered the old man of the Canadian swim team following his sixth place Saturday in the 1,500-metre freestyle at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Filmer, a graduate of Mount Douglas Secondary and the youngest member of the Canadian rowing team, placed fifth with the Canadian women鈥檚 eight Saturday at the Rio Summer Games.
The Canadian crew, which includes Christine Roper of Victoria and UVic Vikes product Antje von Seydlitz-Kurzbach of Terrace, bravely went out hard and led at the halfway point of the 2,000-metre Olympic final, but was a spent force over the final 1,000 metres as the U.S., Britain and Romania rowed through sa国际传媒 for gold, silver and bronze, respectively.
Victoria-based Rowing sa国际传媒, which won only a silver medal 鈥� in the women鈥檚 lightweight double by Islanders Lindsay Jennerich and Patricia Obee 鈥� at these Rio Olympics, now faces some hard questions and a massive re-build looming on Elk Lake in the quadrennial leading to Tokyo 2020.
Going out at the hands of fellow Canadians is a strange way for an Olympic dream to end. But that鈥檚 the way it went as both the Canadian women鈥檚 beach volleyball teams qualified out of pool play for the playoff knockout rounds amid the spectacular venue of Copacabana.
But the hand of fate drew Victoria鈥檚 Broder and Kristina Valjas of Toronto against fellow-Canadians and world No. 5 Heather Bansley and Sarah Pavan in Saturday鈥檚 round of 16.
Bansley and Pavan defeated Broder and Valjas 2-0 in straight sets, but the oddity of beating another Canadian team wasn鈥檛 lost on Pavan: 鈥淚t鈥檚 unfortunate we had to meet so early in the draw. Neither of us wanted that to happen. But you know, once the game starts, they just become another opponent that is in our way.鈥�
The result was disappointing for Broder, who finally reached the Olympics after years of striving on sand around the world.
鈥淚t was a tough game and, unfortunately, not the result we were hoping for,鈥� said the Claremont Secondary graduate, who went on to star with the Vancouver Island University Mariners, and later win two CIS championships with the UBC Thunderbirds.
鈥淏ut [Pavan and Bansley] did a great job on their block defence and that got in the way of a couple of our angles today.鈥�
It will hurt for a bit, until the enormity of the entire journey comes more into focus and can be better appreciated.
鈥淎 couple of years ago, [herself and Broder] didn鈥檛 even think we could get to the Olympics,鈥� said Valjas.
鈥淭he fact we鈥檙e here and that we finished top-10 in the world . . . we can鈥檛 help but be proud of ourselves. It鈥檚 just too bad today we didn鈥檛 play as well as we know we can.鈥�
Meanwhile, Cochrane鈥檚 immediate post-race reaction was interesting.
鈥淚 had the best year of training of my life but that didn鈥檛 translate to racing,鈥� he told CBC-TV in his poolside interview.
鈥淚 put everything into this year and it didn鈥檛 pay off.鈥�
In cycling at the 2012 London Olympics, the Canadian women鈥檚 team pursuit foursome included the since-retired Gillian Carleton of Victoria and won bronze. sa国际传媒 repeated as Olympic bronze medallists Saturday at Rio in what is becoming a reliable event for this country.
With bronze medals by Hilary Caldwell in swimming and the Langford-based Canadian women鈥檚 rugby sevens team, and Jennerichs and Obee鈥檚 silver in rowing, Island-based athletes have three medals so far at the Rio Olympics. That compares with five each at the 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympics.
