This is a silver medal tinged with a golden hue.
The Elk Lake-based Canadian men's rowing eight, almost completely made-over with six new pullers replacing retired crew members from the gold-medallist Beijing boat, captured the silver Wednesday morning at the 2012 London Summer Olympics.
"This is an unbelievable feeling," said Canadian crew captain and Brentwood College-graduate Malcolm Howard, by phone from London.
Howard is one of only three returnees from the 2008 Olympic champion Canadian crew, along with Andrew Byrnes and the cagey coxswain Brian Price.
"[London and Beijing] were two different stories," said the Victorian Howard.
"We had a plan and mission in 2008 but here at London was different because we had so many younger guys. Maybe that's why this feels so hugely emotional and is such a high. We put our teeth right into the middle of this race."
The overwhelming favourites from Germany, undefeated in the four years since sa国际传媒 won gold in Beijing, captured London gold in 5: 48.75 over the 2,000 metres while sa国际传媒 was 5: 49.98 and host Great Britain challenged hard but faded to the bronze medal in 5: 51.18.
"We didn't lose the gold, we won the silver," said coxswain Price, raising two young daughters with his wife in Victoria.
"Germany hasn't been beaten in 35 races but there was no way I was going to let any other boat take us over . . . the guys trusted me," added Price, from London.
"I'm totally ecstatic and was so pumped when we crossed the line. I couldn't imagine being so pumped for silver," said the five-footfour coxswain, who survived leukemia at age seven but whose growth was stunted by the cancer drugs that affected his thyroid.
"The Beijing crew was experienced guys. This [London] boat was a developing boat that got better and better and better. I always believed it would come."
Howard's leadership was crucial. It showed when he brought the crew into a huddle on the dock after the Olympic final.
"I told them how proud I was of them," said Howard.
"How these Olympics started [a disastrous fifthplace finish in the opening round which had the Canadians having to scramble through the repechage just to make the final] was a big blow for us and tough mentally and had me questioning myself. But I watched how [2008 Beijing captain] Kyle Hamilton led by example. So I didn't say much but made the point that whatever we do, we do together."
The Olympic rookies in the silver-tinged Canadian crew are Robert Gibson, Jerry Brown, Conlin McCabe, Will Crothers and University of Victoria Vikes grads Gabe Bergen and Doug Csima.
Byrnes pointed to fellowveteran Howard, as both savoured their second career Olympic medals along with Price.
"There were nerves but Malcolm did a great job of keeping us calm and confident," said Byrnes.
"The goal is always the gold but Germany was a tough nut to crack and the clear favourites, so I'm pretty excited by what we accomplished - this is as high as I felt in Beijing. We looked deep into ourselves to get this silver medal. I'm very proud of what we did both times [London and Beijing]."
It was the third men's eight Olympic medal for sa国际传媒 under legendary coach Mike Spracklen of Sidney, to go along with golds at Barcelona 1992 and Beijing 2008.
"Mike did an incredible job in building us back up," said Howard.
The medal continues an outstanding Canadian tradition that began when the men's eight won silver at the 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics and followed up, with former federal environment minister David Anderson of Victoria in the boat, by delivering sa国际传媒's lone medal at the 1960 Rome Olympics.
It continued when the national rowing program moved permanently to Elk Lake with sa国际传媒 winning gold in the men's eight at the 1984 Los Angeles, 1992 Barcelona and 2008 Beijing Olympics and finishing fourth at Atlanta in 1996 and fifth at Athens in 2004.
Spracklen coached the 1992 Barcelona and 2008 Beijing gold medallist eight, the 2004 Athens crew and now the 2012 London silver medallists, the latter which may be his finest achievement considering the rebuilding that had to take place on Elk Lake.
"In Beijing, we were confident we were going to win," said Spracklen.
But there wasn't much to spare this time around, he admitted, indicating just what a fine line it was to reach the podium in London.
"I had exactly eight guys who could pull at this level.
I didn't have nine," said the transplanted Briton Spracklen, who guided sa国际传媒 to the silver medal just 10 kilometres from where he grew up rowing in Marlow.
Meanwhile, Dave Calder of Victoria and Brentwood College-grad Scott Frandsen, 2008 Beijing Olympic silver medallists, were third behind New Zealand and Italy in their men's pair semifinal Wednesday and advanced to the final Friday of the London Games.
"We're through and now we need to get focused on what it's going to take to get a medal," said Calder, in a statement.
