Baillargeon-Smith shows heart for Gryphon runners

November 28, 2007
GREG LAYSON
The next time you even consider calling in sick when you're really just suffering from nothing more than a mild case of postnasal drip, think first of Andre-Paul Baillargeon-Smith.

And, the next time you call a long-distance runner soft or weak or simply not tough enough, not in the least, think first of Baillargeon-Smith.

More @ Guelph Mercury.com

Whitfield continues to challenge himself

Mark Sutcliffe, The Ottawa Citizen

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Simon Whitfield seems like a mild-mannered guy. During an interview while visiting Ottawa this week, he answered questions enthusiastically and candidly. He smiled a lot. His face brightened when he talked about his four-month-old daughter. He was funny and self-deprecating.

But you didn't see Simon Whitfield while he was training.

"I'm an emotional trainer," says Whitfield, the gold medallist in the 2000 Olympic triathlon.

And he doesn't just mean he's intense and likes to train hard. "No, I've had my shoving matches at the track," says Whitfield. "And Colin Jenkins and I tried to drown each other one time."

According to Whitfield, he and Jenkins, also an elite Canadian triathlete, bumped into each other a few times during a training exercise in the pool.

"We were each 150 pounds soaking wet, so it was a pathetic fight," says Whitfield. "And we were laughing about it five minutes later."

More at the Ottawa Citizen

Plus another article on the Golden Plates at the Edmonton Sun

Cornwall Multisport Club

Slowtwich has a profile on the Cornwall Mutlisport Club here

I was born in Cornwall Ontario and got my start in triathlon in 1989 when the Cornwall Cycle Club held its first triathlon event. One of the members of the club, Donna Ryan, was on the age group national team and helped the club organize its first event, held in Long Sault. The distances were about 400m swim, 20km bike and 5km run (ish).

I was in Cornwall after a number of years last weekend. There is great riding around the Cornwall area, as well as many bike paths, and access to upper New York state and Lake Placid for hills. One of my favorite memories is doing the weekly 15km time trials during the summer.

There wasn't a multisport club in Cornwall when I got into the sport, but according to the Slowtwich article, the club has 275 members, awesome.

Simon Whitfield: The 2007 Season and Javier Gomez

More of Simon's talk here

COC Beijing Olympic Excellence Series

This past weekend I was invited to Ottawa for the Canadian Olympic Committee's Beijing Olympic Excellence Series.

Here is the COC's take on the event:

"The purpose of the Olympic Excellence Series is to bring together athletes who have demonstrated podium potential for the next Olympic Games along with the coaches, team leaders and support staff who will accompany them to the Games. The primary goal of the Olympic Excellence Series is to help prepare the athletes and coaches and support team members for medal performances by providing them with practical skills and strategies they can use to prepare for podium success. The secondary objective is to inspire and motivate all involved, leaving everyone with a greater sense of confidence and drive in their quest for the podium."

This was my third conference this fall, after the SPIN Summit in Vancouver, and the annual Sport Leadership Summit held in Halifax this year. I find these events thought provoking, and I enjoy meeting and sharing ideas with coaches and technical officials from other sports. There were a number of people with deep Olympic experience at the conference, and many helpful ideas based on past Olympic experience where shared. The COC is doing a great job assisting preparation for the Beijing games across all sports.

Highlights from the Excellence Series this year were the keynote from Canadian Astronaut Julie Payette. Julie flew on the Space Shuttle Discovery in 1999 and worked in the International Space Station. There are many parallels between the process of becoming an astronaut and athletes who train and compete at the highest levels. Julie's presentation was excellent and provided great perspective on striving toward excellence.

The final key note was by Ultra Runner Ray Zahab. Ray completed a amazing feat of physical and mental endurance by running across the entire Sahara Desert, 7000km in 111 days, running up to 16hrs every single day. A film crew documented the event which will be out in 2008. More info here. Ray's presentation was excellent and inspiring - his theme was that the only limits we have are those we place on ourselves.

There were a number of other excellent presentations, including from Swimming Head Coach Tom Johnson, Athletics Coach Wynn Gmitroski, and Dr Dave Smith, physiologist from the Calgary.

I'll close with a quote from Dr Dave Smith about preparing for Beijing: "You are going to war, plan relentlessly"

Athletes strutting their stuff -- in the kitchen

Athletes strutting their stuff -- in the kitchen
Gary Kingston, Vancouver Sun
Published: Thursday, November 15, 2007
Given celebrity chef Rob Feenie's messy public split from his signature Vancouver restaurants, triathlete Simon Whitfield joked Wednesday that the duo might be serving "flaming meatballs" at that night's Gold Medal Plates fundraiser.
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Funding boost from Gold Medal Plates

Funding boost from Gold Medal Plates
The Province
Published: Thursday, November 15, 2007

Canada's summer and winter Olympians and Paralympians became $626,589.16 richer Wednesday night.
Olympic gold medalists Simon Whitfield (triathlon, 2000), Adam van Koeverden (kayaking, 2004) and Kyle Shewfelt (gymnastics, 2004) were among the star-studded group at the Westin Bayshore to accept the cheque from Stephen Leckie, chief executive officer and founder of Gold Medal Plates, a fund-raising initiative that began in 2003.
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