With the drama over Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir still fresh, I decided I also wanted to finish a blog post about the criticism Patrick Chan has been getting since his Silver medal win (or as some cynics view it, his Gold Medal loss to Yuzuru Hanyu) on Day 7. Ill start off with what Ive been saying to my friends on Facebook: Ive said it before and Ill say it again: The heartbreak over not getting Gold is his alone. People who havent put in the time and effort he has dont get to lament over not getting a Gold. I know hes heartbroken but there was just WAY too much pressure on him (and Yuzuru) to be perfect. I could never imagine. Jian Ghomeshi, over at Q on CBC, says it best on his Q Essay today. If Patrick Chan is a failure, what does that make the rest of us? Take a listen if you got some time; cbc.ca/q/blog/q-at-the-olympics/2014/02/17/going-for-gold/ Before people start to call him a failure or give him grief for not winning Gold, MAYBE they should quickly Google his results over his career. Wikipedias got it right at the top, He is the 2014 Olympic silver medalist in the mens and team events, a three-time World champion (2011, 2012, 2013), a two-time Grand Prix Final champion (2010 and 2011), a two-time Four Continents champion (2009, 2012), and a seven-time Canadian national champion (2008–2014). (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Chan) What exactly have these critics and naysayers done with their lives that exceeds this? Patrick is ONLY 23 and has been skating since he was 5 years old. What he has accomplished in 18 years is nothing short of amazing. But forget him for just a second; theres a bigger problem here. It absolutely BLOWS my mind that there are people out there who have the audacity to say such stuff about him and other amazing AMATEUR athletes. Note the stress I put on amateur. Athletes like Patrick, Yuzuru Hanyu, Charles Hamelin, Michelle Kwan, Michael Phelps, etc etc, they dont get paid to do this. Theyre not professional athletes. Unless they make it BIG (like the 5 I just mentioned), they dont get paid or get huge sponsorship deals like athletes from the NFL, NHL, NBA and MLB do. Many amateur athletes will train and compete in relative obscurity, just hoping for a shot at the Olympics. Some might get a shot at the Olympics, some might even get more than one shot, some might rise to the top, like Patrick, but 99% of them will probably be paying out of pocket or working a job on the side in order to support themselves and train like madmen for a sport theyre so passionate about. So before you go and start tearing these athletes down, stop yourself. Slap yourself even. Save your negativity and horrible criticisms for those professional athletes that make millions of dollars in the pro leagues (and even then, its not really truly justifiable but at least theyre making more money in a year than you ever will in your life, which probably helps them sleep at night). Im proud of Patrick Chan and what he stands for. He and his peers are one of the biggest reasons why Im so passionate about the Olympics. All the hard work that amateur athletes put in is nothing short of amazing and they put it all on the line, every four years, for their country. Would it kill you to show some respect? Im ending this post with something Patrick said on CBC, the morning after his Silver Medal performance. He was asked, When you look back 20 years from now, how are you gonna view this overall? ...for the first time I can now say that Im a 7 time National Champion, a 3 time World Champion and a 2 time Silver Medalist at the Olympic Games. Thats huge. I dont know any other skater who has achieved that. Ive had a tremendous career. I dont wanna look at the medals and the successes Ive had, I wanna look at how Ive changed the sport. Even after all the glory, glitz, drama, love, hate, pain, sweat and tears, Patrick Chan is still a stand up guy. What about you?
Posted on: Tue, 18 Feb 2014 00:02:33 +0000
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