Olympic gold medal swimmer Mark Tewksbury shares some insight into competition to Special Olympic Athletes (left to right) David Ingram and Stephen Denham at the Talisman Centre in Calgary.Chris Bolin
There is so much wrong with sports today. Barry Bonds in court for perjury over his alleged use of steroids. The NFL in a bitter labour spat with its athletes. The NHL pockmarked by players hitting one another in the head.
But on this chilly afternoon in a sport facility on the edge of downtown Calgary, there is much that is right, including the man with the 400-watt smile who can't believe what he's seeing and whose background is largely unknown to the people who are training for their big event in Greece.
Mark Tewksbury is standing before a group of 20 track athletes bound for the 2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Athens and he is leading them in a cheer.
"I am a beaver. You're a beaver. Beavers we are all. And when we get together, we do the beaver call." The athletes pretend to gnaw beaver-like on a stick then shout, "Yeah."
Everyone laughs. It's the same cheer Tewksbury used to send Canada's athletes on their way to the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
"If you abandon all protocol," said a grinning Tewksbury, "there's a certain side that responds to that."
It's a stone-hearted, Bruins-eat-Habs sports world out there with every reason to think it's always about power and money, who has it and who gets bludgeoned by it. But to see a former Olympic gold medalist among the athletes, telling his story and applauding their efforts, is to think that sometimes the beauty of sport and human nature can co-exist and make us feel good.
And on this day, Tewksbury is feeling as enthused as the athletes who have come from across Canada to the Talisman Centre for a final group training session. They are here to receive extra coaching; he is here to deliver a pep talk that comes from the heart.
"I had divorced myself from the International Olympic Committee and even stepped away from the Special Olympics because after 10 years I thought it was someone else's turn," explained Tewksbury, Canada's chef de mission for the 2012 Summer Olympics. "But the spirit got me back. I wanted to be reconnected … and [the Special Olympics]is a hard organization to say no to."
Tewksbury has managed much since winning the gold medal in the 1992 Olympic backstroke event. He's been a motivational speaker, written three books, hosted a TV show and was co-president of the 2006 World Outgames held in Montreal. But long before all that, he volunteered for the Special Olympics and handed out medals at their various events. Eventually, he served on the Special Olympics Foundation and became a board member.
After stepping away and openly battling with the IOC over its philosophies and greed, Tewksbury found himself missing what sports meant to him - the competition, the friendships, that spirit. So he returned to the athletes at the Olympic level and he re-upped with the Special Olympics, where the memories of what makes for good sport seldom revolve around winning.
"I saw an athlete once trade a gold medal for a bronze," Tewksbury recalled. "He already had a gold and he wanted a bronze. I've seen an athlete in the 100-metre sprint, way ahead of everyone else, stop and wave at people while all the other runners passed him by. It goes to the human side of it."
That side is evident as Tewksbury interacted with the track athletes and got them excited about their dreams.
"Did you know Mark Tewksbury was coming here today?" Stephen Denham, a long-time Special Olympian from Montreal, was asked.
"No, I was surprised to see him. I love surprises," Denham answered before volunteering he's also a huge fan of singer Justin Bieber. "[Tewksbury]was a swimmer for Team Canada. And now I'm part of it."
The Team Canada theme resonates loudly and clearly among the track specialists. Together with some 80-plus teammates, they will be among 7,000 athletes from 170 countries competing this June in the very place where the Olympics were born. Only at these Games you won't hear much about drug scandals or politics or even medal standings. It'll be a change worth savouring.
"Did you know who Mark Tewksbury was before today?" Ray Lappalainen, perhaps the team's fastest sprinter, was asked.
"No," Lappalainen of Nanaimo, B.C., replied before mentioning he had competed at the 2007 World Summer Games in China and would like to retire in Greece.
"So what was it like having Tewksbury talk to you?"
"I think it's awesome," Lappalainen said. "He's another guy who has travelled the world, just like me."
"Just like me. Doesn't that warm your heart?" Tewksbury asked.
On a cold day in sports, it was welcome relief, for sure.