Damian Warner won gold in one of track and field鈥檚 most gruelling events, masterfully laying down one terrific performance after another over 10 events and two days, in the smothering Tokyo heat.
But Warner鈥檚 story is about much more than his Olympic victory.
In an unforgettable year jam-packed with tales of resilience, Warner鈥檚 was one of the most remarkable. And the golden ending meant that much more for the gargantuan challenges he and his team hurdled get there.
鈥淥bviously, winning the gold medal is going to be thing that stands out the most, just because I鈥檝e been chasing it for the longest period of time,鈥� Warner said. 鈥淏ut what I鈥檓 most proud of is how we persevered through the situation that we had, because it wasn鈥檛 ideal, and it was tough, but we found a way to work around it, while also being at our best.
鈥淪o, knowing how the journey was leading up to the Games, makes everything that鈥檚 happened that much more special.鈥�
The 32-year-old from London, Ont., captured Canada鈥檚 first Olympic decathlon title in emphatic fashion. He set an Olympic record and a Canadian record, and became just the fourth man in history to top the elusive 9,000-point barrier.
He capped his year Wednesday by winning the Lionel Conacher Award as The Canadian Press male athlete of the year.
READ MORE: Three-medal day for Canada as Damian Warner wins decathlon gold, sets Olympic record
Warner鈥檚 year was the stuff of Hollywood movies. COVID-19 closures forced him to train in an otherwise empty, rundown hockey arena in London. He鈥檇 warm his hands over space heaters, but his fingers and toes would inevitably go numb. A 40-metre strip of track his coaches had glued down was as far as he could run.
He hit rock bottom in late February.
鈥淲e were pole vaulting and I was getting really frustrated 鈥� it seemed like everything was just too much,鈥� he said.
He told coaches Gar Leyshon and Dennis Nielsen that it was a waste of time, it wasn鈥檛 gold-medal training.
鈥淎nd Gar and Dennis said 鈥榃e have no other solution. This is all we have.鈥� It was like this (realization) that this is all we have, and I鈥檓 not going to quit on my goals.鈥�
The Conacher race was a close one with Warner receiving 18 of the 47 votes cast by sports editors, writers and broadcasters across Canada. Sprinter Andre De Grasse was second with 14, while soccer鈥檚 Alphonso Davies, who won the award in 2020, had seven votes to finish third.
鈥淎ccepting awards like this is weird to me, because it is like a coin flip essentially,鈥� Warner said. 鈥淎ndre won a gold medal, and Alfonso is having an incredible year. So, when you鈥檙e picked, you kind of feel guilty to a certain extent. It鈥檚 a good problem to have in Canada that we have so many athletes, and not only us three but the list goes on and on and on of people that were really successful this year. As a sports fan, that鈥檚 always a cool thing to see.鈥�
鈥淪o, it鈥檚 always a humbling thing and I鈥檓 grateful to be recognize, (but) it鈥檚 also recognizing my family, my coaches and everybody that helped me get to this point, which is what I think is really cool about it,鈥� he added.
Warner finally turned the corner on the gloomy winter when his son Theo was born on March 11. Because he was born by C-section, it was tough for Cotten, a former world class track athlete, to climb in and out of their bed for feeding. So they moved down to their living room for two weeks. They had the Netflix show 鈥淪uperstore鈥� on a 鈥渓oop, like 24/7,鈥� because the characters were 鈥渂right and loud and energetic.鈥�
Two months later, Warner stepped onto the track for his first decathlon in 20 months, and shattered his own Canadian record to win the prestigious Hypo-Meeting in Gotzis, Austria.
Turns out, he was just getting going.
鈥淒amian Warner did what no other Canadian Olympian has ever done by winning the decathlon,鈥� said Kevin Martel, anchor at 980 CJME Regina. 鈥淚t鈥檚 widely regarded as the most complete medal at the Olympics, since you have to excel in so many different events.鈥�
Warner鈥檚 final score of 9,018 in Tokyo was an Olympic record. He won by almost 300 points. His long jump alone would have won him bronze in the Olympic long jump event. His 100-metre time of 10.12 seconds would have almost got him into the open 100 final. Had he run the open 100, he would have been the second fastest Canadian behind De Grasse.
鈥淒amian Warner had to train under difficult situations for 10 events,鈥� said Globe and Mail sports layout editor Phil King. 鈥淎t the Olympics, he rightly won the title of the world鈥檚 greatest athlete. He deserves every accolade The Canadian Press can give him and more. He is the cream of the crop 鈥� in the world.鈥�
Tennis player Leylah Fernandez won the Bobbie Rosenfeld Award as CP鈥檚 top female athlete on Tuesday. The team of the year will be unveiled Thursday.
Lori Ewing, The Canadian Press
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