Canadian Olympic coach returns home to Lethbridge
On top of coaching the University of Lethbridge Pronghorns track and field team, Larry Steinke has been with the Canadian national team since 1998.
He recently returned home to Lethbridge after coaching the nation's best shot put, hammer throw and javelin competitors at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
"It's an honour to represent your country and be at those games and you know, try to help athletes have the best experience there that they can," said Steinke.
Steinke has now been on Canada's Olympic coaching staff for five Olympic games with his first taste of the world stage coming 21 years ago in Sydney, Australia.
Since then, he's been to the Games in Beijing, London, Rio de Janeiro and now Tokyo.
"The Olympics certainly are the pinnacle of our sport and to look back and see that I'm that old and I've been able to be at that many games is a little daunting," said Steinke.
Steinke and Jillian Weir
(Steinke with Jillian Weir in Tokyo)
"But it's an honour to represent your country and be at those games and try to help athletes have the best experience there that they can."
Despite dealing with a case of jet lag, Steinke said he's glad to be back on home soil after what he described as an unforgettable experience.
With the pandemic lingering on, much of Japan remains in a state of emergency which meant empty stadiums at the games, strict rules for athletes and coaches, and daily COVID-19 testing.
"To be in a stadium that can seat pretty much 100,000 people and literally be able to hear people across the stadium talking clearly where as it would have been drowned out previously was strange," said Steinke.
"It definitely made this a little bit surreal and I think that's a little bit unfortunate for some of the athletes if that was their first experience, but for some people that was almost a positive. It was like they could have been competing in Claresholm."
View of Tokyo from the hotel, August 2021
(The view from the hotel room)
A ROOM WITH A VIEW
With social interactions with other athletes and coaches limited to a bare minimum, Steinke said he spent a good portion of his time at his hotel soaking in the ocean view.
But for the athletes, it was disappointing not being able to celebrate Canadian victories as a group or to get the full Olympic treatment.
"As far as being immersed in the culture, having those kind of celebrations with teammates on other teams in Canada, those sorts of things were missed,"
"But," he added, "the Japanese people did an amazing job of putting the Games on in a pandemic which is something nobody has ever had to do before and keep everyone safe. From that perspective it was amazing."
An empty Tokyo street during the Olympics, August 2021
Despite none of the Canadian throwing athletes reaching the podium, Steinke said he's incredibly proud of the hard work the team put in training for the big stage which follows his motto.
"There is no failure but in ceasing to try."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.