Nathan Hirayama Selected as Olympic Flag Bearer
Congratulations to Nate on being selected to share the flag bearing duties for Canada at the Olympics.
The article below, taken from the official Canadian Olympic website, even includes a personal congratulation video from the Prime Minister.
Nathan in his comments in the article mentions the difference from 10 years ago in his personal perspective. 10 years ago he was playing for the UVic Vikes. We remember that well as we awarded him a BCRN MVP hoodie that season. He was in good company that year with other BCRN MVP winners, Ciaran Hearn, Sean Duke, Mike Burak, Brian Erichsen, Ben Johnson, Sam Jenkins, Pat Riordan, Frank Walsh, Chauncey O’Toole, Lee Helm, Mark MacSween.
Canada kickoff their Rugby 7s competition on Monday morning the 26th which will be Sunday evening the 25th in BC.
from Olympic.ca
Ayim and Hirayama to be Team Canadas Opening Ceremony flag bearers for Tokyo 2020
By Paula Nichols
Two veteran leaders from two team sports will lead Team Canada into the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Miranda Ayim, set to make to her third straight Olympic appearance in womens basketball, and Nathan Hirayama, the co-captain of the mens rugby team making his Olympic debut, have been named as Team Canadas flag bearers for the Opening Ceremony taking place on July 23.
I was absolutely floored and immediately humbled, Ayim said of her selection, which she found out about in the most pandemic-era way via Zoom.
Mid conversation my Zoom froze and it came back and theyre just looking at me and Im sitting there saying nothing. Theyd clearly said something and obviously I didnt get what was said so I actually left the meeting and signed back on, Hirayama recalled. They said it to me, my initial reaction was a lot of confusion and denial at the beginning, I just didnt really fathom what was happening. But its just a massive honour and something thats pretty special.
Tokyo 2020 will be the most gender balanced Olympic Summer Games yet, with women now accounting for almost 49 per cent of all athletes. To help celebrate that, the International Olympic Committee decided that each National Olympic Committee should nominate one female athlete and one male athlete to jointly carry their countrys colours at the Opening Ceremony.
Canada was a little ahead of that curve, with ice dancers Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir becoming the first duo to share the honour of carrying the maple leaf at an Olympic Opening Ceremony at PyeongChang 2018. But this will be the first time that two athletes from different sports will lead Team Canada together. And it is the first time that a team sport athlete will be Canadas Opening Ceremony flag bearer at the Olympic Summer Games.
Its wonderful to be able to share this moment with Nate, said Ayim. Its the perfect representation of what this past year and a half required of Canadians everywhere: togetherness, camaraderie, and sacrifice true team spirit.
I understand how big of a privilege and honour it is to do this, said Hirayama. Its something Ive never even dreamt of doing and to do it with Miranda is a really special thing. Ive gotten to know her via text the last week and a half or so and just looking her up and seeing her career and all the things shes done, its pretty special to do it with her.
As much as things may be different for these Games, with all the mask wearing and frequent COVID-19 testing and especially no spectators in the stands, some things about the Opening Ceremony never change.
I think that feeling of holding the flag will be the same, said Ayim.
Its the start of the Olympic Games, especially a Games that over the last couple of years we werent sure if they were going to happen or not so it will just be a huge moment when the Games start for all the athletes involved, added Hirayama.
Each has gotten to this moment after years of dedication to their chosen sport.
Ayim, who announced in March that she would be retiring after competing in Tokyo, says she couldnt dream up a better ending to her career that includes a gold medal at the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto and two appearances at the FIBA World Cup.
Ive had the honour of wearing the maple leaf with pride for the past decade, but this is the perfect clap de fin as we say in French.
Once the Opening Ceremony is over, the business really begins. Ayim and her basketball teammates will see their first action against Serbia in the evening of Monday July 26.
I dont look past that, said Ayim. We have big ambitions for the tournament, but we cant let out gaze rest on that. Our most immediate goal is whats in front of us.
Canada comes into Tokyo 2020 ranked fourth in the world, a much different scenario than Ayims first Olympic experience at London 2012, for which the qualification on Canada Day remains her fondest Olympic memory.
It went down to the wire and was never guaranteed, she recalled. Theres something special about winning as an underdog and winning with a team that fights with grit and dedication.
Hirayama and his teammates will step onto an Olympic pitch for the first time on Monday morning against Great Britain. Hes been part of Canadas national team since he was just 18 and is now the countrys all-time leading scorer (and third in the world) in the World Rugby Sevens Series. Hes also a three-time medallist at the Pan Am Games and has played in three Rugby World Cup Sevens.
Now that Im an older player on the team, an experienced player I like to say, definitely I have a different perspective than if it was happening to me when I was 10 years younger, especially having not been successful in our qualification five years ago it makes this really special, said Hirayama. Me and the guys have talked about theres so many players that deserve to be here, guys who laid the foundation for us and worked so hard for this team for so many years so to get to go there and do this with this team and represent all those players is a really special thing.
Ayim was similarly reflective.
Ive continued playing basketball for so long because I love playing for something greater than myself. This honour is a representation of all the individuals who came before me and built basketball in Canada to what it is today without any recognition or status. This is for team sports who have the wonderful task of balancing athletic prowess with teamwork, sacrifice, and loyalty. To be able to represent the whole of Team Canada in this role is an incredible honour.