It doesn’t matter to an Olympic gold medalist if he is helping to raise funds for a multi-million sports complex or just providing a few soccer balls for children in Africa, he just wants youngsters to have the right to play.
Kyle Shewfelt, who won the gold medal in floor exercise at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, will be the guest speaker at the Hometown Heroes Gala at the Foothills Centennial Centre on April 16.
The event is being held to raise funds for the proposed Dunbow area multi-purpose arena near Heritage Heights School.
His speaking engagement comes just seven days after his return from Liberia in support of Right to Play.
“Right to Play is important because I feel sport and play is a powerful tool for change,” Shewfelt said. “I want to make an impact around the world and Right to Play gives me that opportunity.”
He said he could not describe the impact Right to Play had on the children he saw in Liberia.
“There aren’t the words to describe it,” Shewfelt said. “But it provides a lot of hope and a lot of change… I was able to play a lot of games and activities with the kids.”
He said he is just as thrilled to help raise funds for the Dunbow arena.
“You learn so much through sport,” Shewfelt said. “To have that space and the environment for sport allows you to learn life skills that go far beyond when you are done with sports.
“This venue will provide opportunity for not just children but everyone.”
Shewfelt will touch on his experience in Africa when he speaks Saturday, but he is not going to stray too far from the theme of “Hometown Heroes.”
“As a beginner athlete, there was a girl in our club named Jennifer Wood and she became the first Alberta Olympian in the sport of gymnastics — she was a really big role model for me,” Shewfelt said.
“Mark Tewksbury and Catriona Le May Doan are two athletes outside of my sport that I really look up to.”
Shewfelt does share something with Le May Doan and Tewksbury. They have all won Olympic gold.
Shewfelt’s gold medal came in the floor exercise in August 2004, about six months after he severely bruised his ankle bone.
“That was not something I had planned for when I first dreamt of going to the Olympics some 16 years before,” he said. “Injuries can help you grow and help you learn. They can be a blessing in disguise and that’s what happened in 2004.
“It allowed me to focus on my daily accomplishments and not focus on the pressure of the Olympics.”
If he was feeling pressure as he walked out for the floor exercise on Aug. 22 in Athens, he didn’t show it — and the judges certainly didn’t see it.
“You get one shot, one opportunity, just like the Eminem song,” Shewfelt said with a laugh. “You have 60 seconds to make a lifetime dream a reality.
“It is intense.”
Shewfelt knew he had a strong performance.
“I knew I had reached my absolute best for my potential on that day and that moment,” he said. “I knew I couldn’t have been better.
“When I saw my name on the top of the scoreboard, there it was confirmation.”
He still had to wait for four more competitors to finish before he could celebrate his dream.
“You don’t want anybody to mess up, but if they do, you’re not too disappointed,” he said with a chuckle.
Shewfelt’s gold in the floor exercise was the first for Canada at the 2004 Olympic Games.
He nearly took home a bronze medal in the vault, but finished fourth. That was despite the fact the bronze medalist, Marian Dragulescu slipped on his vault.
“Of course I was upset, on that day I thought I was the third best,” he said. “But I had won the night before, and I knew how the media works. I didn’t want that (the vault) to overshadow the history that was made the night before.
“Besides, I had some beer I wanted to drink with my family — I wanted to celebrate with them.”
The Hometown Heroes Gala will be held at the Foothills Centennial Centre on April 16. For tickets contact Marica Law at 403-630-8093.
