“This medal is for the people who come behind me and get into the sport”.
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Mom didn’t have an answer.
Manuel had to rally to get there.
What followed was a moment as much about a family’s journey as it was about up early mornings for hard training sessions with her teammates, with parents Alison and Richard alongside Hayley waiting their turn, and Jamie, the hard-nosed, huge NHLer, delivering an all-shoulders, big brother’s embrace that looked well rehearsed.
The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) congratulated Oleksiak on her historic medal. Simone Manuel’s parents are Marc Manuel and Sharron Manuel.
The first was at the 1984 Los Angeles Games, when Americans Nancy Hogshead and Carrie Steinseifer tied at 55.92 seconds. Simply stunning. On top of that, the girls’ time beat the old Olympic record! Americans have not lost in either event since the Barcelona Olympics in 1992. “We know how hard she had worked and she had sacrificed a lot to get to this point”. Manuel praised God and let her light shine. She swam the final 50 meters of Thursday’s event in just 27.46 seconds, making up ground to Oleksiak in a flash.
“I went in there and swam as fast as I could”.
When Manuel looked up, she put her hand over mouth in disbelief at what had just happened. “She didn’t have to say much after that, because her staying up said enough in itself”. I want to be an inspiration, but I would like there to be a day when it is not ‘Simone the black swimmer’. “She would like to be recognized for her merits and dedication”.
It came just hours after Biles had dominated the competition in the women’s all-around event and entered the conversation of whether she is the greatest gymnast of all time. “She’s a huge part of my success”.
None of it mattered to Manuel, who credited African-American Olympic swimmers Maritza Correia and Cullen Jones for her opportunity.
The Toronto native tied with Simone Manuel of the US with a time of 52.70 to win the gold, becoming the first Canadian swimmer to win four medals in an Olympics.
Phelps blew away Ryan Lochte – and everyone else, for that matter – to win his fourth gold medal of the Rio Olympics and 22nd overall with a victory in the 200-meter individual medley Thursday night. As soon as Manuel walked through the door, Katie Ledecky jumped up and gave her a hug. Simone has two older brothers and started swimming at the age of five because she was inspired by her brothers.
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“It’s been a long journey and I’m super excited with where it has brought me”, she said. “We didn’t know then that this is what we were in for”. But within swimming circles, she was well known.
