Why We Owned The Podium

So, in the end, was it all really worth it?
Did the $117 million investment we made in our athletes really pay off at Vancouver 2010? Can we indeed say we 'owned the podium?'
In a word (or three) ... yes, yes and yes.
As Canadian athletes finish off their "home" Winter Olympics with a remarkable medal flourish — another two golds and a bronze have been banked today, with the Kevin Martin curling rink working on a fourth right now — all the snickering about the federal government's bold funding initiative seems to have all but disappeared.
Then again, given what's gone on in the last 72 hours, it's hard not to see why. Was it really only four days ago that Canada was stuck on 11 medals, woefully shy of the bold (some might say boastful) predictions that had been made by the Canadian Olympic Committee?
Don't look now, but the red maple leaf is poised to make its greatest showing in Winter Olympics history. No matter what Martin's foursome does against Norway (and its now-famed pants) tonight, they'll earn a medal. That'll be No. 25 of Vancouver 2010, surpassing the total Canadian athletes earned four years ago at Turin 2006.
Of course, there's one more not-so-insignificant medal to collect — Canada faces off against the United States in the hotly-anticipated men's hockey final on Sunday — which will give the host nation a third-place finish in the overall medal count (behind the U.S. and Germany). That's our highest finish ever in those standings.
We've even made history on two fronts. The 12 golds we've earned so far — snowboarder Jasey-Jay Anderson and the men's pursuit team in long-track speedskating added to that total today — are the most for Canada in any Olympics, winter or summer. It's also the most for a host nation in Winter Olympics history (and how many trees were killed anguised about our golden drought at home? Way too many).
Oh, and we're not done yet. If Martin's crew prevails tonight, Canada will match the Winter Games record for most golds, first set by the old Soviet Union in Innsbruck in 1976 and matched by Norway at Salt Lake City 2002. The record could be ours alone with a hockey triumph Sunday, adding further fuel to a matchup that hardly needs any.
Now, the naysayers will still stay Own The Podium targeted a No. 1 overall finish at these Games, which obviously won't happen. Unless, that is, you go by the International Olympic Committee's table, which ranks countries in terms of who wins the most golds.
While the latter point is always a subject of debate, the point is Own The Podium did do its job. Winning gold is owning the podium, and we did it more than anyone else at these Games. More importantly, we sent a team of athletes to Vancouver with a mindset that went way beyond just being happy to be there. As un-Canadian as it sounds, these athletes came to their Olympics with winning front and centre. It says here that alone is a major step forward on this huge stage.
The question now is, where do we go from here? What do we do with the incredible momentum and positive feeling that's been generated by Vancouver 2010? It is a most important query, indeed.
There is no question the extra funding provided by Own The Podium played a massive role in the gains we saw over the past two weeks. That's a tap that simply can't be shut off, if we're to continue to enjoy more success in future Olympics. Look no further than the smashing success of the U.S. at these Games — eight years after they played host to the world in Salt Lake City — for proof of what can happen if you stick to your commitment over the long haul.
Canada needs to decide once and for all if it wants to keep being a Winter Games power. And the pride alone generated by our athletes in Vancouver should make that answer a resounding yes.
Yes, it's true we didn't top the medal count at our Games. But it's much easier to believe now that it could happen someday soon.
At the very least, let's give our athletes a chance to try. That's all they really want, to be able to stay they're still right in the Games.