rfmcdonald | [URBAN NOTE] "An Introduction to Toronto’s Olympians" (Reply)

Torontoist's David Hains has a nice post profiling high-profile Canadian Olympic athletes from Toronto at Sochi.

Russia’s legislative and cultural oppression of gays and lesbians has drawn worldwide condemnation and cast a shadow over the Sochi Olympics. There are difficult, and some say impossible, lines to be drawn: between supporting Russia and the Olympics, between supporting the Games and individual athletes—some of whom, of course, are lesbian or gay, and many of whom have been vocal queer allies.

There was no widespread move to boycott the Games, and so a number of athletes from our own backyard, who have trained for years for a chance to complete, are now in Sochi. Here are eight Toronto Olympians to follow and root for, even if you’re not rooting for the country that’s hosting them:

Patrick Chan: This is the Olympian that your grandmother loves, and that is because your grandma has excellent judgement. Chan is a strong medal contender in figure skating, having won the past three world championships. Chan was born in Ottawa but moved to Toronto at an early age. In case you need another reason why this 23-year-old is better than you: he also speaks French and Cantonese fluently. He graduated from North York’s École secondaire Étienne-Brûlé. You can follow him on Twitter @PChiddy.