National Post (National Edition)
Hurdling over a doping culture
Canadians finally get their medals
Jessica Furlan can' t begin to understand why three women from Russia, Ukraine and Turkey doped their way to medals ahead of her that day.
And the 30-year-old steeplechaser from Regina won't soon forget that a rare moment of celebration was denied her and Chantelle Groenewoud, her friend and teammate.
But there is room in Furlan's heart to forgive. That much was evident when she reacted Thursday to news that she would be awarded a silver medal and Groenewoud would finally get her gold from the 2013 Summer Universiade.
“I also feel empathy for the athletes who cheated and for those who will continue to cheat,” Furlan tweeted. “I cannot begin to imagine the circumstances or desperation that would lead to choosing that path, and the feeling of living with that choice every day.”
Given how cheating had affected Furlan's result that day in Kazan, Russia, it seems an incredibly tolerant viewpoint.
“When I tweeted that, I thought some people are going to think, `man, she's an apologist for dopers.' But it's really how I feel,” Furlan said in an interview with Postmedia on Thursday afternoon. “I have a hard time with people who are so outspoken that they think dopers should have lifetime bans for first-time offences. I just don't agree with that. Some people's situations are so complicated and we' ll never understand why they are choosing to dope.”
Russia's Yulia Zaripova crushed the field in Kazan and won the race in 9:28.00. Ukraine's Svitlana Shmidt was a distant second in 9:40.41, Turkey's Gulcan Mingir third in 9:45.88. Groenewoud (9:51.17) and Furlan (9:51.23) both ran PBs that day to finish fourth and fifth, but were nowhere near the podium.
“I don't remember going into that race thinking this is completely unfair even before it started,” said Furlan. “After the fact, especially after all the stuff came out about the Russian doping scandal, you look back and go, `yeah, it's not really that surprising.' It's nice to know now that we can achieve those results cleanly, even if it's seven years later.”
Groenewoud had already been upgraded to bronze in 2018 after Shmidt was disqualified for doping. The world governing body, FISU, told the two Canadians last week they would finally be receiving their rightful medals after the other two athletes were DQ'd.
“It took me back to all those amazing emotions,” Groenewoud told U Sports. “Jess and I were both so excited in the moment already with fourth and fifth. (Knowing) that we could have been first or second, it's a whole other ball game. I'm feeling a little nostalgic for that time period.”
Furlan said the silver medal won't mean much to her because the opportunity to celebrate it at the finish line and again on the podium, with her friend and teammate, was lost long ago.
“To stand beside one of my best friends and listen to O Canada would have been absolutely amazing and it's heartbreaking that we didn't get to do that. And we would have crossed the line knowing we won,” added Furlan.
“Those things you can't get back, but in the big scheme of the world it's just a piece of metal. We're healthy. We have great families. We live in Canada. We are so lucky to have all those
things and those are most important.”
However, had dopers prevented Furlan and Groenewoud from rightfully reaching an Olympic podium, the hurt would have been deeper and lasted longer.
“I would absolutely feel different, you know, in the sense that it would be much more upsetting and heartbreaking because it would have been much more lifechanging with financial opportunities and other things that go along with winning an Olympic medal,” said Furlan.
Groenewoud has retired from sport and is expecting her first child. Furlan struggled through a foot injury that required surgery in 2016 but is healthy and focused on qualifying for next summer's Olympics in Tokyo.
The Athletics Canada standard of 9:30.00 would require a new PB, which she lowered to 9:33.45 in Belgium in 2014. Her best recent finish was 9:44.37 in 2019, again in Belgium.
“It's hard because I haven't ever run it, but I know fitness-wise I have been close to it the past few years. It's something I am capable of doing and it's a matter of staying healthy and getting consistent training in. I wouldn't be doing it if I didn't think I could.”
And she wouldn't be doing it well if she let doubts about dopers creep into her head.
“Maybe I'm naive, but I don't ever want to go into a race thinking the people I'm competing against are cheating,” said Furlan. “You've already lost if you are going into any competition with that mindset. I also just want to believe people are truthful and competing on a clean level. I know that's not true, but I would rather believe that than be pessimistic about it.”
LOOK BACK AND GO, `YEAH, IT'S NOT REALLY THAT SURPRISING.'