THE SISTERS.
The Staffords
You need l ook no f ur t her t ha n the cover of Canadian Running’s January/February 2020 issue to spot what may be Canada’s best sibling r iva lr y: Gabriella DeBues-St a f ford a nd her younger sister Lucia. While Gabriella’s bona f ides have long been est ablished, Lucia is steadily taking her own place among Canada’s running elite. Last November she won the U Sports women’s cross-country title, capping off a difficult year that saw her struggle with a thyroid disorder and testing her as much mentally as physically. As doctors tried different medications and doses, it was June before they found the right mix, and
Lucia started to turn a corner.
“I didn’t realize how much it would take out of me,” Stafford says. “Honestly, I always knew I would get through it. But there were moments when I didn’t know if I would be the same on the other end.”
Lucia stayed positive, even as she wondered if a full recovery was truly available. “You kind of have to think that it’s going to work out, or it’s too hard,” she says. Even when I got to cross country, I was like ‘Is this the week when this falls apart?’”
With the medication issue solved, Lucia put her head down and, as she says, “Put in the work.”
“The whole year, that’s the main goal but I have to make sure it’s not the be-all and end-all. I believe I can get there. If I don’t, I’ll be very proud of everything I’ve done.” -Lucia Stafford on making it to the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo
The work has paid off. Lucia now finds herself in the awkward yet exciting position of battling for an Olympic spot in 2020 alongside her sister. The peer pressure is there; Gabriella made the 2016 team at age 21, and Lucia, now at age 21, hopes to join her 2020.
“The whole year, that’s the main goal but I have to make sure it’s not the be-all and end-all,” says Lucia. “I believe I can get there. If I don’t, I’ll be very proud of everything I’ve done.”
As for that sibling rivalry? It’s more like a mutual admirat ion soc iet y, thanks to Gabriella’s recent dominance in Canada. “We’ve had very different paths to get to this point,” Lucia says.