Track classic: World’s biggest stars are in town.
Canadian shot-put giant ready for ‘amazing’ Track Classic
Dylan Armstrong knows the frustrations of life in the drugtainted sport of shot-put all too well.
After having missed out on the Olympic podium at Beijing in 2008 by less than a centimetre, the Kamloops, B.C., native now finds himself sitting back and waiting for the day he officially takes his rightful spot among Canada’s Olympic medallists. When that day comes — after the International Olympic Committee and IAAF proceed with their collective behind-the-scenes process — Armstrong’s medal will be Belarusian shot putter Andrei Mikhnevich’s loss, after the two-time offender was handed a lifetime ban earlier this month following a retest of a sample from the 2005 World Championships.
“You just have to spin it off in a positive way,” said Armstrong, who is in town for Saturday’s Edmonton International Track Classic, when asked about the bronze that’s coming his way, while at the same time handing shot-put another doping-related hit.
“There are cheaters out there, for sure, so I don’t know what would’ve happened after I got that medal (at the time). Obviously, it would’ve been a lot more exciting to find out (then versus) now.”
“Right now, it’s going to take a little bit of time and there are some politics involved. It is a process to get back, but definitely when I get that medal back, it’ll be a good feeling.”
The soon-to-be Olympic medallist, for one, wasn’t shocked when he heard of Mikhnevich’s ban.
“I wasn’t surprised. The guy’s been caught before,” said Armstrong, with reference to Mikhnevich’s first positive test, which came at the 2001 World Championships in Edmonton.
“I’ve been in this game a long time. You have your suspicions, even at the event (with) what’s going on, but there’s nothing you can do about it, and you can’t let that get in your head.”
Armstrong has done his best to carry on with a noseto-the-grindstone approach, but undoubtedly, there’s been plenty of frustration along the way for Armstrong, who followed years of precise scheduling aimed at maximizing his performance, only to see corner cutters keep him off the podium — until now.
“Now when I actually see what’s come out, I don’t really think I made any mistakes,” Armstrong said. “The periodization did work, the planning did work and I’ve got a World Indoor Championships medal now, a World Outdoor (medal), an Olympic (medal) coming, two Pan-Am golds and a gold from (the) Commonwealth Games. Our system worked … I’m really happy with what I have, and there are no regrets.”
Now Armstrong, 32, is hoping to continue to add to his resume, albeit against a field he knows that, in part, is still trying to skirt the rules.
“I don’t want to point fingers and I can’t make that comment, because I really don’t know,” Armstrong said when asked if he believed any shot- putters at the London Olympics last year had cheated. “Of course, there’s somebody out there in the event, but until they get caught, sometimes you’re like ‘well, maybe, I don’t know.’ It’s a tough one, it really is, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
But that reality isn’t deterring Armstrong, who is looking forward to his fifth World Championships this August in Moscow after providing Edmontonians a sneak peak of his form Saturday at Foote Field.
For Armstrong, who’s been among the headliners for the EITC over the previous three seasons, his trip to Edmonton is another chance to help the event, as it looks to works its way onto the IAAF World Challenge circuit in the years to come.
“This event is amazing. The organizing committee, (meet director) Peter Ogilvie has done an amazing job. He’s worked countless hours on this event, and they’re building the legacy behind the 2001 World Championships,” Armstrong said. “It’s important that Canada has a competition like this. We have to start somewhere, so if we didn’t have guys like Peter, none of this would be happening.” NOTES: The event kicks off at 10:30 a.m. with the opening ceremonies and wraps up with the men’s 100m at 1:30 p.m. The shot put is slated for 11:35 a.m. … Grandstand seating at Foote Field is 90 per cent sold, while general admission seating will be accommodated based on demand. All tickets are available online through the EITC website or at the gate.