Second was never good enough
VICTORIA • A second-place finish at the Paralympic Games marks a super human effort for most people, but winning a silver in London wasn’t good enough for Michelle Stilwell.
She says the silver in the 100 metres wheelchair race at the 2012 Games was a career low point.
Stilwell, one of the world’s most decorated Paralympic athletes and the first Canadian Paralympian to win gold in two different sports, announced her retirement Thursday night after a stellar athletic career, winning seven Paralympic medals, including six golds, and numerous world championship titles.
“Most people would say, ‘ How can you not be happy with a silver medal,’ ” Stilwell said in an interview before her announcement. “But when you know you are capable of achieving gold and you come back with silver, knowing it was 100 per cent your fault and after 1,760 days of preparation for a less than 20- second event, it’s hard to take.”
She said she slipped at the start of the race and it cost her the gold medal.
“In 100 metres you need to be focused and my head wasn’t where it needed to be,” said Stilwell, who is also the Liberal member of the B.C. legislature for the Parksville-Qualicum riding on Vancouver Island and a member of Premier Christy Clark’s cabinet. “I let my country down. I let my family down. I let my supporters and sponsors down. That’s hard to carry.”
But Stilwell, 42, was back on top of the podium last summer, winning two gold medals for Canada at the Rio Paralympics. She raced to victory in both the 100 metres and 400 metres.
Nothing could be sweeter at that moment than hearing O Canada and having the gold around her neck, she said.
Stilwell, her voice cracking, said the victory marked her last stand in a career where she approached every race as if it was her last.
Stilwell, who was born in Winnipeg, said relaxing recently with her husband Mark and son Kai on a beach in Mexico was when she knew she could retire.
“I feel like it’s the right time and I’ve done what I want to achieve at the Paralympic level,” she said. “It’s a good time to look ahead and prepare for what the future holds.”