Andre De Grasse took the bronze medal and had a personal best in the 100m final at the Olympic Games in Rio on Sunday night.
Now many people are saying the baton has been passed. The fastest man in the world, Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, who won his third gold medal in the same event, has taken De Grasse under his wing.
De Grasse’s bronze medal win made him the first Canadian to medal in the 100m final in 20 years. In 1996 the medal was gold by the great Donovan Bailey, and two decades later, Bailey was enthusiastically cheering on De Grasse.
Both the legendary Usain Bolt, who will celebrate his 30th birthday on the day of the closing ceremonies, and the American silver medalist, Justin Gatlin who is now 34, are expected to retire soon, leaving the field wide open the Andre De Grasse.
“He runs just like me”, Usain Bolt says of Canadian sprinter.
“He’s going to be good,” said Bolt following the race. “He runs just like me — he’s really slow at the blocks but when he gets going, he gets going, so I think he can improve his start much better than me because he’s shorter.”
“He feels like I’m the next one and I’m just trying to live up to it,” De Grasse said
Meanwhile, it’s “Andre De Grasse Day” in Markham, Ontario, today. In the suburb of Toronto. The community had gathered in Markham Olympic Square to watch their hero make the podium last night.
Frank Scarpitti, Mayor of Markham, says the community will be out in force again on Thursday, to watch how Andre De Grasse, now the hometown hero, fares in the 200m race.
De Grasse is the first male athlete to win a medal for Canada in these games in Rio
Running was not De Grasse’s original ambition. His talent was discovered in basketball shoes as he was shooting hoops, eager to become a basketball player.
His grade 5 teacher must have seen the future, however, as she presented Andre De Grasse a framed photo of himself, in a track event at that age.
De Grasse is the first male athlete to win a medal for Canada in these games in Rio, a fact that was becoming much-discussed here in Canada!
“He feels like I’m the next one and I’m just trying to live up to it,” De Grasse said
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