4

Kyle Jones is heading to the Olympics for the first time to compete in the Triathlon. He had a great year last year winning several golds in various events. He was born in the Hammer and trains in Victoria. He followed in his dad's footsteps as he was also a triathlete. He's the youngest male on the tri team being 27.

Tera Van Beilen is a contender at the games doing 100m and 200m breaststroke. She comes from an athletic family with an uncle who played in the NHL and another who plays in the NFL. She's currently studying and training at UBC.  You can find her on twitter @tervb

5

Reid Coolsaet placed third in the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in order to qualify for the Olympic Marathon. The Canadian record time for marathon has held strong for 36 years. The first time he ran a marathon he won the national championship. His website is reidcoolsaet.com and Twitter handle is @reidcoolsaet. I started reading his blog and really enjoyed it. I recommend it, especially for runners. Oh! I also forgot to mention- he's from Hamilton.

Sarah Hunter is a wheelchair tennis player aptly nicknamed the hunter. Her background as explained on paralympic.ca is impressive "A hockey injury left her disabled in 1997. Discovered tennis and fell in love with the sport. Headed to Florida for the first tournament of her career. She then became the first woman to compete at the pro men’s level in the Quad Division. Now the top-ranked player in Canada and 5th in the world".

I'm definitely going to be looking forward to see how she fares at the games. Also on paralympic.ca her training regime: "Four to five days on the court every week. Works out three times a week. Swims twice a week. Sees a sports psychologist to make sure her mental game is as sharp as her physical one." A really great article about Sarah can be found here: http://www.macleans.ca/article.jsp?content=20070924_109277_109277

6

Pierre Mainville is a paralympic wheelchair fencer known for being a perfectionist. He's a paraplegic as a result of being shot by a sniper. In less than 4 years he's become one of the world's best. He's earned a host of medals, most recently at last years panam games. He devotes a lot of time to his training- 4-6 hours 5 days a week, plus weight training. He is also the first Canadian to ever medal in wheelchair fencing.

Shona Thorburn is a member of the Canadian women's basketball team. She played 2 years in the WNBA and is now playing in Spain. This is going to be her first Olympic appearance after Canada beat Japan to earn a berth in the Games. She was born in England but is a local girl, having graduated from Westdale Secondary here in Hamilton. The last time Canada had a women's basketball team at the Olympics was in 2000. 

7

(Andrew) Scott Dickens is a breaststroker...(get your mind outta the gutter!) heading to his second Olympics. He's from nearby Burlington and is also married to a swimmer. He's coming off a recent success at the Canada Cup nearly beating his personal best time.

Melissa Tancredi is a Soccer player from Ancaster. We've got 2 locals today, here folks. She's a forward on Team Canada. She's also a Right To Play Ambassador. Her Twitter is @Meltancredi14

8

Douglas Csima is another member of the men's 8 rowing team. This is his first time attending the Olympics and he is familiar with international competition having medalled in the worlds in 2009 and 2011. He took up rowing after finding out McMaster didn't have a hockey team. He's also a RN and Masters student at The UVic.His twitter handle is @dougcsima.

From a rookie to a veteran in today's post. Diane Roy has been competing in wheelchair racing since 1992 after an ATV accident left her without feeling in her legs. She's earned the nickname the Warhorse. In 2008 she won a silver and 2 bronze. She uses a very specifically designed wheelchair built just for her. She is incredibly committed to her sport training twice a day 6 days a week and in Florida in the winter months. Heading into these Games she's had to overcome what her website describes as a "Gold medal disappointment: 
In September 2008, the Paralympic Games were held in Beijing, China. During this competition, Diane suffered an unimaginable disappointment, the likes of which had never been seen before in competition. In the 5000 m wheelchair final, Diane won the gold medal… only to lose it due to an appeal submitted by 3 countries’ associations after a terrible collision that involved several of the racers.

The appeal committee’s ultimate decision was to invalidate the results of the original final and set a second final race for several days later; this was on top of Diane’s already jam-packed race schedule, not to mention how it affected her psychological preparation.

The race should never have been re-scheduled, since collisions and falls in wheelchair racing are not uncommon. Final races are never re-run, in any sport.

But the real problem with the appeal decision was that it occurred only after the medal ceremony had taken place. There appears to have been a miscommunication between the appeal committee and the medal ceremony committee.

So, after having won the race before a crowd of 90,000 spectators (winning her first gold medal ever at a Paralympic Games), risen to the highest step of the podium, received her medal and bouquet and heard her national anthem played, Diane learned just a few minutes later that the race would be held again!

Diane went from a moment of glory to one of profound disappointment in an instant; this was an incredible injustice and a cruel gesture. The race went ahead a second time and Diane finished in the second-place position, just one one-hundredth of a second away from the gold medal…" (dianeroy.com).

Diane is also an inductee into the Terry Fox Hall of Fame.

9

We're into single digits here people!

Jay Milley aka the Iceman is a Paralympic cyclist. He's a quadruple amputee and also skis, snowboards, hikes, and runs (he does more sports than me) and trains 6 days a week. Holy inspirational! Paralympic.ca offers an explanation of how he accommodates while cycling he "has false legs that clip onto his bike pedals. One leg is longer than the other, so he uses a custom-built crank arm to compensate. Has a prosthetic arm on his left. To make up for his lack of fingers, which prohibits him from using normal brakes, he has a special push back bar at the rear of his seat –when he wants to stop, he simply leans back.". After winning a gold at a paralympic event in Australia last year he is a promising contender.

Sinead Russell is the sister of Colin who I'd previously written about. She's competing in the 100m backstroke.This is her first trip to the Big Show. Like her brother she had to persevere and cope with her father's decisions.

Thestar.com provides an explanation of his history:
"Cecil Russell has twice been banned from coaching for life for his involvement in illegal steroid and ecstasy rings. At the 1997 murder trial of one of his steroid trafficking associates, Russell admitted helping burn and dispose of the victim’s butchered body in a corn silo beside his Oshawa home.
But Russell kept coaching despite the ban, getting his Oakville Dolphins Swim Club suspended and its prime pool time yanked by the township. With Dad watching from the stands here at the 1976 Olympic pool Wednesday night, his daughter was swimming for the Toronto Blue Waves, an unheralded club out of High Park."

Although young, she's making a splash (see what I did there?) and has met with success swimming various distances. She's still young and has a long career ahead of her. To calm any nerves before races, Sinead likes to read or cook and enjoys running, drawing and instrumental music.

10

Colin Russell is making his second trip to the Olympics for swimming as a member of the 4x100m relay. He  comes from a family of competitive swimmers. In fact, his sister is also competing at the Games. Prior to the last Games he has overcame shoulder surgery and the psychological issues surrounding his father's ban from swimming due to drug trafficking. He persevered and will be making his way to London this year.

Diana Matheson is a soccer player that hails from Oakville. She is also making her second appearance at the Olympics. Coming of a recent win over the team from New Zealand team Canada will be heading to the Games to start the tournament on July 25. She attended Princeton where she was voted Female athlete of the year in 2008. She's a small but powerful contender. At 5 foot even she's known for her speed. She also supports the charity Because I Am A Girl.