Dan Simard has lost some weight, firmed up a frame that's never far from fit and generally looks as if he could cause a lot of damage should the mood strike him. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer, a member of its elite emergency response team, has been a world champion twice (1984 and 1987) and he's won a couple of Pan-America Cups, too, in 1989 and 1992.
But that's only the tip of the iceberg on a taekwondo resume that includes gaining a sixth-level black belt, winning eight Canadian championships and retiring undefeated after capturing North American titles in five different weight divisions between 1984 and 1999. Actually, he was retired by the International Taekwondo Federation in 1999, something the sport's officialdom does from time to time when it decides an athlete has won his or her share. It's kind of a compliment.
Now 42, Simard, a Londoner who operates the Woodstock Taekwondo Club with Suzy Doucet, is coming out of retirement to compete in the World Police and Fire Games, a week-long event that attracts some of the world's fittest folks for all matter of athletic competitions. He'll add a Barcelona sticker to his suitcase, placing it alongside others from far-flung competition locations such as Glasgow, Athens, Honduras and Argentina.
The butterflies, he says, are taking flight in his tummy as he prepares to fly later today to the city on Spain's Mediterranean coast.
"Yeah, I'm a little nervous. There's a lot of pressure, the expectations are high."
But he also believes being a little on edge is a good thing, a sharpener.
The Games open tomorrow with Simard, a five-foot-nine, 149-pounder (he lost 16 pounds to make weight) competing in the 68-kilogram division.
Londoner Luke Baer's considerable diving talent is about to become the springboard for his academic as well as his athletic dreams.
The 18-year-old Forest City Diving Club star, the second-ranked junior in Ontario off both the one- and three-metre boards, has accepted a diving scholarship at storied Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., where he will study aerospace engineering.
Baer, a Banting secondary school grad, shone at the recent junior nationals at London's Canada Games Aquatic Centre, finishing seventh in the one-metre event and eighth off the three-metre board.
A Forest City member for seven years, Baer worked closely with Mike Gaffney, the club's recently retired head coach.
Gaining a scholarship, particularly to one of the better universities in the U.S., is always a happy occasion. But Baer's popularity with his clubmates and their parents and his hard work and dedication to the club over the years has the bells ringing and banners flying at the aquatic centre.
Luke's proud parents are Erna and Dwight Baer.
Ryan O'Neill of Union, a biology and pre-med major heading into his senior year at the University of Montana in Missoula, has been named to the Big Sky Conference all-academic team. A tennis player, O'Neill competes in both singles and doubles for the Grizzlies.
O'Neill, a graduate of St. Joe's high school in St. Thomas, has been been on the all-academic team each of his three years at Montana. The honour requires a 3.20 grade-point average, but O'Neill's a lot closer to a perfect 4.0.
Poring through the Grizzlies media guide, Montana State sports info officer Renee Valley broke into a laugh. "Apparently along with being smart and a good athlete, he also has a good sense of humour. It lists his hobbies as guitar, powerlifting and speaking Canadian."
Peggie Fairs of London teamed with Micheline Trussel of Toronto to win the women's over-60 doubles title at the senior provincial tennis championships at Toronto's Boulevard Club.
And with a Londoner on both sides of the net in the men's 60-plus final, there had to be a golden local there, too. It turned out to be Victor Janzen, who joined forces with Guido Weber of Kitchener to defeat London's Alan Hogarth and Peter Bourne of Kincardine.
Twelve-year-old Londoner Shane Friis, representing Ontario as its champion in the bantam boys' (12 and under) division at the Canadian Tenpin Federation national youth championships in Sault Ste. Marie, clobbered his local league average by 17.7 pins, helping his province to a bronze medal in the team event. Friis, whose mom Jill is among Canada's top 10-pin bowlers, had a seven-game total of 1,041 pins, including high games of 162 and 160.
Friis, who will enter Grade 8 at Byron Somerset public school and bowls out of Fleetway Bowling Centre on Proudfoot Lane, finished fourth in singles and doubles, both times losing bronze-medal rolloffs. He was at his best in singles, popping a 214 (remember that 131 average) among his seven games and finishing with a 169.9 average.
In doubles, where he teamed with Valarie Calberry, Friis rolled a seven-game total of 1,102, including highs of 187 and 188.
