Canada Day 2010

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Happy Birthday, Canada!!!

We're 143 years old today.

To all my Canadian friends and family, have a safe and happy day. And to everyone else, to all of you from around the world, take a bit of time today to think of us. This is pretty wonderful country.

I posted this clip three years ago and I'll post it again. It's one of the most stirring renditions of our national anthem I've ever heard, sung by the fans at Edmonton's Rexall Place before Game 3 of the NHL Western Conference playoff series between the Oilers and the Anaheim Ducks on May 23, 2006 (the Oilers won the series in five games before losing to the Carolina Hurricanes in the finals, 4-3).

It was also stirring when, during the round-robin men's curling match between Canada (skipped by the great Kevin Martin) and Great Britain (skipped by David Murdoch) at the Vancouver Olympics this year, the crowd broke into O Canada. It was a great match in Draw 8, on Saturday evening, February 8, the best match of the tournament. Even though it wasn't a match to decide a medal, it was incredibly tense, not least because of the rivalry that had developed between these two rinks over the past few years, and not least because both rinks are so good. Britain stole one in the 8th to take a 6-5 lead, but Martin led Canada back with some incredible shots, picking up two in the 10th to win 7-6. Canada went on to win the gold, undefeated. Britain lost a tiebreaker to Sweden and finished 5th, well below where it belonged.

You can find the O Canada clip here -- CTV, the host broadcaster, apparently doesn't allow it to be embedded, which is a shame. It was one of the most glorious moments of the Olympics.

Still with the Olympics, if you missed it, check out this wonderful video essay by Stephen Brunt, our finest sportswriter and commentator (writing for The Globe and Mail and appearing regularly on radio and TV), on what the Olympics meant to Canada. (It's introduced by Brian Williams, the main studio host for CTV.) It's brilliant, it's magnificent, it's beautiful, it's moving, and, as far as I'm concerned, it's still right on even now, months later. And, amazingly, it was done before our historic gold-medal men's hockey win, the singular triumph that really brought this country together. (I originally posted the clip here, with additional commentary.)