For Jeffrey Buttle, bronze is almost as good as gold.
The figure skater-and U of T chemistry student-overcame a shaky short program to skate solidly in the long and capture a bronze medal at the Turin Olympics.
Sporting the requisite red-and-white Canuck team colours, with his shiny bronze disc slung around his neck on a red satin ribbon, Buttle arrived home from Italy at Pearson Airport late last Tuesday night, exhausted but exhilarated.
“It’s good to be home,” Buttle said with a sigh of relief. “I’ve been done (competing) for more than a week, and I had the opportunity to see other athletes compete, which was amazing. Canadians should be very proud of how their athletes did at these Games.”
The two-time Canadian champion and 2005 world silver medalist went into his first Olympics as a medal contender, but slipped to sixth place following the short program on Feb. 14, falling on his triple Axel and putting a hand down on the triple Lutz. The triple jumps are crucial for Buttle, who lacks the all-important quad but is renowned for his artistry and intricate choreography.
“I was focused on the wrong thing-I was so dead-set on winning a medal that I wasn’t focused on the performance,” Buttle recalled. “After the short, I sat down and decided to skate for myself. And that made all the difference.”
The 23-year-old Smooth Rock Falls, Ontario native fought back with a gutsy four-and-a-half-minute Samson and Delilah-themed free skate on Feb. 16 that vaulted him onto the podium behind gold-medalist Evgeni Plushenko of Russia and reigning world champion Stephane Lambiel of Switzerland, who won silver.
Buttle doesn’t have much time to savour his victory, however-only hours after getting off the plane, he was headed right back into training for the world championships, which take place in Calgary at the end of the month.
All smiles but a bit groggy after the long flight home, Buttle had only one thing on his mind: “Sleep! I didn’t sleep very well at the Games, but I don’t think I’ll have much of a chance to catch up right now. There’s only three weeks to prepare for the Worlds, and then maybe I’ll party after that,” he grinned.
Buttle may indeed have cause to celebrate following the Worlds-he’s a leading contender for gold at the championships, seeing as Plushenko is unlikely to attend, and Buttle had a higher free skate score than Lambiel at the Olympics.
Buttle thoroughly enjoyed his first Olympic experience, mingling with other Canadian athletes from various sports, and staying in the athletes’ village (which, despite his lack of shut-eye, was surprisingly not that noisy, he notes). He says he was inspired by being around those wearing the maple leaf, singling out speed-skater Cindy Klassen for the determination and drive that won her an incredible five medals in Turin.
“Coming into these Games, I told myself that I didn’t want to think about the future-I didn’t want any excuse not to do my best-but these Games made me want to stick around until 2010 in Vancouver,” Buttle said.
Though he’s currently taking a break from his chemical engineering and applied chemistry studies at U of T due to his hectic training, competing, and performance schedule, Buttle plans to return to campus in the near future.
But first he’s got a lot more skating to do.
“My goal for the Worlds is to improve on the short, and keep getting stronger overall in the long term,” Buttle said. “It’s funny, one thing that sticks out in my mind about the Olympics is that awkward moment right before they call your name-there’s just this nervous tension, and the coach tries to act like they’re in charge… You can’t really do anything but smile,” he laughed.
“And really, that’s what it’s about-going out there and having fun and skating for yourself, not just for a medal or anything else.”
