logo
Wheelchair rugby legend Garett Hickling was Canada's flag bearer at the 2012 Paralympics

Wheelchair rugby legend Garett Hickling was Canada's flag bearer at the 2012 Paralympics

Globe and Mail2 days ago
Garett Hickling wheeled into the Olympic Stadium in London before hoisting a large Canadian flag with his left hand.
The wheelchair rugby legend was given the honour of leading 145 athletes, 12 support personnel and 134 officials as Canada's flag bearer at the 2012 Paralympics, a highlight in a career that included four Paralympic medals and a world championship gold medal.
'He is one of the most feared athletes in the sport,' chef de mission Gaétan Tardif said at the time, 'yet also exceptionally humble.'
Mr. Hickling, who has died at 54, competed in every major international wheelchair rugby tournament in a 20-year span from 1995 until 2015.
With a goatee and long, straggly blond hair, Mr. Hickling stood out as a rampaging warrior even among the rough characters who populate the sport. Wearing uniform No. 5 and nicknamed G, he gained a reputation as a ferocious competitor in a sport originally known as murderball.
A prototype of the sport's power forward, he earned comparisons to hockey's Wayne Gretzky for his uncanny ability to anticipate a play, whether intercepting an opponent's pass or finding open space on the court.
Wheelchair rugby is a contact sport not for the fainthearted, as athletes bash into one another in wheelchairs modified to look like chariots from a Mad Max movie. Fierce collisions sometimes result in spills with quadriplegic competitors using hands, elbows or shoulders to break a fall, depending on their impairment. Bruises, muscle strains and painful scrapes to limbs are common.
'Injuries? A few split eyes, stitches, cuts, concussions, fingers, even a broken arm here and there,' Mr. Hickling told Gary Kingston of the Vancouver Sun in 2004.
Mr. Hickling also needed to have his neck surgically realigned that year, ripped his left triceps muscle four years later and separated his right shoulder a year before he served as Paralympic flag bearer.
Like many athletes in the sport, Mr. Hickling took up wheelchair rugby after suffering a catastrophic injury.
On a February weekend in 1987, police in Kelowna, B.C., responded to a report of minor vandalism in a subdivision. After spotting a police cruiser, three teenagers hopped a fence surrounding a golf course before making their way up Dilworth Mountain.
An officer with a tracker dog pursued the trio up the mountain. One of the boys later testified that they panicked when they saw a flashlight and heard a dog. The three changed direction, slipping down a gully and over a 60-metre cliff.
A coroner's inquest later learned that an officer reported over the police radio: 'We just chased a guy down the gully here.'
Darren Michael Gendron, 15, a Grade 10 student, died minutes after the fall from massive internal bleeding. Another 15-year-old boy suffered cuts, as well as a broken arm and leg. Mr. Hickling suffered a broken neck.
The inquest declared the incident an accident and offered no recommendations.
As part of his rehabilitation, Mr. Hickling tested a variety of sports, including swimming, wheelchair track and wheelchair basketball. After moving to Vancouver to attend the British Columbia Institute of Technology, he tried wheelchair rugby.
'I knocked a guy out of his chair,' he once said, 'and never looked back.'
The sport, which was invented in Winnipeg, is played four aside indoors with a volleyball on a basketball court, featuring picks like basketball and blocking like football. Goals are scored by having possession of the ball while crossing the goal line with both wheels.
Players are classified from 0.5 (the most impairment) to 3.5, with all four players on the floor not to exceed a combined eight. Mr. Hickling was rated 3.5, meaning he had high functional ability.
The sport's tenacity and fast pace was captured in the 2005 documentary Murderball, which features the intense rivalry between the Canadian and American national teams. A bitter contest for the world championship in Sweden in 2002 ended with Mr. Hickling scoring the winning goal to give Canada the gold medal. He was named the tournament's most-valuable player, an honour he also won in 1995 and 1998.
Mr. Hickling and his Canadian teammates won silver at the 1996 Paralympics in Atlanta, when rugby was a demonstration sport. He won silver at the 2004 Paralympics in Athens and bronze in 2008 in Beijing. In London in 2012, Canada defeated the Americans in the semi-finals only to lose 66-51 to Australia in the finals. Mr. Hickling, participating in his fifth Games at age 42, scored seven goals in the championship game in claiming another silver medal.
He won five world championship medals (one gold, two silver, two bronze), as well as a gold at the sport's debut at the Parapan American Games in Toronto in 2015.
After his playing days ended, he moved to Toronto where he coached local and provincial athletes, including members of the Toronto Titans club, who compete on an Ontario circuit including the Ottawa Stingers, the London Annihilators and the Quinte West Quadzillas. He served as an assistant coach for the Canadian team at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris.
Garett Deane Hickling was born in the B.C. village of Mica Creek on Sept. 18, 1970, to the former Donna Elaine Deane and John Hickling, a carpenter.
The village boomed during the construction of a nearby hydroelectric dam on the Columbia River for which John Hickling served as a general foreman. In Grade 1, the boy wrote that he had been born underwater since the village had been moved after the dam flooded the old site.
Mr. Hickling died suddenly on June 20 of an unknown cause in Toronto, according to his family. He leaves his father and stepmother, Carolyn, as well as sisters Jeri-Lynne Hickling and Tobi Byrne. He was predeceased by his mother, who died of lung cancer in 2016, aged 69, and by an older brother, Donald Earl Hickling, who died at age nine in 1975 of meningococcus, a serious bacterial infection.
In 2016, Mr. Hickling was inducted into the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame in Vancouver. He has also been named to the halls of fame for Canadian Wheelchair Rugby, Central Okanagan Sports and the Canadian Paralympic Committee. In 2018, he was one of the four inaugural inductees into the World Wheelchair Rugby Hall of Fame.
Among the many tributes and accolades raised in his name after his death, long-time friend and teammate David Willsie recalled one incident that captured Mr. Hickling's leadership after a rival took liberties with one of Mr. Hickling's young and inexperienced teammates.
'Garett delivered one of the hardest fouls I've ever seen,' Mr. Willsie said. 'That's the best in the world standing up for a teammate.'
You can find more obituaries from The Globe and Mail here.
To submit a memory about someone we have recently profiled on the Obituaries page, e-mail us at obit@globeandmail.com.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Are midway games rigged? They certainly aren't easy, say players
Are midway games rigged? They certainly aren't easy, say players

CBC

time2 hours ago

  • CBC

Are midway games rigged? They certainly aren't easy, say players

Emerson Cook believed she had a chance at winning the big prize at the Calgary Stampede. At the age of 8, she felt confident she could hang from a chin-up bar for two minutes. Her parents had a bar just like it at home, and she had spent the last year practicing, so how hard could it be? Plus, she could win a big stuffed animal. But when she grabbed onto the metal bar, all set for her two minutes of glory, she came to the startling realization that the rules had changed. The bars spun. And after 15 seconds, she fell. "I was like, 'It spun, I didn't know it spun,'" said Emerson, who is now 12. "I was, like, crying. I was really upset. Cause it was like, everybody was watching, everybody is staring at you." Cook was the victim of a midway game that was more challenging than it appeared. And with the Calgary Stampede underway, and many more fairs set for the next few months across Canada, she likely won't be the last. And while many people say these games are rigged, or at least, not as fair as they might seem, operators argue all games are winnable, and there are some tricks to put your best foot forward. Difficult or fraudulent? There are three types of carnival games. There are games of chance, games of skill, and games that mix the two. For example, Cook's Hang Time challenge is a game of skill — and a deceptively hard one at that. The pick-a-duck race game or the claw game are games of chance. The ring toss game, where you have to get a ring on top of a bottle, is a bit of both. And Matt Magnone has played a lot of them. He runs a YouTube channel called Arcade Matt out of Ambridge, Pa., where he makes videos playing everything from arcade games to midway competitions. But he says there's no question that operators tilt the odds in their favour. For example, he says, in a game that involves shooting a basketball through a hoop, you might need more skills than an NBA star. Oftentimes, he says, the actual hoop is smaller than regulation, and the basketballs are given extra air so they bounce everywhere. A park near his home actually does have a sign letting people know it isn't a regulation basketball hoop. "It's more of like an oval than a circle. So it's just designed to where the average person isn't gonna be able to figure it out the first time or even maybe the 10th time," said Magnone. Then there's the game where you have to knock over a stack of bottles. There, he says, the bottom bottle will often be weighted to make sure they don't easily fall over. "So in theory, you can win every time. Now the games are designed to where, you know, I guess it's more of kind of like a casino, right?" said Magnone. "The games are set up to a certain difficulty to where the average person isn't gonna be able to win it every time." That's how Cook felt about the hanging bar challenge. There were no signs telling her that it moved, and it wasn't clear from watching the challengers ahead of her. "It said just, 'Bar, hold on for two minutes.' It didn't say, like, if it was spinning or not. Like, you couldn't tell," said Cook. Lots of stuffies These games are money makers for midway companies. Six Flags, which owns 42 amusement parks, such as Canada's Wonderland in Ontario and La Ronde in Quebec, brought in around $900 million in revenue last year from food, merchandise, and games. And while there is no doubt these games are designed with the intention to make money, Greg "Scooter" Korek says they are certainly winnable. Korek is the vice president of client services for North American Midway Entertainment, which puts on the Calgary Stampede along with many other fairs and festivals across North America. He says nearly 1.4 million people visited the Calgary Stampede last year, and Korek says games are an important part of that operation. "Are our games winnable? You bet," said Korek. "Our games do make money for us, but we're giving away a lot of prizes as we go along." He says that at the Calgary Stampede, they expect to give away 35 tractor-trailer loads of stuffed animals. "We could fill out this Saddledome with stuffed animals for 16 games," said Korek. And he says that while some games are harder to win, there is a reward for that: bigger prizes. Parade kicks off 113th Calgary Stampede Tips and tricks Magnone says there are ways you can tip the odds back in your favour. In the game where you have to knock over the bottom bottles, for instance, always go for the bottom row, he says. You can watch how-to videos for specific popular games to learn how they work before you play them, and you can also stand by a game at a fair to see how those who win are successful. Practicing, however, means that —unless you build the game at home — you have to spend money at the midway. But even with those strategies, don't expect to dominate. "They are set up so difficult to where, yeah, you might get one person that might see a tip and trick, but still, it's gonna take a lot of practise to get it dialled in and get the technique," said Magnone. Even if you do get really good, you likely won't win unlimited giant stuffies. Magnone says many places will put a limit on how many times you can win before you get cut off. But Emerson Cook hasn't reached that point yet. After her disappointing first attempt, she started training correctly. She made it so her bar at home moved like the one at the fair, and she practiced and practiced. "I still haven't won it yet," said Cook, reflecting on her 2024 attempt. "It's pretty tricky to do. Like, it's not that simple." Cook went back to the Stampede this year for another attempt, but were unable to find the game. But Cook hopes to go back next year and continue her quest to be Hang Time champion and walk away with one of those giant stuffies.

Atlético Ottawa in 'Superman' form heading into big weekend clash
Atlético Ottawa in 'Superman' form heading into big weekend clash

CBC

time2 hours ago

  • CBC

Atlético Ottawa in 'Superman' form heading into big weekend clash

Atlético Ottawa is currently the team to beat in Canadian soccer, sitting atop the nation's premier league (CPL) table with only one loss in 14 games. The Ottawa side is also riding a seven-game unbeaten streak across all competitions. Atlético's most recent win came in thrilling fashion on Tuesday when Samuel Salter, the club's leading striker, salvaged an underwhelming team performance with a breathtaking goal in the dying minutes of the match. His bullet-like volley fired York United out of the Canadian Championship and sealed what will be Atlético's first appearance in the domestic cup semi-finals when they take on Vancouver FC in August. Goalkeeping coach Romuald Peiser, who previously played for the Ottawea Fury before that club folded, describes this week's victory as a "milestone." A Superman-themed match against rivals The club's true test of character and craftsmanship is set for Saturday at 3 p.m. in a Justice League-like showdown comparable to Superman vs. Batman when Atlético takes on rivals Forge FC of Hamilton. The Superman-themed match at TD Place will see Atlético unveil special edition jerseys inspired by the DC character during warm-up. A limited but unspecified number will be sold to the public, according to a news release. Meanwhile, a four-time league champion is nipping at Atlético's heels: Forge is undefeated this season but trails Atlético by a single point. The Hamilton side is also coming off a big win in the Canadian Championship quarterfinal, defeating CF Montreal earlier this week. Unlike Forge and Atlético, Montreal plays in Major League Soccer (MLS) competition. That league holds a talent pool of professionals with playing experience in the world's top leagues, including legendary Argentine Lionel Messi who now wears the pink and black kit for Inter Miami. Peiser said Saturday's match is an opportunity for the young Ottawa team to grow. The average age of Atlético's roster is 25 years and 102 days, according to the available ages listed on the team's website. That includes 40-year-old Alberto Zapater, without whom the average age drops to 24 years and 241 days. Peiser says the best way to develop those young player is through playing time and technical development. "We want to develop young Canadian players. How do you do that? It's with the ball," Peiser said. New year, new dawn, new playing style for Atlético Past matches between the Ontario teams have led to a growing rivalry. Forge previously defeated Atlético 2-0 in front of 15,000 people at TD Place to lift the North Star Shield in 2023. Forge has bested Atlético more than a dozen times since the Ottawa team's inauguration, far more than the handful of wins the Ottawa side has enjoyed over its provincial rivals. Atlético's playing style has changed this season under new management. A team previously focused on maintaining a compact, defensive shape now demands possession of the ball in an attack-focused model. "We want the ball, but we want the ball with purpose," Peiser said. "[The players] want to win, they want to get better. They enjoy the system, they enjoy the game model. It's very demanding, but they enjoy it so much." Peiser added that it's a team goal to transmit that enjoyment to the fans and give them a "show" "Anyone who came into TD [Place] this year had a lot of fun at the game," Peiser said. "We want a lot of people in the stands having fun with us, [to] really create that union."

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store