When Andre DeGrasse won a gold medal in the 200-meter dash at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo last year, setting a new Canadian record with a scorching 19.62 seconds, her life changed dramatically. Although in a sense, thanks to his unwavering approach to life and sport, it was not.
After Tokyo, De Grasse, who was the keynote speaker at carleton university eighth annual SOAR Student Leadership Conference on January 22, he was suddenly in the spotlight shining on Olympic champions competing in high-profile events.
Andre DeGrasse
It meant more media interest, more sponsorship opportunities, more pressure to perform, more demands on his time.
But the self-proclaimed “humble” athlete from the Greater Toronto Area who has been training in the warmer reaches of Florida responded in a way befitting his nature. De Grasse focused on spending time with his family and taking care of both his physical and mental health so that he could continue to be successful on and off the track in the months and years to come.
“After winning gold it could have been overwhelming, but I tried to keep the same lifestyle and not let it go to my head,” says de Grasse, who also won a pair of bronze medals in Tokyo, setting a personal best of 9.89. second in the 100-meter dash and anchoring the men’s 4 x 100-meter relay team to a third-place finish.
“I tried to keep a balance between my career and my life outside of the sport. Being a parent helps. Really, I just wanted to prioritize the things that needed to be prioritized.”
