Track cyclist Georgia Simmerling made it home from Tokyo just in time to watch partner Stephanie Labbé backstop Canada to gold

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This article was published 06/08/2021 (1518 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There was little time for Georgia Simmerling to unwind after competing in her fourth Olympic Games.

The 32-year-old track cyclist barely had time to sleep before rising at the crack of dawn to see her partner, Canadian national women’s team goalkeeper Stephanie Labbé, compete for gold in a highly-anticipated soccer match against Sweden.

Watching Labbé play was a “whirlwind of emotions,” Simmerling told the Star from Calgary, where she watched the game. Simmerling returned to Canada on Thursday, and was up, jet lagged, at 5:30 a.m. for a gold medal watch party organized by the Canadian Sport Institute.

She watched the historic win in penalty kicks with fellow Olympians Kasia Gruchalla-Wesierski, who won gold with the women’s eight rowing team, wrestler and 2016 Rio gold medallist Erica Weibe and fellow track cyclist Vincent De Haître.

After the game and the celebrations, Simmerling’s phone rang. It was a FaceTime call from Labbé. For a moment, neither said anything.

“We both kind of had no words,” Simmerling said. And then, she found some: “I just said ‘you did it, and I’m so proud of you and the team … you’re a gold medallist!’”

Labbé, 8,000 kilometres away in Tokyo, screamed. “It was really special.”

Inside the bar, the event was buzzing. “Everyone was just so excited … so pumped to be with each other and to cheer Canada on,” Simmerling said. “That was a very special moment to witness.”

Even with a gold medal on the line, Simmerling, who is the only athlete to represent Canada in three different sports at separate Olympics (alpine skiing in 2010, ski-cross in 2014 and track cycling in 2016 and 2020), was calm and collected watching Labbé in goal for Canada. When the camera panned to Labbé’s face during the penalty shootout, Simmerling saw her beaming in front of the goal. She knew Labbé had it “in the bag.”

“I just loved that — she was showing them that she was so ready for them.”

And ready she was. Labbé’s save in a sudden-death sixth round helped pave the path to victory for a game-winning shot from Canadian midfielder Julia Grosso.

The Canadian women’s national team, alongside all the women competing for Canada in Tokyo, are paving the way for the next generation of girls to chase their dreams, Simmerling said. While the team has faced roadblocks in their quest for gold in recent years — winning bronze at London 2012 and Rio 2016 — that’s now ancient history.

“These women show up when it counts and that’s all that matters,” she said. “They are inspiring so many people across the country and I think that’s the most important thing.”

Simmerling has done more than her fair share of inspiring too. After just missing the podium at her fourth Olympics, finishing fourth in women’s team pursuit, she plans to recuperate and reconnect with Labbé, who is set to return home to Calgary in the coming days.

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With three Olympic medals and six Games between them, the two have been navigating a long-distance relationship while they trained for their respective events in Tokyo, Labbé, ironically, in Sweden, and Simmerling in Calgary.

“We’ve definitely done the long-distance thing,” Simmerling said. “I think we’re both getting a bit sick of it, and ready to move on.”

Move on to what, exactly?

“Time will tell what we have in store for us.”

Jenna Moon is a breaking news reporter for the Star and is based in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @_jennamoon