There were a number of galvanizing moments for Canada at the Paris Olympics. But for sheer drama nothing topped the upset gold-medal win by Canada’s veteran team in the men’s 4 X 100 relay. Andre DeGrasse (29), Aaron Brown (32), Brendon Rodney (32) and Jerome Blake (28) stunned the track world by upsetting the crême of the running world.

Yes, the Americans botched a hand-off of their baton and were DQ’d.. Yes, the track was wet. But for four athletes who’d failed to make the finals in their individual events, who entered the final with the slowest qualifying time and raced on the outside Lane 9— to pull off a gold medal against powerhouses like Jamaica, Great Britain and South Africa is remarkable.

Not everyone is happy, however. Seeing them pull off a gold after a silver and bronze medal from the relays at Tokyo 2020 and Rio 2016 (as well as the world championships in Eugene, Ore., two years ago) Baron Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympics, probably did a triple salchow in his grave.

You see, the Baron worshipped amateurism above everything. For him the taint of professionalism was a blight he— and his successors— fought hard to keep out of the Games. For a time, that even meant no professional coaches, either (see: Chariots of Fire). The Soviet Bloc found a way around the amateur standard by placing its best athletes in the army where they might be compensated while still competing in multiple Olympics.

But for Canadian and other Western athletes, being an Olympic athlete was a vow of poverty for as long as you wished to compete. Even remote support was deemed against the rules. It was these standards that tripped the great Jim Thorpe, the indigenous star who mixed semi-pro baseball with the 1912 Games and so lost his two medals.

This standard meant an athlete, unless wealthy already, rarely had no more than a couple of Games before the realities of life forced them to pursue jobs and profits. There were exceptions. Al Oerter managed to win discus gold medals over four Olympiads. Oerter may have epitomized the price he paid to do this. "These are the Olympics. You die for them”.

But he was an exception. Who knows what greatness we might have seen if swimmer Mark Spitz, who won nine Olympic golds, a silver, and a bronze from 1968-72 had been able to continue into a fourth or fifth Games? Spitz left competition at just 22 years old.

So bear that in mind when you hear announcers extol the enduring accomplishments of today’s stars like Katie Ledecky or LeBron James. Or when you hear about new Olympic records in any sport. These marks are being accomplished (mostly) by well-financed athletes who enjoy the benefits of sports training and diet affordable to those who dedicate a generation or more to their sport.

This is not a knock on a Summer MacIntosh or Andre DeGrasse. Their legacies are guaranteed. Merely it’s to remind you that their ability to stay relevant is a tribute to the money that has flowed into the sport since athletes like Bill Crothers, Bruce Kidd or Elaine Tanner put on the hair shirt to win medals.

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Thankfully, the Closing Ceremonies decided to ditch the gender-bending/ orgiastic themes that marred the Opening Ceremonies. Instead of drag queens and insults to Christians, the Paris organizers opted for a Greek fantasy highlighted by Euro pop and lasers.

That didn’t stop CBC’s panel from pumping out the approved narratives. In case you didn't have enough blarney the past two weeks @CBCSports midwits trotted out another tribute to the gender equity of the Paris Games. Because that's what's important to them. Not merit. They also insisted the French Olympic Opening Ceremonies organizers "took it back to the people". If by people you mean freaks, yes. Insipid.

To cleanse the palate the organizers for the Los Angeles 2028 Games brought out Tom Cruise repelling from the stadium roof on a guy wire and ending with him at the iconic Hollywood sign in L.A. Oh, and Snoop plus the Red Hot Chili Peppers on Long Beach. Can’t wait for 2028 Opening Ceremonies.

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Finally, a sign of aging is turning on the TV and not recognizing the people you see anymore. For us, that means the gradual disappearance of colleagues from earlier days. One of those colleagues is Scott Russell with whom we worked for many years at CBC.

As you may have seen Sunday Russell is stepping down as host of the Corp’s Olympic coverage. It was people like Russell and Steve Armitage, Byron Macdonald, Geoff Gowan, Don Whitman, Ron MacLean, Mark Lee, Don Reynolds and many more who made CBC’s classic moments over the years. For many they were the Olympics.

There are some worthy successors— Alex Despatie is a notable asset. But with talk of the Conservatives gutting CBC TV post 2025 election it’s problematic whether they’ll be around for the 2026 Winter Games or the L.A. Games. Having worked with them on previous Olympics it’ll be the end of a great legacy.

For Scott, who its a genuinely kind and thoughtful man, we wish him all the best on his next opportunity. We’ll always remember him giving us a ride from a London, Ont., speaking engagement and the conversation we had about our chosen craft. Happy trails.

Bruce Dowbiggin @dowbboy is the editor of Not The Public Broadcaster A two-time winner of the Gemini Award as Canada's top television sports broadcaster, he’s a regular contributor to Sirius XM Canada Talks Ch. 167. His new book Deal With It: The Trades That Stunned The NHL And Changed hockey is now available on Amazon. Inexact Science: The Six Most Compelling Draft Years In NHL History, his previous book with his son Evan, was voted the seventh-best professional hockey book of all time by bookauthority.org . His 2004 book Money Players was voted sixth best on the same list, and is available via brucedowbigginbooks.ca.

Olympics Now A Country For Old Men (And Women)