To support 'robbed' skaters, fans seek maple leaf gear
02/20/2002
SALT LAKE CITY – When it appeared two Canadian figure skaters would have
to unfairly settle for silver instead of gold, the reaction was swift. At
least in the checkout lines of the official Canadian Olympic clothing
store here.
"Americans were coming in saying, 'You were robbed! We need a hat! We
need a scarf! We need to support you!' " said the store's assistant
manager, Lisa Osachoff.
Canada and the United States share the world's longest undefended
boundary, but that hasn't stopped them from occasionally eyeing each
other warily. Americans worry about immigration standards across the
49th parallel. Canadians worry that Americans know nothing about their
country beyond Alan Thicke and Celine Dion.
But these Olympics have brought the two countries together like little
else in recent history.
"The Americans certainly supported our skaters when they needed it,"
said Vancouver native Pete Holtkamp. "They almost adopted them."
Osachoff said that about 70 percent of the Canadian gear she sells goes
to American customers. That percentage has increased ever since last
week's pairs skating controversy, in which cute Canadian couple Jamie
Sale and David Pelletier were denied gold by suspect judging.
"America's a very patriotic country," said Osachoff, a Calgary native.
"So I think it's great that there are all these Americans walking around
with 'Canada' across their chest."
Kari Albert of Reno, Nev., split the difference Friday: while standing
in line to buy Canadian shirts, she wore a blue "USA 2002" baseball cap.
"We love the merchandise," she said. "I think there's the whole North
America against the rest of the world mentality."
Of course, there could be another factor at work: the red letter-jacket
style of Canadian outfits are quite fetching, arguably better looking
than their blue American counterparts. (Conspiracy theorists take note:
both the Canadian and American gear was designed by Toronto-based
Roots.) And all the media attention given to Sale and Pelletier – always
decked out in their official Canadian swag – increased interest in the
clothes.
But some Canadians found the support heartening, whether it's
geopolitical or color-coordinated.
"I think if the American media hadn't raised a stink about [Sale and
Pelletier], nothing would have happened," said Nancy Uy, a Canadian
citizen now living in suburban Salt Lake City. "It would have been 'Too
bad, so sad.' Americans supported us." But she notes that, had it been
an American pair who had won the contested gold medal over the
Canadians, "I doubt they would have reacted the same way."
"We usually root for the U.S. if there aren't any Canadians in the
running," her husband Anthony Uy said. (Their 13-month-old son Cooper is
a dual citizen, although Tuesday his only external sign of national
allegiance was a red-and-white maple-leaf pullover.)Last week, when
Canadian James Chambers started an online effort to make surrogate gold
medals for Sale and Pelletier, almost a quarter of the emails he
received were from America. "The response from our friends in the States
has been incredible," he said. "The typical American response was, 'Is
this a Canadian project, or can Americans contribute too?' "
Everything seemed to be going great – that is, until hockey legend Wayne
Gretzky poured a little cold water on the continental lovefest Monday.
Gretzky, dealing with Team Canada's disappointing 1-1-1 record, lashed
out at the team's critics, calling their jibes "American propaganda."
"They're loving us not doing well," said Gretzky, an American resident
since 1988. "I don't think we dislike those other countries as much as
they hate us. They don't like us, they want to see us fail, they love
beating us."
Canada: focus of American hatred?
"Well, if it's the U.S. against Canada in the gold medal game in hockey,
I'm rooting for the Americans," Albert said. "No question."