Brian Stemmle slams Stanley Cup visit to Canada House, sparking Twitter furor
Only in Canada could the Stanley Cup be such an argument sparker. All at once on Monday, the old chalice's arrival for an appearance at Canada House (it was taken to the USA House, too) became the crucible for a Twitter fight over whether it is cool to display the trophy or if it trivializes the efforts of the athletes who aren't millionaire NHL players. The ones whose sweat and toil isn't chronicled year-round by the sports networks, aside from for two weeks every four years, yet who also might be also be hockey fans who wanted a picture with the Cup.
Brian Stemmle, the alpine skier who represented Canada in four Winter Olympics, tossed a match into a pool of gasoline, and it was on.
Why is the Stanley Cup at Canada House in Sochi?Other athletes don"t bring their trophies. Hate when hockey tries to overshadow other sports
— Brian Stemmle (@brianstemmle) February 17, 2014
Stemmle isn't off the mark. No doubt, assuming you go out in public and have conversations with people, you have heard someone say they really don't care how Canada does at the Olympics as it long as it wins the gold medal in hockey. (No need to ask whether that means men's, women's, or each.) That's just being honest, if a little cynical. One academic, Dr. Janice Forsyth, recently told Metro London's David Langford that the "intensive focus that we have on hockey is understandable from a cultural point of view, but I think the media isn’t doing our athletes in our sport system any favours by not giving the other athletes their due attention."
I believe that is where Stemmle, who has been performing commentary during the Olympics since retiring in 1999, was coming from. Other media types who have their ears and eyes open, such as the Toronto Star's Cathal Kelly and Sportsnet's Arash Madani, voiced their support. Many more thought Stemmle was being a buzzkill.
@brianstemmle You couldn't be more wrong. Other athletes came to see Cup. Melissa Hollingsworth said it represents success. @yahoomac
— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) February 17, 2014
For the record, @brianstemmle is bang on about the visitor to Canada House today. 100% dead on.
— Arash Madani (@ArashMadani) February 17, 2014
.@brianstemmle hits a national nerve just before the Olympics turn into a hockey tournament. And he's right.
— cathalkelly (@cathalkelly) February 17, 2014
@brianstemmle what are you talking about. Athletes have said at the games it bring success with it. Something you never had in 4 Olympics.
— Peter Hoovey Monette (@hoovey951) February 17, 2014
I understand the sentiment. But the place was packed with people who wanted to see Cup. It's really that simple. @cathalkelly @brianstemmle
— Nick Cotsonika (@cotsonika) February 17, 2014
@brianstemmle speaks his mind - and I'm sure will take the wrath from the "hockey is everything" crowd. It's a big world out there people.
— Paul Romanuk (@paul_romanuk) February 17, 2014
@brianstemmle it's a representation of more than just hockey. It's about winning. It's inspirational. And hockey is Canada's sport.
— Rob Williams (@rjwill26) February 17, 2014
If the NHL wants to promote its trophy in Sochi, that's a small price to pay for having the planet's best hockey players at the Olympics.
— Adam Proteau (@Proteautype) February 17, 2014
Meantime, American reporters who don't attach such emotional symbolism to the Stanley Cup are a little perplexed by the Twitter kerfuffle.
Seems the Stanley Cup is making the rounds at #Sochi2014. No interest here -- that thing is in Chicago all the time anyway.
— Wayne Drehs (@espnWD) February 17, 2014
(That's right. No Canadian-based NHL team has won the Cup in two decades.)
Granted, there was a bit of sanctimony to Stemmle's stand. The Olympics is a sports event; it's not this altruistic athletic Disneyland that the real world must never penetrate. People the world over like seeing the Stanley Cup.
There was a point there. The Olympics is more than men's hockey. It also isn't supposed to be just about medals. It's also about getting out and engaging with the world, or at least the portion of it that has snowy winters and the affluence to send competitors to Sochi.
Canadians taking pics with the championship trophy of their favourite pro sport, well that ain't it. But hey... it's the Cup, even if it's probably a replica?
Even Olympians love to pose with the Stanley Cup... We see a medallist or two in there... #CBCOlympics pic.twitter.com/Dl3Sphv9eZ
— CBC Olympics (@CBCOlympics) February 17, 2014
Tough to deny there is anything more quintessentially Canadian that this Globe & Mail image of Patrick Chan?
Stanley Cup pays a visit to Canada House http://t.co/ahEyxMlhCu photo by @JohnLehmann pic.twitter.com/BtlMbrHM9L
— Globe Olympics (@GlobeOlympics) February 17, 2014
Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet.