Canadian Kylie Masse has captured silver in the women’s 100-metre backstroke at the Tokyo Olympics.
The two-time world champion in the event finished in 57.72 seconds, behind Australia’s Kaylee McKeown (57.47), who set a new Olympic record. American Regan Smith (58.05) took bronze.
Masse, a 25-year-old from LaSalle, Ont., was in the lead at the 50-metre turn before McKeown came on strong in the end.
The women’s swim team has generated three medals in the first three days of racing, starting with a silver in the freestyle relay and followed by Maggie Mac Neil’s victory in 100-metre butterfly.
Masse tied for Olympic bronze with China’s Fu Yuanhui in Rio in 2016.
The only other women in the world to win multiple career medals in 100-metre backstroke are American Natalie Coughlin, Krisztina Egerszegi of Hungary and Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe.
Canada’s Mark Tewksbury won men’s 100-metre backstroke gold in 1992.
Environment Canada has issued a special air quality statement for southern Ontario including the City of Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area.
The agency says smoke from active forest fires in northwestern Ontario may affect areas in the south of the province, leading to poor air quality and reduced visibility.
Air pollutions levels could be higher due to a combination of smoke and ground-level ozone and these conditions will likely extend into Monday.
“If you or those in your care are exposed to wildfire smoke, consider taking extra precautions to reduce your exposure,” the agency warned. “Wildfire smoke is a constantly-changing mixture of particles and gases which includes many chemicals that can be harmful to your health.”
An off-duty York Regional Police officer has been killed in a motorcycle collision, Chief Jim MacSween said Sunday.
“It is with great sadness that we share the off-duty passing of @YRP Staff Sergeant Craig Heatley,” MacSween said in a tweet.
MacSween said the collision occurred in Meaford, Ont., which is about 88 kilometres northwest of Barrie.
Heatley died of his injuries, but his wife survived the collision and is in serious, but stable condition, he added.
The officer was a 31-year veteran of the police service.
“Craig was both a valued @YRP member and dear friend with whom I’ve worked & played hockey,” MacSween said. “He will be remembered for his jovial personality, sense of humour & passion for policing.”
The cause of the crash is under investigation.
A child is in critical condition following a drowning incident at a home in Burlington.
Halton police say they were called to a home in the area of Headon Road and Upper Middle Road just before 2 p.m. following reports a child had drowning in a swimming pool.
“Police and Paramedics were quickly on scene. Lifesaving measures were performed. The child was transported to hospital where they remain in a critical condition,” read a brief statement from police, which did not specify the age or gender of the child.
Police add they are still trying to determine the circumstances surrounding the drowning.
Margaret Mac Neil won the women’s 100 metre butterfly event to capture Canada’s first gold medal of the Tokyo Olympics.
Mac Neil, who was part of the silver medal winning women’s 4 x 100-metre freestyle relay team, was seventh at the halfway point but swam a strong second length to finish first in a Canadian record time of 55.59 seconds.
“It was more than I was hoping for at this point,” Mac Neil said. “I was really just trying to enjoy the experience and just have fun, which I think I did today.
“So I’m really proud of that and just trying to not be so nervous and just try to loosen up, which is when I really swim at my best.”
Zhang Yufei of China took silver and Emma McKeon of Australia won the bronze.
American Torri Huske finished fourth by one-hundredth of a second, denying the U.S. team a medal in the pool for the first time in the swimming competition.
Defending champion and world-record holder Sarah Sjöström of Sweden was seventh.
Mac Neil became Canada’s first multi-medallist in Tokyo following a silver medal in the women’s 4×100 freestyle relay in the first day of finals.
The 21-year-old from London, Ont., was a surprise winner of the 100-metre butterfly at the 2019 world championship in Gwangju, South Korea, where she bested Sjoestroem.
“Coming in with a target on your back is hard in so many ways,” Mac Neil said. “Going into worlds, I was relatively unknown, so I had that to my advantage.
“Going in with an expectation that I wanted to do well for myself and my family and friends and teammates that are home, I think that added pressure just makes it a little bit more challenging.”
Moment’s after Mac Neil’s win, the youngest member of Canada’s delegation at the Olympics just missed climbing the medal podium. Fourteen-year-old Summer McIntosh of Toronto finished fourth in the women’s 400-metre freestyle, setting a Canadian record with a time of 4:02.42.
McIntosh is the daughter of Jill Horstead, who swam for Canada in the 1984 Olympic Games. She edged Penny Oleksiak in the 200-metre freestyle final of the Olympic qualifier to earn a spot on the team.
Australia’s Ariarne Titmus defeated American Katie Ledecky for the gold medal in one of the most anticipated races of the games. The bronze went to China’s Li Bingjie.
The Canadian men’s team of Breny Hayden, Joshua Liendo Edwards, Yuri Kisil and Markus Thormeyer finished fourth in the 4×100 metre freestyle relay, missing a medal by just 6-10ths of a second.
Check out these three retro-inspired recipes that you can make at home this summer!
Chocolate Shell
Ingredients:
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate
2 tbsp coconut oil
Directions:
- Melt the chocolate and coconut oil together over a bain-marie. Stirring occasionally.
- Keep the liquid tepid until ready to pour over ice cream. The chocolate shell will harden about one minute after coming in contact with the cold ice cream.
Strawberry Milk
Serves 1
Ingredients:
8 ripe strawberries
1 tbsp sugar
300ml cold 2% milk
Directions:
- Add the hulled strawberries to a tall glass along with the sugar. Use the bottom of a wooden spoon to muddle (smash the strawberries with the sugar) the strawberries until they are crushed and the sugar is dissolved.
- Stir in the milk and top with ice.
- Serve
Optional: Garnish the rim of the glass with sprinkles and sugar.
Toasted Marshmallow Freezer Cake
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups heavy cream
300ml condensed milk
2 ½ cups mini marshmallow
24 square graham crackers
Optional: Chocolate sauce for garnish
Directions:
- Add the heavy cream to a chilled stainless steel bowl and beat on medium speed until soft peaks form. Pour in the condensed milk and beat on low until combined.
- Add the mini marshmallows to a parchment lined baking sheet and broil on low until the marshmallows are golden brown. Cool.
- Transfer two-thirds of the marshmallows into the cream mixture and beat on low until they are slightly broken up and mixed in.
- Line a 9 x 5 loaf pan with plastic wrap so it hangs over all sides.
- Add the remaining toasted marshmallow, brown side down, into the loaf pan. Pour ⅓ of the cream mixture in and top with 8 graham crackers. Add another ⅓ of the cream mixture followed by another 8 graham crackers and repeat, ending with graham crackers on top. Fold the plastic over and freeze for 12-24hrs.
- Remove the pan from the freezer and uncover. Use a knife to loosen around the perimetre. Pull up on the plastic wrap to loosen. Turn the loaf pan over onto a serving tray (so the graham crackers are now on the serving tray) and shake the cake loose from the pan.
- Slice and serve garnished with chocolate sauce.
Tip: Any leftovers can be returned to the freezer and stored for up to 2 weeks.
The pandemic-delayed Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 officially get underway Friday with a largely spectator-free opening ceremony.
The stands at Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium will be empty save for a handful of officials, guests and members of the media as the festivities begin at 8 p.m. local time (7 a.m. ET).
Even the number of athletes participating is likely to be smaller than most years, due to strict COVID-19 protocols at the Olympic Village.
The Canadian Olympic Committee said Thursday that only a small contingent of 30 to 40 athletes — roughly a tenth of the total delegation — will take part.
The opening ceremony was rocked by an 11th-hour scandal on Thursday, when the director was fired over a Holocaust joke he made during a comedy show in 1998.
Earlier this week, a composer whose music is expected to be used at the ceremony was forced to resign because of past bullying of his classmates.
A new vision could soon be realized at Ontario Place, as reports swirl that the Ontario government has chosen three companies to helm redevelopment of the historic site.
According to The Globe and Mail, three companies – including a Quebec outdoor recreation firm and a European spa and water park provider, have been chosen to revitalize Ontario Place after a closed-door bid process that has dragged on for years.
The newspaper is citing sources it says have direct knowledge of the bidding process but are not authorized to speak publicly.
The province has been tight-lipped on the future of Ontario Place.
Tourism minister Lisa MacLeod has previously confirmed that the “vision for Ontario Place” will not include casinos or condos, and the land will not be sold. Minister MacLeod has also committed to maintaining key heritage and recreational features, such as Trillium Park and others.
The 155-acre site opened in May of 1971. The province closed Ontario Place to the public in 2012 due to falling revenues at the government-owned theme park and tight provincial finances.
At that time, the government said attendance had fallen from 2.5 million when it opened in 1971 to about 300,000.
In 2019. the provincial government officially opened the search for partners to redevelop Ontario Place. Back then, government officials said they had received hundreds of ideas from the public for its future use.
In a statement to CityNews, Toronto Mayor John Tory confirms discussions are underway about the future of Ontario Place.
“We have agreed with the province on a way we can work together with a focus on co-operative planning and public consultation,” said Tory.
“I understand the province is eager to announce further details as soon as possible and then we can undertake that consultation with the public.”
According to the Globe and Mail, the government plans to bring on Live Nation, which currently runs the on-site music venue, Quebec outdoor recreation firm Écorécréo, and an Austrian well-being resort firm Therme Group to redevelop Ontario Place.
Suzanne Kavanaugh is the founder of a group Ontario Place for all. She fears that the province is making decisions before consulting the public.
“We’ve been asking for public consultation from the very beginning,” Kavanaugh continues. “At first glance, we’re looking at three for profit organizations. It doesn’t look very good as far as keeping this public space public.”
With more private organizations being involved in the redevelopment of Ontario Place, Kavanaugh says people could now be priced out of enjoying the space. “To bring in three commercial properties, right off the bat you’re eliminating families who may not have the disposable income to visit these sites.”
The report speculates a formal announcement on the future of Ontario Place could come by the end of July.
CityNews reached out to Tourism Minister Lisa MacLeod about the reported plans but did not receive a comment.
With files from The Canadian Press
A number of little libraries in East York are now empty following a series of apparent thefts.
Gregory Lang is one of the neighbours behind one of the street-side libraries on Woodville Avenue. He built the box himself out of a used laundry cupboard donated by a neighbour and had been maintaining the book selection with the help of his wife for less than a month.
“Well, you feel violated. It’s as if they robbed us of stuff just as if they robbed our house,” says Lang.
The selection of books in this library was also unique, specifically offering books on Indigenous history and authors. This made the library a stand-out attraction for the neighbourhood, which will also be harder to replace.
“It’s difficult. You know, we had very few books on Indigenous history or by Indigenous authors, as most people do have very few,” explains Lang. “So, it’s usually about going out and buying them or getting them donated. And, you can but it takes a lot of work and the expense. It’s going to be hard.”
At the same time neighbours, like Magdalena Lambermont, who lives across the street are also sharing their disappointment in the recent string of thefts.
“I was so, so sad. These little things are what is important for us. And to steal it? I don’t know why.”
Lang now says the first effort to set up a little library with a focus on Indigenous history and authors was a community effort and he believes he’s already on track to replicate that success.
“Some of the books that weren’t taken in the full haul, individuals had taken and were reading and so when they finished, they returned them, so we have a few of those.”
It also appears the person believed to be behind the thefts may have been caught on camera, but neighbours are opting to hold off on calling the police while they try to make contact in hopes of understand more.
The schedule for the upcoming NHL season leaves room for an Olympic break, but the league says no final decision has been made on whether players will compete in the 2022 Beijing Games.
The NHL said in a statement Thursday that it has agreed to pause play between Feb. 7 to 22, 2022, for the Olympics, but noted talks are ongoing between the NHL Players’ Association and the International Ice Hockey Federation about whether its athletes will compete in Beijing.
“The NHL and the NHL Players’ Association will retain full authority to decide not to participate should COVID-19 conditions worsen or otherwise pose a threat to the health and safety of NHL Players, or for any other reason that may warrant such decision,” the statement said.
The league said if players don’t participate in the Olympics, a revised schedule will be released.
The NHL unveiled its 2021-22 schedule on Thursday, announcing that the campaign will kick off on Tuesday, Oct. 12 with the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Tampa Bay Lightning, hosting the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The first Canadian matchup will see the Montreal Canadiens face the Maple Leafs in Toronto on Oct. 13. The Vancouver Canucks will also visit the Edmonton Oilers that night.
The Leafs will be in Ottawa to battle the Senators on Oct. 14, the same night the Winnipeg Jets open their season in Anaheim against the Ducks.
Other schedule highlights include the league’s newest franchise, the Seattle Kraken, opening their inaugural season at the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 12, and a rematch of last year’s Stanley Cup final on Dec. 7 when the Habs host the Lightning.
The 2021-22 season will see teams play its regular 82-game schedule, up from the 56 games they saw in the pandemic-condensed 2020-21 season.
