So what does it feel like to carry the torch? Expectations exceeded – vastly

by Bernice Paul

I was eager to sit down with Jessica Langelaan to hear about her Olympic Torch-bearing experience this past December. Throughout the holidays, I had caught bits of wall comments and photos on Facebook, even a video that her uncle posted. And there were many expressions of encouragement and congratulations. But these were followed by words of condolence and sorrow . . . I soon found out why.

On December 18, 2009, the day before Langelaan was to carry the torch in Oakville, Ontario, her grandfather, Keith Acton, passed away. Age 81, he had succumbed to complications associated with kidney failure. But it was his attitude toward life that kept Langelaan from unravelling. As she told me when we at last connected: He often said, “There are two days in every week that we have no control over –  yesterday and tomorrow. Today is the only day we can change.”

Langelaan was buoyed by the swell of support and emotion throughout her 300-metre journey – which, surprisingly, felt “decently long.”

So on the day of the relay, Langelaan concentrated on making every moment meaningful. Cheered on by the hundreds of onlookers lining the street, and surrounded by friends and family, including her great-aunt Jeanette Acton (her grandfather’s sister,  who travelled from Port Perry, Ontario, for the occasion), Langelaan was buoyed by the swell of support and emotion throughout her 300-metre journey – which, surprisingly, felt “decently long.”

The run

On the bus ride to the starting point of their leg, 15 torchbearers chatted in nervous anticipation. “I was unusually quiet,” says Langelaan. “I was thinking about my grandfather and at the same time I felt inspired by the group on the bus, which included a set of twins in their 80s who between them had missed two chances to complete in the Olympics (in ’44 due to the war and in ’48 due to injury).”

The orchestrated efficiency of the relay, from the vehicle convoy to the security team, left just enough room for a little creativity and individualism to come through during the official “torch kiss” – the passing off of the torch from one torchbearer to the next. Langelaan and her preceding bearer worked out a jaunty doe-see-doe high-five routine, as captured in this video shot by her uncle:

The 300 metres probably lasted just a minute or two, so Langelaan was surprised to feel tired by the end. I wager she was carrying a lot more than just the torch.

The fanfare

“Last time you and I talked, we focused on the ‘me and my opportunity’ aspect of carrying the torch,” Langelaan reflects. “I didn’t anticipate the impact of the experiences of others during those 300 metres.”

Oakville, Ontario celebrants: As Langelaan puts it, “For most Canadians, the torch relay is as close as they’ll get to the Olympic experience.”

It sounds cliché to say that the flame is the symbol of the Olympic spirit, but hearing it from Langelaan’s perspective and seeing it through her eyes, the symbol seems more real,  its spirit  alive and well. As Langelaan puts it: “For most Canadians, the torch relay is as close as they’ll get to the Olympic experience.”

“So many people wanted to take their picture with her, even if they didn’t know her,” notes Langelaan’s husband, Mark, “it was that special to be next to a torchbearer.”

At the end of the Oakville leg, the crowds then gathered at the local public library, where folks could finally interact more closely. “So I took my time taking pictures with people,” says Langelaan. “From the looks on their faces, you could tell they just wanted to hold the torch. I was literally spreading the spirit; sharing the Olympic experience.”

Passing of the torch

A coworker asked if she could purchase Langelaan’s torch as a gift for a close friend, Corrine Hunt, co-designer of the Olympic medals. That particular hand-off took place in early January.

So what became of Langelaan’s torch? All 12,000 of this year’s Olympic Games torchbearers are given the option to purchase their torches or return them to VANOC. But a third option was also presented to Langelaan. A coworker asked if she could purchase Langelaan’s torch as a gift for a close friend, Corrine Hunt, co-designer of the Olympic medals. And that particular hand-off took place in early January (more pictures can be found on Corrine Hunt’s website).

And now, as an employee of Offsetters, Langelaan is pounding the pavement pretty hard  on behalf of the Games. And as she and her husband have just purchased a home in Port Moody, where they’re moving at the end of March, I anticipate her next day off will be sometime in mid-May. Still, Langelaan is remarkably settled while telling me of the past several weeks, focused as she is on the task at hand. Her grandfather’s commitment to living in the present must run in the family.

>>Follow the full journey of the 2010 Olympic flame at:  Vancouver 2010 website

>>For more info about Corrine Hunt: website

Lead image, ‘Torch Kiss’, courtesty Jessica Langelaan

Local gal to carry the Olympic torch December 19

by Bernice Paul

The Olympic Torch Relay, which began locally on October 30 in Victoria and  is wending its way some 45,000 km across Canada,will be borne by a total of 12,000 torchbearers – athletes and civilians alike. Twelve thousand, each of whom will carry the torch for 300 metres before the final bearer enters the Games’ opening ceremonies and lights the Olympic flame. Not even I, a mild sports fan at best, can help but sprout goose bumps just reading about it.

One of the selected torchbearers is Jessica Langelaan, who has been associated with 2010 for some time now. In fact, last year she was given the enormous and never-been-done-before task of measuring the carbon footprint of the entire 2010 experience, including the torch relay. And apparently the relay accounts for about 3,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases – approximately one per cent of the total footprint of the Games. Because the relay is on foot, its emissions all come from the travel associated with the support teams, security and medical assistance. Oh, and the flame? “It’s butane or propane… and a very, very tiny part of the footprint,” according to Langelaan, who now works as a consultant for Offsetters, the official carbon-offset supplier for the Games.

As for her bid to carry the torch, it goes something like this:

“I auditioned to be in the opening ceremonies,” explains Langelaan,  “and made the mistake of telling my grandmother”  – who became convinced – and very excited – about dear Jessica being on television. Unfortunately, the opening ceremonies didn’t call back and Langelaan couldn’t break the news to Grandma. “So I had to be a torchbearer – for my grandmother.”

Needless to say it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And it strikes me that Lanelaan is more proud of being a torchbearer than of having calculated its carbon footprint. And of course, most of her family will be descending upon Oakville, Ontario, to watch her carry the torch, including her best friend from Thunder Bay. (Her aunt has purchased red scarves for the whole family to wear so that they’ll stand out amongst the red-mittened crowd.)

“I don’t want to build it up too much – it’s only 300 metres!” says Langelaan. “No one’s ever come to watch me do anything and suddenly the world will show up to watch these 300 metres!” True, and a tedious leg it will be, too. It has already snowed in Ontario, so graceful trotting could prove challenging.

Langelaan takes the torch on December 19 at 3 pm EST – her very own red carpet moment. Here’s hoping it’s the longest and happiest 300 metres in her life.

You can follow Jessica or the entire Torch Relay on Twitter.

Part Two to follow

Lead photo courtesy Jessica Langelaan