When the Sochi Olympics officially open in two days, Canada will be sending 221 athletes, its largest team ever, and two of them can trace their roots back to Humboldt.
Lyndon Rush and William Dutton, who compete in bobsledding and speed skating, respectively, are at different stages of their careers but both are hoping for a spot on the podium. Rush, 33, has indicated that this will likely be his last Olympics, while Dutton, 24, is in the prime of his career.
Rush and Dutton are two of 19 athletes from Saskatchewan that will be competing in Sochi.
"The success of our high performance athletes reflects the strong programs and resources we have in our province," Sask Sports Inc. president Shane Reoch said in a statement.
In Sochi, Rush will be competing in the four-man and two-man bobsledding events. His teammates for four-man are David Bissett, Neville Wright and Lascelles Brown; his two-man partner will be Brown. The event will begin on Feb. 16 and finish a week later, on Feb. 23. Rush boasts an accomplished career that includes an Olympic bronze medal in Vancouver and a silver medal at the 2012 World Championships.
When he was in Humboldt in July 2013, Rush spoke to the Journal about the reality of what is likely to be his last Olympics.
"I'm ready to hang them up," he said at the time. "It's getting to the stage where I'm not old yet but I'm one of the older guys. More than anything, though, being gone all winter is tough. I love racing and if it wasn't for the travel I'd love to continue but I don't want to be away for four more years."
Dutton is in a bit of a different boat, appearing in his first Olympics in Sochi. He spoke to the Journal soon after the qualifying events in Calgary and sounded confident after posting some of the best times of his career.
"My goal has been to win a medal," he said. "That's been my focus the whole year. I'm only hundredths of seconds off of guys who've won medals, so I'm right in the mix."
Dutton will be taking part in the 500m and 1000m speed skating races. He has had a strong year leading up to the Olympics, including a seventh place finish at the Sprint World Championships in Nagano, Japan, held less than a month ago. The speed skating heats begin on Feb. 8.
