For North Vancouver’s Scott Morgan, it will always be about the journey.
Set to compete this weekend in the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics, the longtime member of North Vancouver’s Flicka Gymnastics is being increasingly called upon to offer insight to rising gymnastic talent in a role-modelling capacity.
The importance of living in the moment is an important lesson he works to impart on his young charges.
“You’re going to have hardships, you’re going to have points that are difficult, but then you’re also going to have these triumphs and amazing moments. People have asked (me), ‘Oh man, this must be a huge weight off your shoulders -– the Olympic Games! Wow, that’s so exciting!’ And it is, 100 per cent, it’s the pinnacle of our sport, it’s the dream. But looking back on it all, it’s not necessarily going to be about the Olympics in 10 years, it’s going to be about the journey and that’s one thing that I’ve really tried to tell these young kids coming up that have so much talent in our club and talent within respective sports. Enjoy it, live every moment and just have fun and thrive in your environment,” he says.
Morgan, a 2014 Commonwealth Games double gold medallist, was one of eight athletes named by the Canadian Olympic Committee and Gymnastics Canada to represent Team Canada in artistic and trampoline gymnastics. He’s being coached by Vali Stan, Flicka’s MAG head coach, whom he’s worked with since 2002.
Chosen as the only male to represent Canada in men’s artistic gymnastics this year, the opportunity has afforded Morgan a welcome opportunity to share his story of how he came to find himself on the eve of his first Olympic Games.
Morgan, now 27-years-old, started training in gymnastics at Flicka at age four. He quickly found a passion for the sport and even earned a gig as a mini-mascot for the NBA’s Vancouver Grizzlies at age six.
“When I was younger I didn’t really have dreams or aspirations of a particular goal like the Olympics or world championships, I was just being in the moment and enjoying it and shooting for local competitions,” says Morgan.
While a young student at Seycove secondary, Morgan asked his coach what it would take for him to become an international gymnast and compete at that level. Stan laid it all out for him: his commitment was going to be in the gym and he would be required to do half days at school.
“We made a plan and stuck with it for a little while. Shortly after, a lot of my friends had left the gym. I was one of the few boys there, still remaining. And being a very social and multi-sport young kid, I ended up leaving the sport. But then, four years later, I ended up returning and got that spark again and got that drive,” says Morgan.
The duo spent the next few years working hard and the Olympics still seemed like a far off idea – that is until the wins started coming in fast and furious.
“From summer of 2011 it was when I thought to myself, ‘OK, maybe this is something I can do.’ Basically from that point on we’ve been shooting to make the Olympic Games. We’ve always had small goals within there, going to Pan Am Games in the fall of 2011, and then going to Commonwealth Games in 2014 and then we went to another Pan Am Games. Those were all massive stepping stones along with world championships to getting to the ultimate goal. But the past four years after London we (referring to himself and Stan) knew OK, we’re going to commit to the next four years. This is the goal, this is the end goal. How do we achieve that? And it was really just smart planning and hard training and a lot of competitions, a lot of travelling, a lot of injuries. But it’s been a dream for probably the past five years knowing that it’s possible. And to make it happen, it’s a pretty good feeling,” says Morgan.
It’s also a pretty good feeling to be making it to this level of competition with the support of his North Shore community, friends and family, as well as his home gymnastics club and longtime coach also in his corner.
“Flicka has been so great to me over the years. It just feels like my second home. To be able to have Vali there now, and he’s been able to help out to get me to the level that I need to compete internationally, the cards were perfectly laid out for us. We did our job and worked hard and to be able to go with him and represent our home club, it’s a good feeling,” he says.
Morgan and Stan left for Rio de Janeiro, July 28 and will remain in Brazil for the duration of the games, returning home Aug. 22.
This will mark their second time in the city, having travelled there in April for an Olympics test event – the team qualifier.
“Unfortunately we didn’t qualify a team. It was still very up to chance as far as who was going to go. We were hoping that all the work we’ve put in over the past four years had really helped our position because we have been one of the most consistent athletes on the team,” says Morgan.
Morgan found out that he had personally qualified for the Olympics after the national championships held in Edmonton, Alta., in early June.
“It was an interesting feeling because you’re going to a national competition with the rest of your teammates but you’re all fighting against each another. So it was kind of an interesting dynamic but a few of us had some good chats and the core group of us got past that and tried to put our best showing in. We just had a really good meet and it worked out in our favour,” he says.
After that meet Morgan was told unofficially he was one of three athletes being considered for a single spot at the games. He found out officially that he was headed to Rio, June 30 at the team announcement in Gatineau, Que.
“After being shortlisted to the three athletes we felt pretty confident so we just got right back in the gym and kept on doing our thing but we didn’t get that 100 per cent this is it until June 30. It hasn’t been long but it’s been exciting for sure,” says Morgan.
Morgan will compete in three of the six male artistic gymnastics events: floor exercise, rings and vault.
“Floor is probably our best-ranking event going in. … We’ve got some high hopes going in that hopefully we can clinch the final,” he says.
“We’ve got personal goals of making certain rankings and just putting Canada back on the map within men’s gymnastics. But at the end of the day it’s just going in and doing the same routines that we always have and we’re really only competing against ourselves at this point, so just try to go in there and do the best routine we can,” he adds.
When asked how he’s preparing for his moment in the spotlight, Morgan says it’s mainly about detailed planning and travelling wisely.
“(It’s about) just making sure that we’re smart with our training, so we’re feeling at our best on the competition day. And then at that point all the hard work is done and it’s just going out there, having a bit of fun and really just trying to beat myself and my personal best, and going out there and knowing that it’s possible and trying to achieve that. After everything is done, we can’t control what anyone else does, it’s just going out there and controlling what we can control,” he says.
Fellow North Vancouver resident Stan is also anxiously anticipating his first trip to the Olympic Games, a goal he’s had since childhood.
“Since I was 13 years old, since I got into sports, it was my dream,” he says.
Originally from Romania, Stan moved to Canada in 2002 to begin coaching with Flicka Gymnastics.
The first Olympics he remembers watching was the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal in which Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci was awarded three gold medals in addition to being the first gymnast to receive a perfect 10 in an Olympic gymnastics event, according to Wikipedia.
“She was an inspiration. … Everybody in Romania wanted to go to the Olympics,” says Stan.
Stan continues to work to encourage his young charges to dream big.
“You’re coaching these kids and you have to motivate them. You tell them if you do good, this is what you do and you get to go to the Olympics. Although it’s a long shot and a long-term goal, it’s always there,” he says.
He’s pleased that going himself with fellow club member Morgan will help make that dream seem ever more achievable.
Stan will celebrate his 48th birthday Aug. 15 while in Rio at the games. “If (Scott) makes the floor final it will be on my birthday. I’m already asking for a gift,” he says.
The artistic gymnastics competition is being held at the Rio Olympic Arena from Aug. 6 to 16, beginning with a preliminary qualifying round. Morgan will enter the arena Saturday, Aug. 6 at 10 a.m. Rio time/6 a.m. Vancouver time. If he finishes in the top eight of any of his three events – floor exercise, rings and vault – he will advance to the finals.
