Hottest summer in half a century, indeed

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This article was published 31/07/2017 (3149 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The rain pattered down at 2:46 p.m. exactly, arriving in plump droplets disgorged by an eastward-bound cloud. Then there was a whip of cool wind and, for the first time that day, the soccer turf was covered by a gentle wash of shade.

It wouldn’t last. The mid-afternoon rain was only a passing meteorological mercy, a momentary relief. Yet as Kory Stagg stepped into the Ralph Cantafio Soccer Complex clubhouse, he turned to two nearby volunteers and grinned.

“This rain’s going to be awesome,” Stagg said. “We needed it. It will take some of the tension out of the humidity.”

For three days, the heat at the Canada Summer Games venue had been nearly relentless. It gets even worse on the pitches than in the bleachers: the turf’s black rubber crumbs soak up the sun, sending field temperatures soaring.

With four games slated for Monday evening, Stagg, the venue co-chair, welcomed any brief respite the venue could get. So although the splotch of rain arrived nearly two hours before kickoff, he figured it was better than nothing.

He wasn’t alone. As the Games rolled into its third day of action, the talk of the event was the weather. Host society CEO Jeff Hnatiuk said teams were “well-prepared” for the 31 C heat, as venues took steps to mitigate the swelter.

At the soccer complex, Stagg issued each team 18 Ziploc bags, to fill with ice and press against players’ necks. At Birds Hill Park, where the triathlon competition was underway, young athletes relaxed in kiddie pools of cold water.

In a way, it’s fitting. For two years, the 2017 Canada Summer Games has billed itself as “the hottest summer in half a century.” In fact, all of the Games’ branding, unveiled at a Pan Am Pool ceremony in July 2015, is red-hot and fiery.

Its banners are inspired by thermal maps, whorled with orange and red. The Games’ mascot, Niibin — Anishinaabe for “it is summer” — is described as a magical heat-creature, with flames for hair and cheeks made of embers.

The brand designers couldn’t have known just how right those images would get. The imagery was supposed to be more of a metaphor, than a prediction: it was envisioned as a celebration of the Games’ “passion and exhilaration.”

And that part, to be sure, hasn’t been dampened. Since the soccer competition kicked off on Saturday, the Ralph Cantafio complex has been hopping, bustling with fans who drove here from B.C. and Saskatchewan and Alberta.

On Sunday night, nearly 1,100 people came to watch Manitoba beat New Brunswick. Crowds snapped up all 352 parking spots and filled up the long rows of bleachers; the turnout, Stagg says, “greatly surpassed my expectations.”

That night, the venue was so busy that when Mayor Brian Bowman showed up with his family, there was no room on the VIP bench. (The Bowmans gamely joined the other 300 or so people sitting on the turfside grass berm instead.)

On Monday afternoon, that trend looked set to continue. By the time the gates opened to the public at 3:30 p.m., about two dozen fans were already lined up outside, most there to cheer on Team BC as it faced Team Alberta.

After nearly two years of planning, Stagg bubbles with excitement to see the venue like this. As facility manager for the Winnipeg Soccer Federation, he’s used to running big soccer events; but the Canada Games is bigger, brighter.

“There’s a lot of pride in it, especially with how good the facility’s looking right now,” he says. “It just looks good on us as Winnipeggers, as a soccer community where the support’s been there. It’s a very exciting time right now.”

It’s also an enormous amount of work. At this venue, Stagg is the unflappable captain of a 75-volunteer ship; as the clock ticks toward kickoff, he manages a series of small crises, as volunteers race to put everything in its place.

The day’s wind crumpled a shade tent for the ball retrievers, leaving it mangled and unusable. A Team Quebec official wonders about the length of the FIFA anthem; the first day it played too long, as players stood waiting on the field.

“Early competition jitters,” Stagg tells her. “We got it ironed out.”

It’s almost showtime. The venue is buzzing, volunteers rushing ice to the dressing rooms and setting up sound systems. For awhile, even Stagg’s name rings out like a chorus, as the activity reaches a controlled fever pitch.

“Hey Kory, why is that gate open?” one volunteer calls out.

“Hey Kory!” someone else yells from across the venue. “This person needs to talk to you.”

In the eye of the storm, Stagg remains affable, easygoing. It’s a personality trait of his, he shrugs; multitasking doesn’t stress him out. Besides, none of this is life or death and, in the end, the fans and the games make the work worth it.

“I’m happy when people are happy, so seeing all the smiling faces is just great,” Stagg says, sipping a juice box during a brief break from the commotion. “Sports are supposed to be fun.”

It is now five minutes until Monday’s first games begin. The clubhouse has mostly emptied out: volunteers and timekeepers are all in their places. Jamal Torres-Garner, another site volunteer, arrives with an updated report.

“The teams are both on,” Torres-Garner says, and nods towards the open door and the sun and the turf.

“They’re on?” Stagg replies, and bounces to his feet. “Well let’s get going, guys.”

A coin toss; a kickoff; the cheers of the crowd. With the mid-afternoon clouds now playing tease in the distance, the heat hammers down. The up’n’coming soccer stars of Canada, undaunted, race back and forth across the pitch.

They are playing for their province, and for more than that: for a medal, for the future, for their place in the sun.

 

melissa.martin@freepress.mb.ca