Jon Montgomery visits Niverville

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This article was published 10/11/2023 (469 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Teamwork can get you to many places. Sometimes it means finishing a project at work, sometimes winning an amazing race, or sometimes getting a gold medal at the Olympics. Whatever the task, doing it with everyone contributing their knowledge is a sure fire way to success. Gold medal Olympian Jon Montgomery was in Niverville on Saturday to speak about teamwork at the annual Niverville Heritage Centre Gala.

“For myself personally, I was at the 2010 Olympics and he made a big impact (on me),” said board member Anne Eastman on why Montgomery was chosen to speak. “I had heard him speak before and I knew that he was from Russell, Manitoba, and one of the ladies in our block was his next door neighbour. So, we always like to have a connection with the speaker to who we are here. Last year, we had Jennifer Jones and her grandmother grew up in Niverville, so we look for an association.”

Mongomery’s speech was filled with humour which endeared him to the crowd. He spoke about how even in a lone sport like skeleton there is a team behind the athlete. He said teamwork allowed him to be the best version of himself on the day he won the gold medal.

“And I think that’s what it takes to execute especially when you’re standing on the Olympic stage for the biggest performance of your life. Where you derive that sense of calm to allow you to execute to the best of your ability is a derivative of something and I know full well that one of the biggest components to my success was teamwork. The work that I did with my teammates, my coaches, my physiotherapist, my performance coaches, mental health folks, my family, my friends, and my fellow countrymen, they were all a part of the equation and it takes everything just to be tickety-boo for a fellow like me to win a race by seven hundredths of a second.”

Mongomery won his gold medal at the Vancouver Olympics in the male skeleton event. He is best remembered for drinking a pitcher of beer a fan had handed him as he walked through a crowd to celebrate his win in Whistler. He failed to qualify for the 2014 Sochi Olympics though, but in 2013 he became the host of Amazing Race Canada and in 2019 he was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame.

He said being an Olympian and winning the gold medal and walking through that crowd gave him a sense of gratitude. He said even years later that moment in time is still bringing him opportunities which makes him even more grateful.

Montgomery shared that he misses the competitiveness of being an athlete and representing Canada at sporting events.

“I was always so proud to tell people that I was an athlete and the conversation would eventually lead to what is this crazy ass sport that you do. So, there was always that fun factor in explaining to people what it is you do and getting to represent your country is a point of pride. I guess I still get to wave that banner through television, but getting to do it while you’re competing is very special. I do miss that aspect of athletics. I don’t necessarily miss hurtling myself down a frozen toilet shoot anymore. The bumps and bruises that go along with that and the recovery process isn’t something that I miss anymore but I do miss the competition and I do miss representing Canada.”

For Mongomery, teamwork means pooling resources and critically thinking one’s way through a problem as a collective. He said to be a good team player one has to be selfless.

“They don’t have to be your besties, they don’t have to be folks you’ve got an inseparable bond with, but they have to be folks that are aligned in the outcome that they want to see at the end of the day…When there is alignment, when there is synergizing people’s desire to achieve, that’s when you’ve got the best opportunity to realize something great through teamwork.”

An example of where teamwork would have been beneficial, but was not used was when Montgomery was preparing for the 2014 Sochi Olympics. He was building his own skeleton sled, a more than five year labour of love, and he refused to allow input from other teammates and coaches. He said it was a mistake on his part as it would have expedited what he had already achieved and it would have ramped up his level of learning.

“It was ultimately what held me back from achieving my goals in 2014 and representing Canada in Sochi and defending our gold medal. I wasn’t able to do that because – bottom line – a selfish approach to problem solving. I didn’t want to surrender things I had learned to others in an attempt to gain any competitive advantage that I might have and keep it for myself. If I had of been willing to get out of my own way and to realize that collectively I’ll always achieve more than individually I think 2014 could have been a different story for me. I got the medal in 2010, I got the lesson in 2014. So coming out of the sport, I think I gleaned a lot about myself, about life, and about how maybe strive and swing for the fences in the future with some good lessons.”

Montgomery said when he gets to be a part of events like the gala, when you see what the proceeds are going towards, and you see the effort it takes to put on the gala it’s a teamwork moment.

The gala was a fundraising effort to bring in much needed dollars for $151,000 in capital projects such as a partial repair of the roof and new beds, to fruition. The gala has been held annually since 2007. This year, the gala raised $92,590.