Canada in Tokyo – Fin Boothroyd – Field Hockey

Canada’s hockey pedigree at the Olympics is unquestionable.

Twenty-two medals, 13 of them gold, one of them even coming in the 1920 Summer Games in Antwerp when Canada was represented by the Winnipeg Falcons.

Field hockey, not so much. The country has never picked up an Olympic medal in its history in the version on turf, and the men have never finished higher than 10th place.

Fin Boothroyd and his team are embracing their status as outsiders and are ready for the challenge that awaits them at the Oi Hockey Stadium in Japan.

“As a Canadian, going up against the giants of field hockey, we realize that we are underdogs,” Boothroyd said before the team flew to Tokyo. “We had a speech from our head coach, Pasha Gademan, and he said if we want to get this done we have to do something special.

“We have such a close-knit group, I think we have equipped ourselves well to get through to the quarterfinals at least.”

While Boothroyd shared the dream of many young Canadians to represent the country on ice, field hockey runs in his blood.

His grandfather, Lawrence Boothroyd, helped found the West Vancouver Field Hockey Club back in 1972.

“He had three daughters and it was a time there wasn’t a lot of organized sports for women,” Boothroyd explains. “That club now is one of the biggest clubs in North America for field hockey.

“At a pretty young age I was ushered into the sport. There was no chance I was playing another.”

It certainly looks like the right decision too. The 22-year-old product of West Vancouver has already amassed 23 caps, experienced both legs of the dramatic qualification victory against Ireland and now Olympic selection, despite only making his senior debut two years ago.

That is before factoring the COVID-19 pandemic into that timeline, making for a roller-coaster last 24 months.

“Everything we have done has been ups and downs and not knowing what is coming next,” Boothroyd said. “We had already done a full training camp with the 2020 timeline for the Games.

“It was a lot thrown at us and our group battled through well. It’s been a pretty crazy few years. I feel really privileged the Games are going ahead.”

Boothroyd is one of the younger members of the 16-strong roster heading to Tokyo, a team that will also rely on the importance of some team veterans.

Scott Tupper and Mark Pearson have nearly 600 international appearances between them, and Boothroyd cannot overstate their roles in the team.

“These guys are the backbone of the team and have been for a number of years,“ Boothroyd said. “To play with them and learn from them, their professionalism, the heart and effort, it’s really easy for me as a younger guy to latch onto that.”

Field hockey was one of the last sports to announce its roster for the Olympics and while it has yet to sink in for Boothroyd, he was a lot more diligent when it came to squad announcement.

Fin, whose birth name is John, nearly missed his initial callup to the national development program for that reason.

“I just sort of ignored the emails,” Boothroyd said. “I got around to it a week later looking and scanning through the guys announced to the junior development squad. I did a quick double take when I saw my name!”

As for the lack of a fan presence in Tokyo, Boothroyd says that while he would love the environment to reflect a big game, it will not be too different from what he is used to when playing domestically.

However, not only does he hope that the sport will grow in Canada, his own profile might too. His selection to the roster prompted the creation of a Wikipedia page.

“I’ll have to check that out. Maybe edit a little bit, touch it up, bolster it, maybe get a job somewhere!” Boothroyd said.

Team Canada’s Group Stage Fixtures
 
Canada vs Germany – July 24 – 04:00
Canada vs Great Britain – July 25 – 20:45
Canada vs Netherlands – July 27 – 05:45
Canada vs Belgium – July 28 – 19:00
Canada vs South Africa – July 29 – 19.15

Listen to the full interview – https://iono.fm/e/1076460