(Paris) Twelve years later, Canadian jumper Derek Drouin finally received his Olympic silver medal, during a ceremony held at the Paris Games on Friday.
Drouin stood alongside American Erik Kynard, who won gold in the same competition, and both men were finally able to wear their medals in the French capital.
Kynard and Drouin originally won silver and bronze at the 2012 London Games but were promoted after Russian Ivan Ukhov was found guilty of doping.
The former athlete from Corunna, Ont., said the ceremony is especially important to honour athletes who never got to stand on the Olympic podium or hear their national anthem played. Drouin got that opportunity four years later when he won gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
PHOTO JASON RANSOM, VERY CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Derek Drouin posing with his bronze medal in London, 2012
“I feel sorry for Erik, who didn’t get to enjoy that moment. He ended up on the podium, of course, but there’s nothing like being in a stadium full of people who came to watch you and then listen to your national anthem,” said Drouin.
Drouin was one of 10 Olympians who received their “new” Olympic medal at a ceremony held at the Parc des Champions, in the Trocadéro gardens, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.
One after the other, they paraded onto the stage at the base of the Eiffel Tower, while highlights of their Olympic performances were broadcast on giant screens.
Drouin and Kynard held each other, medals around their necks, as the U.S. national anthem blared over the speakers, then took photos together, arm in arm.
The International Olympic Committee confirmed in 2021 that Drouin would receive his silver medal retroactively along with Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim and Britain’s Robert Grabarz, who matched his mark.
On Friday, Drouin assured that he held no grudge against Ukhov, who the Canadian said was part of an institutionalized doping scandal “much larger than involving a single individual.”
“I don’t hold any grudge against him,” he said. “In this kind of situation, a single athlete must not be, or should not be, held responsible, at least as has been the case in other doping scandals.”