Heather Moyse enjoying new pursuits, but not ready to retire | CBC Sports - Action News
Home WebMail Saturday, November 23, 2024, 02:25 AM | Calgary | -11.7°C | Regions Advertise Login | Our platform is in maintenance mode. Some URLs may not be available. |
Sports

Heather Moyse enjoying new pursuits, but not ready to retire

Olympic bobsled champion Heather Moyse has barely had time to catch her breath since returning home from the Sochi Games.

P.E.I native enjoying new pursuits, debating next big move

Canadian gold medalist Heather Moyse chats to Chris Rudge, former CEO of the Canadian Olympic Committee, during a reception at Queens Park, Toronto for Sochi Olympic and Paralympic athletes on March 26. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press)

Olympic bobsled champion Heather Moyse has barely had time to catch her breath since returning home from the Sochi Games.

After a welcome-home celebration in Summerside, P.E.I., she has been busy criss-crossing the country in recent weeks for speaking engagements, meetings and sponsorship appearances.

Like usual, Moyse's daytimer is full and she's been racking up the air miles. But for the first time in ages, there is no firm sporting goal in sight.

"I just need to sit and do nothing," Moyse said. "But I have no doubt I will have that itch to get physical again."

The question is which sport will be next on her list?

In addition to her bobsled dominance with pilot Kaillie Humphries, Moyse has competed at the last two women's rugby World Cup tournaments. She has ruled out playing at the 2014 event this summer in France.

Moyse also reached an elite level in track cycling when she gave that sport a try.

She's 35 now and isn't sure where her path will take her. Moyse plans to continue with her motivational speeches and will head to China this August to serve as an athlete role model at the Youth Olympics in Nanjing.

"There's a part of me that misses something like that totally different life than being an athlete," Moyse said in a recent interview. "But I don't know. I really hope that if a lot of this motivational stuff takes off, I can see myself doing a little bit of life coaching, especially for younger athletes or for young adults who are trying to have maybe the courage to change paths and do something different."

Moyse and Humphries successfully defended their Olympic title at the Sanki Sliding Center last February.

The victory came just three months after Moyse returned to the World Cup circuit with a victory in her first race after taking a long break from the sport. She had returned to the Calgary training centre just weeks before that and wowed the national bobsled brass with a record push time.

The mission was classic Moyse try to conquer a big goal and in doing so, raise the bar even higher.

"I almost feel like a rejuvenated athlete," she said. "And for me, I love those athletic challenges. So although yes, I want a break, I feel like I would want to find something [later on]. It may not be bobsledding, it may not even be rugby or cycling, I have no idea.

"I'm not ready to decide on where my focus is going to be but I see myself wanting to do that."

Moyse has time to consider her options. Rugby sevens will make its debut at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janiero.

A return to the bobsled for the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea is also a possibility.