London's own Maggie Mac Neil comes home with every colour medal
Olympian Maggie Mac Neil came home this weekend after receiving a gold, silver and bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics.
Although tired and getting use to the time change, Mac Neil spoke with Ken and Loreena on News Talk 1290 CJBK early Tuesday morning.
With the pandemic, she told CJBK, "I pretty much didn't go in with any expectations because of the year that we had."
No expectations, but she came home with three medals to her name:
- Gold: Women's 100m butterfly
- Silver: Women's 4x100m freestyle relay
- Bronze: Women's 4x100m medley relay
With those medals has come new-found fame. She got a bit of a taste of it after winning worlds in 2019, but now she's a well-known Canadian, even getting a follow on Instagram from Ryan Reynolds, and having a brief conversation with him via direct messaging.
"I was getting so many followers a day but I kept scrolling and I was like, I found it and I was, it was just shocking. I told him The Proposal was one of my favorite movies, so I was like I texted him that and he's like, 'Oh, I love that movie too,' so it was really it was really cool."
As her hometown of London cheered her on, she also took time to speak to swimmers that she once swam with saying, "I was where they are. If you want to do something and put your mind to it, you can accomplish whatever you want."
Mac Neil claimed she's a 'swim nerd' who's constantly checking stats to see what she can do to get better.
The 21-year-old said the team had a final debriefing after the competition, counting down the two years plus until the next Olympics, but also making sure to enjoy the moment.
Although there was talk of Mac Neil being the flag bearer at the closing ceremonies of the Olympics, the Canadian Olympic Committee rules state that Olympians must depart within 24-48 hours of their final competition due to COVID-19 regulations.
Now that she's home, she assumes it will be one of the Olympians who is still in Tokyo.
What is the Olympian going to do now that she's home?
"Probably chill out, maybe take a nap at some point…have a campfire and a homemade drive-in with some of my friends."
- With files from CTV News London's Brent Lale
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Health Canada to change sperm donor screening rules for men who have sex with men
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
LeBlanc says he plans to run in next election, under Trudeau's leadership
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to run in the next election as a candidate under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership, amid questions about his rumoured interest in succeeding his longtime friend for the top job.
U.S. vetoes a widely supported UN resolution backing full membership for Palestine
The United States has vetoed a widely backed UN resolution that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for the state of Palestine.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn’t over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball’s highest scorer Caitlin Clark’s first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
Bayer recalls hydraSense baby product over 'potential contamination'
Bayer announced Thursday it is recalling two lots of its hydraSense Baby Nasal Care Easydose due to a potential contamination.
N.L. gardening store revives 19th century seed-packing machine
Technology from the 19th century has been brought out of retirement at a Newfoundland gardening store, as staff look for all the help they can get to fill orders during a busy season.
Cat found on Toronto Pearson airport runway 3 days after going missing
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Grandparent scam suspects had ties to Italian organized crime, police allege
A group of suspects that allegedly defrauded seniors across Ontario and other parts of Canada using a so-called emergency grandparent scam appear to have ties to 'Italian traditional organized crime,' according to an investigator involved in the OPP-led probe.