Canadian gymnast Shewfelt retires
CALGARY, Alberta -- Olympic gold medal gymnast Kyle Shewfelt has taken his last tumble.
Shewfelt, the first Canadian to win an Olympic medal in artistic gymnastics, announced his retirement Thursday. The three-time Olympian plans to stay active in the sport, however, working with Gymnastics Canada as an ambassador and joining CBC's broadcast team for the Canadian championships next month.
"I have no regrets. Not a single one," Shewfelt wrote on his blog, where he's chronicled the ups and downs of his career the past two years. "I am so proud of my career and can't help but to shed a tear (or twenty thousand! -- I've been a bit of a bawling mess while writing this) when I realize that I literally got to live my dream. It couldn't have been more brilliant!"
Shewfelt won the gold medal in floor exercise at the Athens Games, Canada's first gold medal in gymnastics in Olympic history. He also won bronze medals on floor and vault at the 2003 world championships and a bronze on vault in 2006.
Expected to be a multimedal threat at the Beijing Olympics, his chances even to compete were threatened by a devastating injury while training at the 2007 worlds. He broke both lower legs and damaged ligaments in his left knee. He needed extensive surgery and spent about a month in a wheelchair.
Shewfelt recovered in time to compete in Beijing. The Canadians just missed making the team finals, finishing a mere .375 points behind eighth-place Romania in qualifying. Shewfelt narrowly missed out on the floor exercise final, too.
"In all honesty, this is a very hard time for me. The unknown is very scary. But I am looking forward to this next phase of my life. It is going to be amazing ...," said Shewfelt, who signed his post, "Officially a non-gymnast but always a gymnast at heart."
Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press
