Which member of the Canadian team has the most followers on Instagram at the Tokyo Olympics?
Posted at 5:00 p.m.
Hint: This is not a Penny Olexiak (142,000 subscribers). Nor Andre de Grasse (373,000). Not Felix Agar-Aliasim (460,000) or Leila Annie Fernandez (333,000).
This is Alisha Newman, an expert in pole vaulting who experienced depression in the Japanese capital. The London athlete lost three attempts at 4.25m before shedding tears in front of the CBC camera.
Two years ago, the Canadian record holder (4.82m) finished fifth at the World Championships in one of the toughest finals in women’s pole vault history.
Newman suffered a concussion just months before the Olympic Games were postponed to 2021, a year after it was devastated by the pandemic. Throughout the outdoor season, she only crossed one bar at 4.31m.
Photo by Denise Germain, special contribution
Alisha Newman
“I can really say I’re back from hell this year,” she wrote on her Instagram account before the start of her second Olympics, with 607,000 followers today.
Distracting pictures
While telecasting his hardships, CBC analyst Michael Smith wondered if Newman was focusing on the right things during the Olympic year. Obviously, the former decathlete …
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