Representing one’s country on the Olympic stage is an extremely rare honour experienced by a select few athletes. Reaching the Games requires years of hard work, dedication and sacrifice.

Canadian sprinter Phylicia George put a check mark next to all of those boxes en route to competing in the 100-metre hurdles and the 4x100-metre relay in Rio. She qualified for the finals in both events, and would end up finishing eighth in the hurdles and seventh in the relay race.

While she is proud of the results, the competitor inside George wanted more in Rio.

“I was really proud to make the finals. I think that’s an accomplishment in and of itself,” she said. “Obviously the goal going in was to win a medal, so not achieving that, I was a little disappointed. But you kind of got to regroup, get ready for the next year, the next race. You know, sometimes it’s not your day, and that is what I felt like. I feel like I’m ready to run fast, but didn’t execute on the day. But I’m excited to continue.”

Even though she missed the initial goal of standing on the podium, George walks away from Rio 2016 with incredible memories of the amazing environment and competition that comes from it.  

“It was exciting, exhilarating to walk out, the stadium is full and you know every other girl on that line is really talented and it’s going to be an amazing race,” she said. “So you got to go out there and give it your all. That was my second hurdle Olympic final, so I’m proud about that. I just want to continue and get to the podium next time.”

As a whole, Canada had one of their most successful Summer Olympics in the country’s history. Canada walked away from Rio with six medals in the Athletics competitions, the most since the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles, where they captured nine.

The 28-year-old believes people will look back at the 2016 Olympics as the beginning of the country’s rise in track and field.

“I just think we’re going to continue rolling with the momentum that we built off this Olympics,” she said.” A lot of the athletes that are competing and doing well are really young. We’re really setting the stage to say Canada is a competitor. Before I think people used to see Canadians and be like ‘Oh they’re there, but they ain’t really going to do anything.’ I think now people are recognizing we’re here, and we’re here to compete and we’re here to win medals.”

One of the young, talented runners that grabbed headlines in August was sprinter Andre De Grasse, who won three medals in Rio. The new superstar is going to help draw attention to track and field in Canada.

“I think Andre De Grasse is great because he brings a lot of attention to sprinting in Canada,” George said. “As he continues to do well, you know hopefully people will continue to notice all the other athletes that are doing well as well.”

The average viewer tuning in to watch the Olympics only sees the end result. They don’t see the amount of time and effort it takes to be an Olympian. For athletes who compete to be on the biggest stage once every four years, it can be difficult. George has her own way of dealing with the endless roller coaster that comes with her sport.

“I just stay focused on the process, stay focused and trust in your training,” she said. “When you get kind of bogged down and you’re worrying and stressing, it doesn’t do anything to help you. What I want to execute, what we are working on in practice, stay focused on those things and focus on the things that I can control, and work from there.”

George didn’t hesitate when asked if she would be competing at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

“Yes, for sure,” she said with a huge smile. “I’m looking forward to continuing my career. I feel like I’m entering my prime, so I’m looking forward to getting to Tokyo, and then getting on the podium.”