{"id":341,"date":"2016-11-29T15:28:13","date_gmt":"2016-11-29T15:28:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/?p=341"},"modified":"2016-11-29T21:49:49","modified_gmt":"2016-11-29T21:49:49","slug":"redblacks-bring-home-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/2016\/11\/29\/redblacks-bring-home-history\/","title":{"rendered":"More than a trophy: Redblacks bring home history"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Ottawa Redblacks are bringing home a national icon for Canada\u2019s 150th anniversary.<\/p>\n<p>When the Redblacks defeated the Calgary Stampeders in a stunning overtime finish Sunday, they didn\u2019t just win the Grey Cup. They won part of this nation\u2019s culture, and a symbol of what the CFL means to Canada.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/0BzE1JOKWQpksZWNTSVRmY1VOQTg\/preview\" width=\"480\" height=\"360\"><\/iframe> The James Street Pub erupts in joy as the Redblacks win the Grey Cup. Video by Matthew Olson.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The historic victory was all the sweeter for Ottawa as the city will play host to the 105th Grey Cup in 2017 as part of Canada\u2019s sesquicentennial.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not just about gridiron football, it\u2019s about bringing people together,\u201d said Jeff McWhinney. \u201cI think Grey Cup weekend brings out the best in people.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As a keeper of the Grey Cup, McWhinney is one of a handful charged with taking care of the famous CFL trophy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf we are to define it perfectly, we are a trustee of the cup,\u201d McWhinney said. But it is more to him than that: It is a responsibility that McWhinney takes very seriously, and he hopes that Canadians take it seriously, too.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not been watered down in any way; this was commissioned by Earl Grey over 100 years ago,\u201d McWhinney said. \u201cAnd we have a responsibility to maintain that honour, and the integrity that is really about our country. And we have to maintain the lines of respect that come along with the cup. It is a champion\u2019s cup, it is a Canadian\u2019s \u2013 it is a people\u2019s cup, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>McWhinney\u2019s passion comes from a personal place: his father, former CFL player Glenn \u201cKeeper\u201d McWhinney, won the Grey Cup in 1954. Glenn passed away in 2012 at the age of 81.<\/p>\n<p>But having been around the Grey Cup for many years, there is an obvious connection for McWhinney between the Cup and Canada\u2019s national identity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Red Serge,\u201d McWhinney said, of the Mounties who walk the cup onto the field to be awarded to the victors. \u201cThe Royal Canadian Mounted Police \u2013 no question, hands down \u2026 Watching these guys that are truly Canadian representation, holding our Canadian Holy Grail, and they surrender it that way \u2013 if people would see it that way, it\u2019s beyond exciting. It\u2019s magic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The fans in Ottawa share McWhinney\u2019s enthusiasm for the game, and have waited a long time for successful football to return to the capital. The last time Ottawa won the Grey Cup it was 1976, and the team was still called the Rough Riders.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.knightlab.com\/libs\/timeline3\/latest\/embed\/index.html?source=1sEVkozt9ZbiXWkM_8d_gXKUgVQmMUur-aG2g89up2u8&amp;font=Default&amp;lang=en&amp;initial_zoom=2&amp;height=650\" width=\"100%\" height=\"650\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>\u201cOttawa sports in general, we haven\u2019t had a lot to celebrate in my lifetime,\u201d said Paolo Del Rio, a long-time Ottawa sports fan and administrator of the fan website Defend the R.<\/p>\n<p>A child of Italian immigrants to Canada, Del Rio was also drawn to the CFL by his father. Del Rio said football helped fulfill his father\u2019s desire for sport when he first came to Canada, and helped his family embrace their new home.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cComing to this country and having something to bring themselves into the community \u2013 it might sound cheesy, but it\u2019s their way to feel Canadian,\u201d Del Rio said. \u201cIf it made them feel Canadian, then it\u2019s incumbent on me to pass that along to other people. If it\u2019s that important to them, how could it not be equally important to me?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The City of Ottawa, recognizing the importance of the Grey Cup to the city and to the country, worked hard to bring the championship game to Ottawa as part of the celebrations of Canada\u2019s 150th in 2017.<\/p>\n<p>City Councillor Mathieu Fleury, a co-chair of the City of Ottawa\u2019s Task Force on Canada\u2019s 150th Anniversary, called the Grey Cup a \u201cshowcase event\u201d for the festivities.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe more traditional Grey Cup parade, the events that go around the Grey Cup, I think it certainly builds an important environment for cities and communities to rally around not just the sport but the sport team.\u201d Fleury said.<\/p>\n<p>The CFL and the Grey Cup are part of a sports community that spans generations. And just like McWhinney and Del Rio, the players feel that connection. When Ottawa\u2019s MVP quarterback Henry Burris was asked how he felt after the match was over, his first response wasn\u2019t about the game.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s my parents right there,\u201d said Burris with a huge grin, looking into the crowd. \u201cThat\u2019s what it\u2019s all about. That\u2019s what it\u2019s all about.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a title=\"Grey Cup Parade 2016\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/144179838@N03\/albums\/72157673272548193\" data-flickr-embed=\"true\" data-header=\"true\" data-footer=\"true\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/c8.staticflickr.com\/6\/5507\/31323270775_717330f57e_z.jpg\" alt=\"Grey Cup Parade 2016\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\" \/><\/a><script async src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n\n<div class=\"twitter-share\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?via=thedriftcu\" class=\"twitter-share-button\">Tweet<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Ottawa Redblacks are bringing home a national icon for Canada\u2019s 150th anniversary. When the Redblacks defeated the Calgary Stampeders in a stunning overtime finish Sunday, they didn\u2019t just win the Grey Cup. They won part of this nation\u2019s culture, and a symbol of what the CFL means to Canada. The James Street Pub erupts [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":397,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[87,85],"tags":[91,33,89,90],"class_list":["post-341","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-third-edition","category-feature-2","tag-grey-cup","tag-ottawa","tag-redblacks","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/341","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=341"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/341\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":414,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/341\/revisions\/414"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=341"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=341"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/drift\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=341"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}