Canada's top athletes find solace in reading a good book

Olympic gold medallist in skeleton Jon Montgomery charges up the stairs two at a time near the Calgary Curling Club wearing a weight vest during team training on Wednesday


Olympic gold-medallist Jon Montgomery remembers sitting nervously in grade school, as kids took turns reading aloud, counting out how many paragraphs it would be until his turn came up.

Growing up a typical, rambunctious prairie boy in Russell, Man., Montgomery much-preferred chasing hockey pucks and baseballs to sitting still with any book.

So when recess gave way to reading class, the youngster would turn to the same strategy, year after year.

"I would always find the part that would be mine, pre-read that again and again, so I would be more comfortable with it when my turn came up.

"I never really read enough as a kid. I probably should have. I would have done much better in school. I always envied those kids that were so good at it, at all their phonetics and pronunciations."

Montgomery -- in flaming red-bearded glory -- captured the hearts of Canadians in February when he won the gold medal for skeleton at the Vancouver Olympic Games.

He instilled a renewed sense of national pride, celebrating with gusto, guzzling a pitcher of beer moments after his victory then making famous the standing leap onto the highest podium just before being awarded his gold medal.

Today when he wants to get away from the pressures of being the world's best -- days now filled with high-intensity training, speaking engagements and fundraising -- Montgomery finds comfort in a good book, often escaping with thrillers or murder mystery novels.

Right now, he's reading Theo Fleury's autobiography Playing with Fire, another gifted athlete raised in the same Manitoba town as Montgomery.

"When I read subject matter that I'm actually interested in, I really enjoy it. Reading is for pleasure now, it can be an escape, and help me unwind."

And with so many youth immersed in the technology of Facebook, Twitter and texting, Montgomery hopes they'll still turn to reading books, and reading what they love, to form their own image of the world.

"Find something that piques your interest, that you like to read about, and then immerse yourself.

"Reading teaches you to think for yourself, be your own person, and actively engage different parts of your brain."

In this Olympic year, members of Canada's skating and sliding teams are helping promote the Calgary Herald's Raise-a-Reader campaign, which launches this morning with volunteers hawking papers downtown to raise money for literacy.

Alex Gough, who finished 18th in luge at the Vancouver Games, will be out before dawn hoping to earn some cash for four local agencies: Calgary Educational Partnership Foundation, Calgary Learning Centre, Calgary Public Library, and the Further Education Society of Alberta.

Gough is a voracious reader, at times devouring up to three books in a week, and at others reading a 300-page novel in the course of one night. Even when she travels to train or compete, she packs up to six books in her suitcase.

"I'm just reading constantly. I love it. I've been known to start a book at 9 p.m. at night and then, if it's really good, finish by 4 a.m."

Kristina Groves, who won a silver and bronze medal for speedskating in Vancouver, says she too loves to read, "in fits and spurts."

Counterculture books like Naomi Klein's No Logo often spark her interest, as well as Canadian fiction like Joseph Boyden's Three Day Road.

"Reading for me isn't just an escape, it's a journey. It gives you a different mindset, challenges your beliefs and helps with you ability to communicate intelligently.

"There seems to be a shift away from speaking with each other using real words. But you can tell right away when you're speaking with someone who doesn't read a lot."

Like Montgomery and Groves, Gough finds reading to be one of the best ways to rejuvenate a mind and body weary from the stresses of training at the elite level.

"When there's so many things going on in your day, reading is just such a great way to get lost."

Gough, 23, encourages other youth to read as much as they can -- but mainly for fun -- by looking for what they enjoy most.

"There's so much out there for everyone, whether it's the comics or the classics. If you really enjoy it, then you'll do it more."

While Gough is a born and bred Calgarian, many sliders and other winter athletes come here from across the country, with the bulk of our Olympic team still training at local facilities like the Oval and Canada Olympic Park.