On today's edition of Checking In With CanWNT, we've got defender Candace Chapman. The 29-year-old from Ajax, Ont. tells us about her decade-long journey with the national team, the importance of psychological preparation ahead of the Olympics, and the "yin and yang" element of playing in the centre of defence.
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It's been a few months since the Olympics; has it all fully sunk in yet?
I think it's always going to be special when I think about it, especially accomplishing that with a lot of the players I grew up playing with from the U19 days. It was like accomplishing something special with, pretty much, your family.
Does having been through some of the tougher times with the team and alongside some of those players allow you to enjoy a high point like this even more?
Oh, for sure. I remember when I started with the team, we were losing games 14-0. You see the quality of soccer just keep improving and to actually win an Olympic medal is something I'm really proud of, for the team.
What have you been up to since the Olympics ended?
There's been a lot of interviews, a lot of appearances. I was back in the U.S. for a little bit, now I'm back here for a couple months (in Ajax), trying to put together a couple programs for young soccer players, and also a program where I go to the elementary schools and talk about achievement. That's what I've been doing. And training.
Is that something you find an important part of your role as an athlete, interacting with young players and passing on lessons?
Yeah, and I think especially now that I've been getting older, it's just become a passion of mine to give back in that way.
So the programs you're getting into would be in Ajax, then?
It would start with a couple clubs in Ajax and then hopefully become bigger. But for now there's still the professional league in the U.S. and also playing for Canada, so I can't create something where I won't have time for it. But I want to do something when I can.
One of your teammates said that coming into the Olympics, she felt the team had never been more prepared than you were going into the London Olympics. Would you agree with that?
Yeah, I definitely agree with that. It was just a different culture, a different atmosphere than we've ever had with the team, and it's all due to John (Herdman's) work ethic, John's philosophy as a coach. Some of the stuff he did, we've never done before. The intensity of our meetings, the type of information that we're receiving each day before and after practice, the type of film breakdown that we were getting, and also the type of involvement that these players had on the programs and on our training and our personal reflection from each game.
John spoke throughout the year about working on the psychological aspect of the game, in terms of turning the team around from the aftermath at Germany 2011 and bringing the team back to a point where they felt confident and ready to perform in London. Did you feel that was a big part of the prep, and a useful part?
Oh, definitely. I think he understood exactly where we were, and also exactly where we needed to be. He did an amazing job breaking that down into achievable steps.
This was your second Olympic experience. Personally, did you have a different mindset or approach coming into London, in terms of what needed to be done?
In Beijing, we were all first-timers there, and I think there was a lot of nostalgia, a lot of "wow, we're at the Olympics." Of course we knew we had a job to do, but comparing that to this Olympics, where every day, before practice, when we're about to do film, there's a picture of an Olympic medal as a screensaver... it was just a completely different mindset where, we're going to the Olympics but we have a goal in mind and every single day, for months and months, it was right in our face.
So do you now have a screensaver that has your Olympic medal on it?
(laughs) No, I have a different screensaver... But it's always about improving, being proud of what you've accomplished but not settling for "this is it". You're always trying to become better, and clearly we can become better. A bronze medal is just amazing, but there's always that reaching for something better for the team, and also for us as individuals on the team, improving our game.
In London, you had to leave the first game against Japan with an injury. What was going through your head at that moment; did you try to shake off the medical staff and keep going?
I knew I couldn't keep going. I felt my calf and it kinda tore, and I couldn't run anymore, and if I can't run anymore I'm not going to stay on the field. When I went back to the locker room it was pretty devastating for me and for my teammates, the look on their faces, especially after the loss against Japan. I remember the game was still going on, and Brittany Timko went back there with me. She's been there since the beginning, and it was really hard for both of us.
But that's what's so great about our team now, it's not just me. Even though I had to work really hard to get ready for the U.S. game and actually get into the last game, it was always a focus on us, and what we could accomplish and what we're going to accomplish. It's not just two weeks, it's months and months, and years and years. Especially for the girls who were alternates and came on and actually started to play when a couple of us got hurt. And the girls who sat on the bench. They're not substitutes.
It was just such an amazing culture that John brought to the team. Of course you want to play, because you're competitive and that's what brought you to the next level, but it's just a family, and we wanted to accomplish something great together.
It was remarkable to see some of those players who were able to step into those roles -- Marie-Eve, Robyn and Lauren stepping in or playing new positions. Were you giving Robyn and Lauren some tips of the trade in the centre of defence in that tournament?
Oh yeah. Every day I was there telling them great job or telling them what I saw. I didn't withdraw myself at all. I couldn't be on the field, but I was there mentally, ready to help out in any way I could.
Carmelina Moscato said when Lauren stepped in at centreback, she yelled a lot of things at her that she didn't mean. When it came to helping Lauren and Robyn adjust to centreback, was it a bit of a "good cop, bad cop" thing with you and Carm?
(laughs) No no, not at all. Carm's just totally intense, it's nothing like "good cop, bad cop". She's just an intense person. When you play alongside each other it's more like yin and yang. I'm really calm and she can be really intense. It's just her personality and that's just my personality, and we work differently in terms of talking to players around us during the game.
You've been involved in WPS for a few years so it must have been disappointing to hear that it was ceasing operations. But what about the new professional league, are you hoping to be involved in that?
Yeah, for sure, I'd like to be involved again. I love playing soccer. I'm really fortunate to be able to do that as a career. Hopefully I get picked up again.
You mentioned playing in the U19 Championships back in 2002 with some of the players that are still on the team with you; now we're looking ahead to the 2015 Women's World Cup. It would kind of be perfect symmetry for you to compete at both of those tournaments. Are you looking that far down the road, or are you taking things as they come?
Of course that's in my mind. What an amazing opportunity that would be. That would be it for me for Canada, though, if I made it to that. But right now I'm just trying to take it one step at a time and make myself as prepared as I can for each camp and each tournament that comes our way.
I think what's so great about John is that he's trying to develop future players, and also the expectations that are on current players, it's about never settling. The type of training environment that he's created is really intense and it's going to be great for players coming in, and it's really going to test players who are there. So I'm excited about 2015, but I think looking that far ahead would be a mistake. I need to prepare myself for each camp and each tournament right now.
You talk about John's impact and focusing on the youth in the system. He's been meeting with the U20 and U17 head coaches to formulate a plan going forward for the program. How important is that, having that sense of consistency between the senior team and the youth teams?
It's extremely important, especially with the system we play, the way we play, the way we train... if it wasn't consistent, it would be a really big jump to go from a youth team to the way that we train as a senior team now. So I think having that consistency is a definite benefit for players moving up through the system.
The news just came out (Nov. 29), that the finalists have been announced for the FIFA year-end awards, and Christine wasn't in the top three for players and John wasn't in the top three for coaches.
(incredulous laughter)
What do you think of them not being recognized?
... nothing surprises me anymore.
Looking back at 2012, if you could sum everything up, what would you say?
It's just a remarkable journey where individuals really became a team.
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