In their final tournament together after almost a decade as badminton partners, GHS students Cam Bird and Om Patel are golden after going undefeated at the OFSAA Championships earlier this month.
The pair were no strangers to this tournament, having made it to the quarterfinals of the B flight at OFSAA for the last three years. After going undefeated for the fourth year in a row at both the MPS and GBSSA tournaments, Bird and Patel finally found themselves in the final of the A flight at OFSAA.
“MPS and GBSSA, I would say, was kind of expected,” Patel said. “But going to OFSAA and winning every game, it was like ‘oh my goodness, maybe we can win this.’”
Patel said that being able to represent the Gyphons had been an honour, and to go undefeated made the end even more special.
“It probably means more to the school than it means to us,” Patel said. “It’s a great thing that our school finally won a gold, albeit badminton.”
For Bird, finally winning OFSAA with his long-time badminton partner was special.
“It felt good, especially being able to do it with Om as we’ve been playing together for almost 10 years. We’ve gotten to know each other pretty well and we’ve got some good chemistry on the court, so it’s been a long time coming.”
While the pair ended up winning in the end, their season was in jeopardy before it had even begun when Bird suffered a broken ankle which saw him in a cast and out of action for three months.
“It definitely took a lot of physiotherapy and ice after games,” Bird said. “To be honest, I just credit the ankle brace.”
This win marked a historic moment for GHS as Bird and Patel are the first badminton team to win an OFSAA A Flight gold medal. Only two others have earned gold for GHS; the 1993 Boys Basketball team and wrestler Dan Wilson in 1982.
GHS Badminton Coach Corry Ziörjen says that being able to end her 27 year teaching/coaching career with a win was extremely exciting.
“I feel so privileged to have been on this journey with Om and Cam for the past 3 years. I always appreciated the maturity of conversations we had, the golf, the basketball playoff discussions and the willingness to try new foods and saw new grit and determination from them this season. The boys really made sure that we all finished on top and I appreciate them for that.”
