About the Book Hearts of Gold by Lorne Zeiler

The Olympic Games are the pinnacle of sporting achievement. The intensity and richness of the competition evokes emotion and brings out the best in the human spirit.

Hearts of Gold is an inspiring collection of stories from over twenty Canadian Olympic athletes—stories of the commitment, dedication and risk involved in a life in sport. But more than that, these are stories of athletes who have overcome extraordinary physical and mental adversity to achieve personal triumph. They tell of a particular challenge faced by each athlete—physical adversity, political conviction, technical complications—and how he or she found the courage and integrity needed to rise above.

Spanning a century, Hearts of Gold features over 20 athletes from Summer and Winter Olympic Games from 1906 to the present day, and from a wide range of sports, including hockey, skiing and skating, boxing, cycling and swimming. Among the Olympians are the determined Silken Laumann, who overcame a serious leg injury to win the bronze medal in single scull rowing: the principled Sammy Luftspring, a young Jewish boxer who did not compete in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin in protest of the Nazi regime’s treatment of Jews; and the courageous Larry Lemieux, who gave up medal contention in his yachting race to rescue a capsized Singapore crew. Hearts of Gold is a tribute to the strength of the human spirit—the perfect book on the Olympics for the sports fan, the young athlete the Olympic aficionado, or anyone looking for good, old-fashioned inspiration.

Canada’s Olympic heroes from the past Summer Olympic Games (Sydney 2000)
1. Sharon Donnelly (triathlete from Kingston, Ontario). Donnelly’s profile appears on pages 28–33.
Download a PDF excerpt of Sharon Donnelly.

2. Chrissy Redden (mountain biker also from Ontario). Redden’ profile appears on pages 22-27. Download a PDF excerpt of Chrissy Redden.

About the Author:

LORNE ZEILER is active in the financial industry and business community, and is also a prolific writer. His articles have appeared in both Canadian and international financial journals including the Globe and Mail Report on Business, Canadian Treasurer and CFA Digest. He is also a regular lecturer at York University. Lorne lives in Toronto with his wife, Shari, and his daughter, Avery.

Media:
Hearts of Gold is capturing Canada’s attention. Watch for upcoming media appearances of the Olympics book Hearts of Gold in the following media outlets:

CBC Cross Country Check-up: August 15
CBC Metro Morning (Toronto) CFRB Radio: August 14/15
CHED Radio: August 26
CBC Newsworld: August 27, 5:20 to 6 p.m. (EST)
CITY-TV Breakfast TV: August 18
Globe and Mail
Maclean’s Magazine: August 25
Canadian Jewish News

and many more to come.

Read more about the Canadian Olympic Athletes featured in Hearts of Gold.