Fitness Swellness: Karen Kwan, Pan Am Torchbearer

I should probably confess that when presented with the opportunity to be a torchbearer for the upcoming Pan Am Games, I was a bit hesitant. The idea of it made me nervous but I knew it was the chance of a lifetime and to play a small role in this part of the Games is an incredible honour that most people would love to have the chance at, so, of course, I said yes. I ran with the torch for Technogym, the fitness equipment sponsor (it’s Technogym’s advanced fitness equipment you’lll find the athletes working out on in their gym in the Athletes’ Village).

And I’m so glad I did. My portion of the relay ended up being in Hamilton and I arrived a bit late and quickly got changed into the torchbearer outfit and caught up on the process of how to step out into the road, turn towards torchbearer then towards the direction of the relay, and how to light my torch with their torch.

We did a fun little warm-up (it was on my Snapchat; you can add me, I’m healthswellness on Snap). And then we were all loaded onto the torchbearer bus, and it dropped us off one at a time at our designated spots, two torchbearers ahead of the relay. Before I knew it, it was my turn. I was a bit nervous, and I started walking but then it dawned on me, “Oh, this is it, this is my relay,” so I asked my relay escort if I could run, and she said to go at the pace I preferred, so I started a slow jog.

My friends Katherine and Lisa came to cheer me (I hadn’t invited many people given Hamilton is a one-hour drive from Toronto) and it was so nice to see them cheering and taking pics. I was so sad when I saw I was approaching the next torchbearer because the relay is so short (it’s 200 metres) it passed in a flash! Here’s a video my friend Lisa recorded (it’s steadier than the one I posted on Instagram yesterday):

I’m still on a high from this experience! Much thanks again to Technogym for the opportunity!

Leave a Comment June 22, 2015