The Athlete of the Month is our way of acknowledging a BC-located athlete who has displayed outstanding performances in their sport and deserves recognition. Athletes chosen monthly to be the face of Canadian Sport Institute Pacific will receive a celebration feature on our website and a gift from 2XU.
Each athlete selected as Athlete of the Month receives a small token of congratulation sponsored by 2XU. CSI Pacific would like to thank 2XU for their generosity and support of the program.
December 2019
Scott Tupper
Sport:
Field Hockey
Birthday:
December 16, 1986
Place of Birth:
Vancouver, BC
Coach:
Paul Bundy (CSI Pacific Registered coach)
Favourite Quote:
“Good enough isn’t good enough”
Career Highlights:
- Olympic Games 2008, 2016
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Bio
Tupper is a 14-year member of the men’s Canadian Field Hockey team, having played 308 international matches for Canada. Tupper is a 4x Pan American Games medalist, including Gold in 2007 and 3 silvers. He competed in the Olympic Games in 2008 and 2016, and has qualified for Tokyo 2020. Tupper carried the flag for Canada at the Pan American Games opening ceremony in 2019.
Q&A
How did you first get into Field Hockey?
I was introduced to the sport as a young kid by my friend Philip Wright and his family. Phil’s dad was a two time Olympian and they invited me to come out and try the sport when we were 6 or 7 years old. I played with the Vancouver Hawks growing up and really enjoyed it, and haven’t looked back since.
What was running through your mind when the clock was ticking down and your Olympic dream wasn’t looking like it would happen?
Well, I wasn’t optimistic when Ireland started moving downfield with under 30 seconds on the clock, but we did well to force a turnover and get possession back quickly. We covered a lot of field with a couple passes, and you never know what will happen once the ball gets down near the circle. I wouldn’t say I had lost hope in the final minute, but it was certainly a tall order!
What was the feeling when you scored the tying goal to go to a sudden death shootout?
Pure relief. I was confident I could score, but obviously there was a lot riding on that shot. It wasn’t my prettiest goal ever, but I was relieved and excited when the ball found its way in to the net.
Having made it to the shootout, what was the team dynamic like?
Our dynamic was good. We have a lot of confidence in shootouts, as we’ve had a lot of success in them in the past. Ireland pulled ahead, but we’re always confident that Dave can make a big save in the shootout when we need it, and obviously he did that and we were able to claw our way back. Once we tied it up, I was fairly sure we were going to get it done.
Watching back the final goal in the shootout to qualify your team to the Olympic Games gave us goosebumps, can you describe that experience?
It’s a bit of a rollercoaster of emotions. Adam has scored really big deciding goals for us in the past… he actually scored a shootout to send us to Rio and once it was his turn, I was confident he would score and send us to Tokyo. I guess it’s once again that sense of relief, followed quickly by excitement and utter joy.
Do you have any advice for athletes are stress and pressure in a competition?
Back yourself! You’re in that moment because you’ve trained hard and you deserve to be there… go out and perform.
What holiday do you most look forward to each year? And why?
Christmas, because you get to have family together, eat way too much good food, and usually get to take a break from training!