Pat Payton
St. Marys Journal Argus
BEIJING – He openly jokes that if you’d ever seen him hit, you’d clearly understand why he never made it to the Olympics as a player with Team Canada. You can certainly make a case for him as a coach, but he remains just one of many qualified candidates across the country who would do the maple leaf proud, still hoping for the call some day. So, Tom Valcke is headed to the 2008 Olympic
Summer Games wearing the cap of Technical Commissioner for baseball.

He made it in the nick of time, as this is baseball’s final appearance as an official Olympic medal sport. That is, unless he has anything to do with it.

The president and CEO of Canada’s Baseball Hall of Fame in St. Marys left Saturday for a 17-day stint in Beijing where his duties were to include overseeing all of the administrative elements of the baseball competition from the opening pre-tournament meeting (to be held in six different languages) to umpire assignments, scheduling, drug testing, scorekeeping, media liaison, public relations, field maintenance, rule interpretations, protests, and medal ceremonies. Based on the test event that he helped conduct a year ago, there will undoubtedly be numerous unpredictable issues that will surface as well.

As an example, the night before the medal games of the test event were to be held, BOCOG (the local organizing committee) removed the CD with the song “YMCA” by the Village People from the audio booth. In one of numerous attempts to liven up the atmosphere, Valcke and others had trained the ushers and even the grounds crew to do the common dance that is done with the song where the shapes of the letters are made with the arms. But when the locals caught wind of it, the song was deep-sixed. Why? The third word of YMCA stands for “Christian” and there is not a chance that any venue or sport is going to be perceived as professing any religious propaganda!

Baseball junkies across the globe, not to mention more than 100 nations that play baseball, are counting on Valcke and everyone else associated with the Olympic baseball competition to run a first-class event that will leave delegates from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) wanting more. A vote is expected within the next year regarding baseball’s bid to re-enter the Olympic family in 2016.

“There is no question it is going to be a blast, and it is a honour that Baseball Canada approved my selection by the International Baseball Federation, but there is an underlying pressure on all of us that this event may indeed seal the fate of baseball’s future in the Olympic Games, so we want to – we have to – hit a homerun in every respect,” said Valcke.

In addition to the well-publicized smog concerns and expected temperatures that will top 30 degrees Celsius, the passion for baseball that is so widespread in other Asian countries such as Japan and Taiwan does not exist in China. As a matter of fact, Wukesong Field, the $25 million dollar baseball complex is scheduled to be bulldozed within two weeks of the completion of the Olympics. To a man who has taught baseball in 17 different countries and still counting, that one stings.

“Twenty percent of the world lives in China, so naturally we’d all love to see them catch baseball fever. We’re hoping that China’s national team fares well and that the country will give baseball a chance to evolve. Major League Baseball has even footed the bill for legends Jim Lefebvre and Bruce Hurst to spend the last two years there coaching their players,” noted Valcke.

“With our Hall of Fame’s plans to build a similar stadium at the St. Marys Cement Company Field, it pains me to know that their stadium will be reduced to rubble in September. If it has to go, I wish they could gently take it apart piece by piece and ship it here!”

Team Canada, which just missed the medal round in 2004, won a berth in the eight-team baseball competition, and were to begin the round-robin portion on Aug. 13 when it was to take on th hosts. Upon completion of its round-robin schedule on Aug. 21, the top four teams advance to the semi-finals on Aug. 22, with the Bronze medal game slated for Aug. 23 and the Gold Medal game on Aug. 24. The field is rounded out by perennial favourites USA, Cuba and Japan, as well as The Netherlands, Taiwan, and Korea.

“Naturally, I’ll be rooting for Team Canada in my heart, but my role there precludes me from any type of bias whatsoever, no different than if I were an umpire on the field,” added Valcke.

So if Canada were to launch a protest and their medal hopes were to rely on its outcome?

“First of all, I most likely have to remove myself from the decision to avoid any perceived conflict of interest. Secondly, if I were involved, my nationality would of course be irrelevant. You look at the facts, the rules, the precedent, and determine what is fair – you call ’em like you see ’em.”

PHOTO: Tom Valcke with Team China coaches Jim Lefebvre, left, and Bruce Hurst.
(Contributed)