The Canadian Men’s Rhythmic Vaulting team has finally earned a bronze medal … almost a decade after the fact. When a shocking phone call reveals that drug retesting has placed them on the podium, a group of former teammates soon learns that third place may be more trouble than it’s worth.
ABOUT Finding Freddie
the book
The Canadian Men’s Rhythmic Vaulting team has finally earned a bronze medal … almost a decade after the fact. When a shocking phone call reveals that drug retesting has placed them on the podium, a group of former teammates soon learns that third place may be more trouble than it’s worth. With death and heartache haunting the years since Beijing in 2008, there’s little unity to be found among men who once felt like brothers. Curtis is furious; Gary is gone; and Freddie—who may hold the key to the source of the group’s unhappiness—is missing, apparently lost to drugs in Vancouver’s notorious Downtown East Side. Yet a stubborn journalist can sense a bigger story: an underbelly of abuse and corruption that leads her down a perilous path that may risk her career.
Written by a veteran of the Canadian sport world, Finding Freddie is a behind-the-scenes look at a cutthroat system that sacrifices its most vulnerable. With as many twists and turns as an Olympic floor routine, it deftly reveals the hidden costs of a culture where money is tight and winning is everything.
REVIEWS
“Finding Freddie had me hooked from the first chapter and I had a hard time putting it down. As an avid reader, it was a treat to find a book this well written with so many twists and turns. It was especially good to read about places I know. Cannot wait for the next book by this author.” Cherie Mahaffey
“Finding Freddie is a brilliant ‘fictional’ dissection of the Canadian sport system. It expertly captures the paradox of high-performance culture: how initiatives built with the best intensions so often unravel into systemic failure in retrospect. By anchoring the policy in the human experience, the narrative serves as a sobering reminder of how quickly a career, and a life, can shift. The author’s lived expertise of both the story and the system crafted this necessary prompt to look past the podium and ask what is happening underneath.” Laura Watson
"I was hooked on this book right from the start. The complex characters and unexpected plot twists kept me guessing as to where it was heading. It tackles some tough subject matter head on - both societal issues and challenges within the sporting world - which made it intriguing and thought provoking. I really enjoyed it!" Judy Duncan
"It fully reveals a problem culture for what it is and it also offers insights and a solution. I was constantly picking the book up when I had a free moment. It flowed so well, the conversations were so natural and the detail! The clear realism of it all...the characters, the events, I believe, is a wakeup message to us." Fran Usher
ABOUT Judy Joseph-Black
the author
Judy Joseph-Black has been working in sport for over four decades. Her career spans five Paralympic Games as part of the communications team, two Commonwealth Games, and a dozen Canada Summer/Winter Games as part of the Team BC mission staff. Along with her experience in university sport, she has served as executive director of a Provincial Sport Organization and manager of the Canadian Women's National Soccer Team. She was also a sport policy analyst in provincial government for a decade.
After years of varsity soccer and premier soccer, Judy plays golf with her soccer friends now that her knees have given up. She volunteers on three boards: the Canadian Paralympic Committee, the Canada Games Council, and Sport BC (on which she is currently Chair). She loves gardening, renovating, and exploring the many trails on Gabriola Island, where she lives with her husband and two dogs.
Photos courtesy: Canada Games Council and Inclusion in Canadian Sports Netowork