Canada's Denny Morrison won the silver medal in Wednesday's 1,000-meter speedskating final at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. But here's where the story gets interesting — Morrison was only in the race because teammate Gilmore Junio voluntarily gave us his spot so Morrison could skate instead.
The roots of the swap lie in last month's Canadian qualifying race for the 1,000-meter event in Sochi. Morrison fell during that, meaning he finished too late to make the squad but was slotted as Canada's first alternate. This despite the fact that Morrison actually had a much better chance to win the race than Junio, who made the Canadian squad after Morrison's fall. Junio is a 500-meter specialist who finished 11th in that race on Monday.
See also: 4 Quirky Factoids About the Olympics' Gold Medal Tie
So, in a statement released before the race, Junio said he would give up his spot so that Morrison could participate and hopefully add to Canada's medal count. Morrison did just that, finishing with a time of 1 minute, 8.43 seconds — just .04 seconds after Dutch gold medal winner Stefan Groothuis.
Morrison called Junio stepping down an "amazing gesture" before the race, and afterward nominated his teammate for a very special role in the games' closing ceremony:
@cdnhappygilmore for Closing Ceremonies flag bearer! This guy showing everything that is Canadian pride and Olympic Pride. #ThankYouGilmore
— Denny Morrison (@Denny_Morrison) February 12, 2014
That mutual respect, sacrifice and humility is what the Olympics are supposed to be all about. But what about the moment like when Junio and Morrison first agreed on the move? What was that like? Junio explained it all perfectly — well, kind of — by posting the final scene from Mighty Ducks:
It's kind of like this... but I'm not a coach, nor did I look Denny in the eyes like that... #wellkindof http://t.co/t5HnGDIaOD
— Gilmore Junio (@cdnhappygilmore) February 12, 2014
Stay tuned to see if Junio actually ends up carrying the Canadian flag for the Winter Olympics' closing ceremony on Feb. 23.
Irina Rodnina and Vladislav Tretyak light the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia on Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, second from right, and International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, centre, wave as they stand alongside United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, third from left, during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
An artist performs after the Olympic flag is hoisted during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Feb. 7, 2014.
Artists wearing lights perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
The flying Russian child returns to the opening ceremony. The act was repeated twice during the show on Feb. 7, 2014 in Sochi.
Dancers perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
Actors perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
Artists perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
Dancers perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia on Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
Artists perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
Characters perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
Characters perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
The Olympic mascots are seen during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia on Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
The Russian Olympic team walks into the stadium during the Parade of Nations on Feb. 7, 2014 at the opening ceremony.
The Japanese Olympic team walks into the stadium during the Parade of Nations on Feb. 7, 2014 at the opening ceremony.
The Iranian Olympic team walks into the stadium during the Parade of Nations on Feb. 7, 2014 at the opening ceremony.
Team Canada walks into the stadium during the Parade of Nations on Feb. 7, 2014 at the opening ceremony.
The Chinese Olympic team walks into the stadium during the Parade of Nations on Feb. 7, 2014 at the opening ceremony.
Athletes from the United States wave to spectators as they arrive during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics
The Brazilian Olympic team walks into the stadium during the Parade of Nations on Feb. 7, 2014 at the opening ceremony.
Alex Pullin of Australia, front right, carries that national flag as he leads his team during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Panagiota Tsakiri of Greece holds her national flag and leads her team into the stadium during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Maria Hoefl-Riesch of Germany carries the national flag as she leads the team during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
A Russian child yawns while others wave the national flag as the national anthem is being played during the live telecast of the 2014 Winter Olympics opening ceremony.
The flag of Russia is raised during the opening ceremony on Feb. 7, 2014 in Sochi.
A Russian child flies through the arena during a performance for the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
The fifth olympic rings fails to opening during the opening ceremony at the Olympic Games in Sochi, Russa.
An shot of the opening ceremony from high above.
Fans make their way to Fisht Stadium for the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia on Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
The sun sets over the Olympic Park before the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia on Friday, Feb. 7, 2014.
Spectators arrive at the Fisht Olympic Stadium prior to the start of the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
A fireworks display kicked off the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Actors wearing LED lights perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Spectators wave the Russian flag during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics.