Own the Podium: Sebastian Lareau and Daniel Nestor

'I ruined their day. But they beat me so many times, the Woodies, so I don’t feel too bad about it'

With victory in the Sydney 2000 Olympic men's doubles final over home favourites and defending champions Todd Woodbridge and Mark Woodforde, Canada's Sebastian Lareau and Daniel Nestor made good on their decision to pair up at the start of the year to focus their season on winning gold together.

DN: You can’t guarantee anything but the way you approach it you can control it. I was happy to play to win in that gold medal match instead of waiting to see what happened.

SL: We had an amazing week. It started right away, from the first match against Brazil. Right away we played really well and all the way through till the end of the tournament and obviously the finals match against the Woodies, that was where we played the best I think. We had like 90 percent first serves in the whole match and everything was working well for us.

It’s the Olympics, nothing compares to the Olympics, it’s so big, it’s worldwide. Everybody watches the Olympics so it does have a lot of pressure but I think we handled it really well. We were used to playing together in Davis Cup and we played a bit together as juniors. We started playing together at the French Open in May so we had a few tournaments to get ready.

DN: I didn’t realise how big it was. I had won big tournaments or done well before. Tennis up until now wasn’t really popular in Canada, but I think it’s changed over the last few years. But back then it was big because everybody was watching the Olympics and at those Games Canada didn’t do well – we only won a few medals – so I didn’t realise the impact until I got back to Canada. It seemed like everybody had watched.

SL: The crowd was against us even though we had a little contingent of 250 Canadians in the stands that made a lot of noise; they were all dressed in Canadian uniforms and all that. There was a lot going on when we got on the court, we felt like the underdogs. We knew they [the Woodies] were the favourites so we knew they had a lot of pressure, so that’s why we wanted to start and really play well and really take it to them.

DN: It kind of sinks in after and it was all happening so fast. I’m not the emotional type who gets up and starts singing. I mean it was a special moment, for sure, but it all happened fast and sunk in afterwards.

SL: We were still really focused on winning point by point, so when [Todd] Woodbridge double faulted to Danny to give us the match point then double faulted to me, it was like all magic. We exploded but we hadn’t really thought about anything at changeovers or during that fourth set.

DN: Probably it’s the same as Wimbledon for me because they’re both really special. Especially considering that there’s a little storyline behind it, beating the Woodies in the last match, and the [Australian] Prime Minister was there and all the former Davis Cup stars from Australia were there. I ruined their day. But they beat me so many times, the Woodies, so I don’t feel too bad about it.

SL: It was the best feeling ever. You win the match, you go back to the locker room, you go back out, you get your medal, you hear the Canadian anthem, it’s like you dream about that when you are a kid but then it’s all in front of you. Everything goes so fast, the anthem was probably two minutes, but it feels like you can see everything going through your head since you were a child, the progression that brought you there. It’s the best feeling. We are all smiling. It’s such a huge accomplishment, it’s a dream come true.

I still have butterflies in my stomach when I think about it. I have a nice picture of me and Daniel in my office, at the Olympics on the podium. I don’t think anything is ever going to beat that feeling, that little bit, that moment – the last point and that last hour with the ceremonies and everything. Magic.