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Canadian anthem gets butchered at All-Star Game with bizarre giggle

Nick Ashbourne
Writer

In a general sense, Canadians are not quick to anger. It’s a stereotype, but it’s a positive one with a fair amount of truth to it.

That can change when Canada’s honor is at stake, as Canucks don’t take kindly to outsiders disrespecting their nation. It’s a reasonable position because Canada has a pretty pleasant and benign impact on the world and asks for little in return.

What it does tend to demand is a half-decent rendition of its national anthem at major sporting events. At last year’s MLB All-Star game that bar was not cleared when a member of The Tenors held up an “All Lives Matter” sign as a misguided political statement.

On Tuesday, before the American League’s 2-1 win over the National League in this year’s MLB All-Star Game, Canada got another eventful version of “O Canada”. This time it was one of the worst attempts in recent memory, courtesy of Jocelyn Alice.

There are some issues in here that can be forgiven. Alice was undoubtedly trying to add her own touches. None of them worked mind you, but it’s not uncommon for an anthem singer to try to spice things up. She tried and failed with this version – which was an absolute disaster rhythmically – but her mistakes were largely understandable.

MLB
The Canadian national anthem did not go off with out a hitch at the All-Star Game. (Wilfredo Lee/AP)

What didn’t make sense – and did not sit well with the Canadians watching – was a bizarre giggle thrown into the mix. The best reaction to the odd moment came from Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Justin Smoak.

Canada did not care for this addition to the anthem.

Ultimately, it’s hard to be too mad about an honest mistake. On the other hand, perhaps a rendition of a national anthem from someone who sounds like they’ve heard it before – and can get through it without laughing – is a reasonable expectation.