Speedskater Gilmore Junio thanked with crowdfunded medal

Speedskater GilmoreJunio made worldwide headlines when he stepped aside from themen's 1000 metres at the 2014SochiOlympics so Canadian teammate Denny Morrison could compete, a selfless act for whichJuniotoday received a special commemorative, crowdfunded medal.

Morrison, who's from B.C.,fell during an earlier qualifying round, and after Junio stepped aside, went on to win a silver medal.

"One of the main reasons why I made mydecision was to have to share amedal moment with Canada and havesomething people can relate to," Junio told Andrew Nichols in an interview on CBC News Network.

The moveto give Junio a medal started with Toronto design agency Jacknife, whichled a social media campaign called "Thanks Gilmore" to raise funds through Indiegogo.com.

Junio , a Calgary resident, was awarded the medal in a ceremony at King Edward School in Kitchener, Ont., whose students provided an outstanding level of participation.

The campaign had exceeded its $7,000 goal by Wednesday morning, reaching $7,562. Children at King Edwardbrought loonies to school, and were able to "fill our bucket," a student said.

"It's definitely going to be a pretty humbling day for sure, getting this medal from the guys fromJacknifeandreceivingit from the kids who helped [crowdfund] the medal,"said Junio.

In accepting the medal, Junio said: "Denny and I were pretty good friends before, and now I guess we have a good story to tell."

The medal ismade out of silver to represent Morrison's medal,maplewood to represent Canada, and gold, for Junio, according to Jacknife.

"It obviously means a lot," said Junio.