From childhood wonder to Olympic Volunteer

My earliest Olympic memories go back to 1984: Gaétan Boucher winning two gold and one bronze medal in Sarajevo, Sylvie Bernier capturing gold in diving in Los Angeles, and—burned into my mind forever—a man in an astronaut suit soaring through the air during the Summer Games Opening Ceremonies. I do not know if it was the futuristic spectacle of that image but, from that day on, the Olympics have represented grandeur and extraordinary human achievement in my eyes.

My first Summer Olympics memory: a flying astronaut during the 1984 summer ceremonies. From that moment on, I was hooked.

By the time the 1988 Seoul Games arrived, my obsession had only grown. Every morning, my math teacher—who also doubled as our gym teacher—would begin class with a recap of everything we’d missed overnight. One morning stands out sharply: the day she explained that Ben Johnson had been stripped of his gold medal less than 24 hours after we had all celebrated his victory (and world record) in the 100m sprint. Moments like that cement the fact that, the Olympics and I, we go way back!

I know the Olympic movement has faced its share of criticism. I’ve heard many people say, “The Olympics aren’t about athletes; they’re about money and politics.” And yet, every two years, I choose to set aside the controversies and I embrace the magic. I cheer for anyone wearing the Canadian uniform, I root for underdogs from any country and I get swept up watching the pursuit of seemingly unbreakable records.

As a kid, I dreamed of being an Olympian—standing atop the podium while the Canadian anthem played for me. But that was much more fantasy than dream. Aside from a few summers of small‑scale competitive swimming between ages 12 and 14, I never seriously played sports outside gym class. It’s tough to make it to the Olympics when you don’t actually compete in a sport. Sure, you can buy a plane ticket, grab seats at an event, and call it a day. But I didn’t just want to watch the Games—I wanted to feel them, to be part of the heartbeat behind the scenes. And then it struck me: I could volunteer. And just like that, my bucket list gained a new, undisputed, #1 item: volunteering at the Olympic Games.

I first set my sight on Paris 2024. Compared to Beijing (2022) or Rio (2016), Paris felt practically next door, and the fact that French is the primary language made it feel like the perfect fit. There was only one problem: I was still serving full‑time in the military. I could have taken two or three weeks of time off, but that would have meant sacrificing precious vacation time with my daughters. So I made a decision: volunteering at the Olympics would become my first major goal in retirement.

I submitted my request to release from the Canadian Armed Forces on 17 February 2025 and, 5 days later, I found the Team26 Milano-Cortina portal online and applied to be a volunteer.

The application process Step 1 - The form

The first step in applying to be an Olympic volunteer is completing a long but fairly straightforward form. In addition to the usual personal details—name, age, occupation, and languages spoken—the application asks about your background in sports, event organization, and volunteering. Some of the questions included:

• Have you ever been part of a team in your free time, at work, or in school? If so, how many people were involved?

• Describe that experience—your role, the context, and what you contributed.

• Have you volunteered in non‑sport settings?

• Have you volunteered at sport‑related events?

• What was your area of activity?

• Which events have you volunteered for?

  
  

After that section, that was by far the longest to fill out, the form asked you to specify:

• In which city do you want to volunteer?

• Which sport do you prefer to volunteer with?

• How long are you available?

  
  

For both my husband (he had decided to join me on this adventure) and I, the choice of city was clear: Milan. We selected it as our preferred city because it’s easier to reach and far simpler when it comes to finding accommodations (volunteers are responsible for covering the cost of their travel and lodging during the Games). Milan is much more accessible than Cortina or Bormio, which are tucked away in the Dolomites.

We also chose Milan because it would host ice hockey, my favourite winter sport. So naturally, ice hockey was our top choice for the sport we hoped to volunteer with. Finally, I indicated that I was available for the entire duration of the Games—and even up to two weeks beforehand, if needed. (The beauty of a retiree’s life!)

That was it for step 1. I submitted my form on 22 April 2025, and my husband his, 3 days later. Then, the wait started.

Ice Hockey

Before I go on with the application process, I want to provide some context to my selection of ice hockey as my favorite winter sport. For as long as I can remember, I have loved hockey, the speed, the energy, the sound of blades carving into fresh ice; I am Quebecer after all. Growing up, the only skating option available to a me was figure‑skating classes, so I learned toe picks, edges, and elegant turns instead of tight pivots and explosive starts. The two styles felt worlds apart. Beside girls did not play hockey in Beauceville in 1980! Hard to believe but Beauceville is now the hometown of the best female hockey player of all time - more to follow on that later.

In my early twenties, I finally worked up the courage to sign up for a women’s hockey league. I bought my first pair of hockey skates—and admired them like they were a brand‑new car. But the moment I stepped onto the ice, reality hit hard. The other women were faster, more confident, more at ease in every drill. I felt miles behind. Discouraged and embarrassed, I quit before I ever had the chance to grow into the player I might have become. Looking back, I think I simply didn’t have the discipline, or the deep stubborn drive you need, to truly become a hockey player.

All that said, I’ve always loved hockey. I love watching it—especially when an Olympic gold medal is in play. My excitement soared in 1998 when women’s ice hockey finally became an Olympic sport, a moment that felt long overdue. That excitement skyrocketed again in 2010 when a young athlete named Marie‑Philip Poulin (MPP) became the first Olympian from my hometown.

MPP - Beauceville's pride and joy!

There’s a very particular kind of pride that comes from seeing someone from your hometown step onto the world stage. It’s not just admiration; it’s a feeling that hits somewhere deeper, somewhere personal. When Marie‑Philip Poulin started her Olympic journey in 2010, it wasn’t simply that she scored the winning goal for Canada, it was that she was one of ours. Someone who learned how to skate in the very same rink as me, some 20 years after me. Marie‑Philip isn’t just a familiar name from my hometown—she is someone my parents actually know. Years ago, when she was still competing in both hockey and golf, my father volunteered to drive junior golf players to their tournaments, and she was occasionally one of the athletes in his car. He was also one of her first sponsors when she was a relatively unknown athlete.

Marie-Philip's victories always feel like shared victories, a reminder that greatness can come from the very place that shaped you. It’s the kind of moment that makes your chest tighten with pride because, suddenly, the small town you once thought of as ordinary becomes the birthplace of a legend.

In my house in Kingston, On, hangs this 2014 Sochi's Olympics' women ice hockey jersey, signed by the entire team. It was a gift from Marie-Philip Poulin to my dad who was the President of the Board Directors for CAMBI, one of MPP first corporate sponsor

The fact that I already love hockey, combined with knowing that MPP would be the captain of the Canadian women’s team, made ice hockey the obvious choice for the sport I wanted to volunteer with. Beside, NHL players are finally back!

The Application Process - Step 2 - The interview

On 1 April 2025, I finally received my first piece of good news in the selection process: an invitation to move on to the interview stage. I booked a slot just three days later : 4 April at 08:30 EST. My husband, who had registered only three days after I did, also received an interview invitation… but his was scheduled ten weeks later. If anything proves the value of applying early, that was it.

The interview itself was straightforward—essentially a verbal confirmation of everything I had already written on my application, almost as if they simply wanted to ensure I hadn’t embellished anything. I was interviewed alongside two other potential volunteers: a man my age from the United States, an avid downhill skier who had volunteered at previous Olympic Games, and a younger man from the UK now living in Germany. Both of them mentioned wanting to volunteer in Milan, specifically in ice hockey. Hearing that all three of us were aiming for the same sport was a little discouraging; it made the competition feel suddenly very real. I left the interview feeling confident, but with no clear sense of whether my dream would actually come true.

And then the real waiting began…

To be continued in Part 2 (to be published no later then 20 January 2025).