It feels like yesterday that we were glued to our screens watching the 2020 Summer Games, but we will soon have the Winter Olympics to look forward to!
Scheduled to start on the 4th of February, this 2022 Olympics edition had a rocky start. COVID-19 and diplomatic boycotts have kept us biting our nails and wondering if we’ll see our athletes competing.
The answer is yes, with experts predicting Canada will take home 23 medals! Here are some of the top Ontarian athletes that will be proudly wearing the maple leaf this February.
Ice Hockey
The withdrawal of NHL players over COVID-19 concerns has been a blow to the men’s hockey teams, which will now feature a collection of players from European leagues and collegiate programs.
It’s looking more promising for women’s ice hockey, where Canada has always excelled and can boast of four golds and two silvers. This year doesn’t seem to be an exception, with popular betting sites in Canada listing the shortest odds for Canada as an outright winner of the category, closely followed by the USA team.
Ontarians Brianne Jenner, Sarah Nurse, and Natalie Spooner are all strong additions to the Canadian women’s hockey team.
Jenner is a 12-year veteran of the Canadian women’s national team, and this will be her third Olympics, where she’ll be playing wing position instead of her natural centre position.
Nurse helped Canada win a silver medal at PyeongChang in 2018 and is now keen for the team to get gold. It will be the third Olympics for Spooner, with a gold and silver medal already under her belt.
Curling
It’s official, we are headed to Beijing and we are extremely eager to make Canada proud. ???????? pic.twitter.com/A7ATI7A1ag
— Team Homan / Morris (@TeamHomanMorris) January 13, 2022
John Morris and Rachel Homan, both from Ottawa, Ontario, will be fighting hard for gold in Beijing in the mixed doubles curling category. Their selection was somewhat controversial as the mixed doubles trials had to be cancelled due to COVID-19. Instead, Curling Canada opted to use a ranking system to select its representatives.
This means that the duo will have plenty to prove and re-establish Canada as the world’s dominant curling country. Morris is a two-time Olympic gold medallist and will be representing Canada for the third time in the Olympics. In 2019, The Sports Network named Homan the fourth-greatest Canadian female curler in history. She had her Olympic debut at PyeongChang 2018, where her team finished 6th.
Ice Skating
Ontarian Ivanie Blondin is one to watch this Winter Olympics. A two-time world champion and three-time silver medallist in the Women’s Mass Start, Beijing will be her third Olympic Games.
Her gold medal at the long track nationals last October is still fresh, and she’s projected to win two gold medals in the long-track speed skating category.
Bobsleigh
????????????THE WAIT IS FINALLY OVER!!!!???????????? I'M GOING TO THE OLYMPICS!!!!! This is a dream that has been many years in the making! I finally get to call myself an Olympian! I'll be competing both the monobob and the 2-woman event with @just_dawn98! Thank you to EVERYONE! pic.twitter.com/CAsUvKVXeJ
— ????????Cynthia Appiah???????? #BlackLivesMatter (@thecynapps) January 20, 2022
Last but not least, Canada will be sending a formidable bobsleigh team for the 2022 Beijing Olympics, that will likely reach the podium for the fifth straight games.
Ontarian Cam Stones will be one of the brakemen on Justin Kripps’ two-man and four-man crew. Stones and Kripps have just won bronze in two-man bobsled at the Bobsleigh World Cup in Germany, and are looking to a good outcome in Beijing.
Another name worthy of mention in this category is Toronto’s own Cynthia Appiah. She will make her Olympic debut in the two-woman event after being an alternate four years ago. In her seven races this season, Appiah never finished outside the top five and has two silver medals and two bronze ones to date.