In what was one of the first finals at the Torino games, Canada had their best chance at gold competing, and she did not disappoint. Heil put in a great performance as she was expected to do (something that rarely happens with Canadians) and took home the gold. This one was especially memorable since it was on the first day and I was so excited to watch that regardless of the hangover from the night before, I woke up at something like 7 or 8 am just to catch the mogul event. And although the rest of the day was tough, it was well worth it.
7: Jean-Luc Brassard winning gold in 1994 - Moguls
I don't remember much from these games other than the golds won by Brassard and Myriam Bedard in the biathlon, but I do remember the move the Brassard broke out on the jumps in between the mogul tracks. I think it's called a kossack, but what he did while he was in the air was do the splits and make his skis parallel to each other. I remember thinking how cool Brassard was because it was this new 'cool' sport as I was always an avid skier. Even in gym class in junior school I would try to re-enact the trick while jumping off the balance beam.
8: Marc Gagnon wins two golds in two hours in 2002 - Short Track Speed Skating
It was the second last day of competitions in the Salt Lake City Games and Canada had not even come close to a respectable medal haul, but that would change after this night. In what was his last Olympics Gagnon went out as the most decorated Winter Olympian in Canada's history (he was passed in 2006 by Cindy Klassen) by winning gold in the 500m and the 5000m relay event along with Jonathan Guilmette, Francois-Louis Tremblay, and Mathieu Turcotte. Not only did Canada win the two golds, but Gagnon was joined on the podium by silver medal winner Jonathan Guilmette in the 500m. With all the talk of the South Koreans and Apollo Anton Ohno, it was nice to have a few Canadians take the spotlight in one of the most exciting events at the Games.
9: Lori-Ann Muenzer winning gold in 2006 - Woman's sprint, cycling
Muenzer seemed to me like another of the dozens of Canadian athletes I've seen over the years who had little to no expectations from the public going into the Games, those athletes who might provide a little excitement before the medals get handed out, but are long shots to end up on the podium. As Muenzer (who was 38 during these games, and appeared much older in comparison to her opponents) kept winning her races I was just hoping that she could get to the finals and guarantee a medal. I remember her biggest obstacle coming in the semis when she took on Anna Mears from Australia and lost the first race in a best of three set when Mears posted the best time of the day. By seeing Canadian Olympians falter on a regular basis I was just hoping this wouldn't be a repeat, and I was delighted when Muenzer pulled out everything she had and won the next two races to advance to the final where she eventually beat Russian Tamilla Abassova to win one of the most unexpected medals for Canada at the 2004 Games.
10: Woman's hockey winning gold in 2002
This is so low only because I missed the majority of the game and only saw the final seconds as well as all the post-game stuff. A major theme here is the Canadians beating the Americans, especially when we are not expected to win, and this gold medal game was no exception. The Americans and Canadians were by far the two best teams in every Olympics and World Championships, but the Canadians were always one-upped when it came to the gold medal game. This time around the Canadian team put in such an inspired effort and were led by a great performance by Sami Jo Small (I might be wrong with that one). This win was highlighted by Hayley Wickenheiser when during a post-game interview she said the team was fired up by hearing that the American team put the Canadian flag on the ground in their locker room and it was taken as a sign of disrespect. Whether or not this was true, it still helped our team win gold, and helped the lore of the Lucky Loonie.
I've probably forgot some, but ones that do receive mentioning are ones that are not related to golds, silvers, or bronzes, such as the Norwegian cross-country coach giving a replacement pole to one of the Canadian skiers in the team sprint when her pole broke helping Canada win a silver, great sportsmanship. There was also a day late in the Athens Games when Canada was playing in the baseball semis and they were losing a number of runs. In the bottom of the ninth they started pushing for a comeback but their last out was on what looked like a sure thing home run, which would have tied the game. Instead we went to the bronze medal game and lost. During this game was the final race in the woman's 100m hurdles, which featured Canada's best medal hopeful, Perdita Felicien. Unfortunately at the first hurdle she tripped up and fell and everyone in Canada's heart sank. Canada's basketball team in 2000 deserves a mention as that put Steve Nash on the map and featured another heartbreaking loss in the quarters to France. Two medals that I remember that didn't make the list were the two bronzes won in the first trampoline events by Karen Cockburn and Mathieu Turgeon.
These are my favourites, I would love to hear other people's favourite Olympic moments that they watched live, and I would love to hear some stories from countries other than Canada and the States if there is anyone here from elsewhere in the world.
NB: I was at a cottage during most of the 1996 games, so therefore I didn't see Bailey's WR in the 100m or the 4X100m relay, but they would definitely be tops if I saw them.
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