Olympians join the watch party at WinSport and share a few insider tips with young fans

Calgarians had the chance to meet Team Canada athletes, try winter sports and cheer on our athletes at the Milano Cortina Winter Games. Tyler Barrow reports.

Two-time Olympic gold medal winner John Morris remembers the time Calgary hosted the Winter Olympics really well.

“When I was 10 years old, I watched curling at the 1988 Olympic Games, and it was like, that’s what sparked my interest in wanting to get to the Olympics,” Morris said Saturday at WinSport.

Morris appeared at FanFest, the Canadian Olympic Committee’s (COC) national watch party where young children could watch the Olympics from Italy and then try out some of the sports they saw on TV.

“You can try curling, speed skating, (and) figure skating, said COC chief external affairs officer Andrew Baker. ”We have biathlon here, ski jumping, and then also a bunch of partner activations, some amazing free giveaways and chances to take some incredible photos.

“It’s really just to connect Calgarians to there’s a chance for them to come and meet Olympians and experience the Olympic spirit, really,” he added. “just get inspired by the Olympic movement and a little bit of joy and positivity.”

Morris was one of four Olympians who held a curling demonstration at 10 a.m., explaining the sport to a group of children, some of whom were barely aware that such a sport even existed.

Twenty years after he discovered curling watching the Calgary Olympics, Morris moved to the city, trained and became a gold medallist twice.

“The coolest thing about today is you saw a sparkle in some of these kids’ eyes,” he said. “They get to try a new sport that they’ve only seen on TV. And it would be awesome if one of these sports sticks and they’re able to, you know, live out a potential Olympic dream one day.”

He added, “It reminded me of me when I was 10 years old.”

One of those first-time curlers was 15-year-old Sophia Garcia, who moved to Calgary from Venezuela four months ago.

What was her favourite thing about curling?

“The ice,” Garcia said. “I love the ice. And sweep(ing) the rock.”

Another Olympian on hand was Catriona Le May Doan who said Saturday was especially notable for her.

“February 14 is the actual day that I won both my gold medals,” said Le May Doan. “So my kids, who are now 21 to 19, who are actually home for the weekend, which is nice for me, because they’re both away, they always say Happy Gold Medal Day, Mom.

“So it’s pretty special to be able to share the medals with people on on the anniversary of winning.”

FanFest and PinFest continue Sunday at WinSport from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.

With files from CTV’s Tyler Barrow