By winning the Northern Star award, given to the athlete of the year in Canada, Marie-Philip Poulin added another honor to her brilliant record on Wednesday, which already makes her a national pride.
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“It means a lot, it’s very special to join all these incredible athletes from different sports, reacted Poulin, Wednesday afternoon, by videoconference. It is heartwarming. »
Among Quebec hockey players, only Maurice Richard, Guy Lafleur and Mario Lemieux have already obtained this same honor, formerly known as the Lou-Marsh trophy.
“Those are three big names,” she agreed. In the case of Guy Lafleur, who unfortunately died in the last year, there was the hockey player, but also the person. It’s also important to me […] We all know Maurice Richard and his look, then Lemieux and his many records. »
Archive photo, Didier Debusschère
Marie-Philip Poulin scored twice in the Olympic final in Beijing last February to help Canada win the gold medal.
A first hockey player
The athlete from Beauceville became the first female hockey player to receive the prestigious Canadian award. Since its inception in 1936, no other female hockey player, not even Hayley Wickenheiser, had accomplished the feat.
Poulin’s two goals in the recent Olympic final in Beijing paved the way for Canada’s Athlete of the Year title.
On February 17, the captain helped the country defeat the Americans by a score of 3 to 2.
Poulin, who scored in a fourth consecutive Olympic final, had already made Canada jump to win gold, in Vancouver in 2010, then in Sochi in 2014.
In those years, Joey Votto (baseball) and Kaillie Humphries (bobsleigh) were the winners respectively.
The 31-year-old athlete also paid tribute to the work of her teammates. “The past year has been amazing for our whole group. I wouldn’t be here without my teammates. »
Favorite to Auger-Aliassime
For 2022, Poulin was notably preferred to Quebec tennis player Félix Auger-Aliassime, who ends the year sixth in the ATP rankings.
“Felix is doing very well,” she praised, hailing Canada’s victory at the Davis Cup in November. He is remarkable. Obviously, with all these athletes from other sports, many deserve the award. Getting picked is cool in crime. »
Young Alberta defenseman Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche was also part of the debate. Before Poulin, the last hockey player to be voted Canada’s Athlete of the Year was goaltender Carey Price in 2015.
The fear of disappointing
In addition to his Olympic exploits, Poulin was at the heart of the Canadian team that won the World Championships in September in Denmark.
“My biggest fear is disappointing people. There are always doubts, whether on a personal or sporting level. The fact of not wanting to disappoint people is always there. »
By receiving the title of athlete of the year on Wednesday, Poulin did not disappoint anyone. And one day, the Quebecer will once again attract pride when she is inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Like Richard, Lafleur and Lemieux.
Regarding a future women’s hockey league, Poulin says he is hopeful that things will change in the next year.
The most recent winners
2022 | Marie-Philip Poulin | Hockey
2021 | Damian Warner | Decathlon
2020 | Laurent Duvernay-Tardif | Soccer and Alphonso Davies | Soccer
2019 | Bianca Andreescu | Tennis
2018 | Mikael Kingsbury | freestyle skiing
2017 | Joey Votto | Baseball
2016 | Penny Oleksiak | Swimming
2015 | Carey Price | Hockey