Olympic Games Review | And then, the recruits?

Nicholas: Hello, Katoche!

Katherine: Don’t call me that.

Nicholas: Okay. Did you manage to meet any celebrities during your stay in Paris? Covering gymnastics, I imagine you have pictures with all the biggest stars in Hollywood!

Katherine: I’d like to tell you that I took a selfie with Tom Cruise. Alas! He was there, but I didn’t see him. Better luck next time. You, my good Nicho?

Nicholas: Unfortunately, no. But I was in the same amphitheater as Tom Brady in diving. If I had known, I would have perfumed myself. But otherwise, I thought I saw Armand Vaillancourt once, in judo. But I can’t say if it was really him. Otherwise, your first experience at the Games?

Katherine: Amazing. Do you know what I found difficult? The transportation. Even though the transportation system here is great, as our valiant colleague Alex would say, it was physically difficult to get to the different competition venues. So much walking and, incidentally, sweat. Once there, it was fantastic, but getting there was less so.

Nicholas: I agree, I also underestimated the physical load. I have exceeded the 250,000 steps mark in the last three weeks. But I was still impressed by the fluidity and efficiency of public transport. Probably the exile of Parisians helped us.

Katherine: Do you remember the early days, when we thought the streets would be crowded? The experience was quite different.

Nicholas: I was scared. In the end, my first visit to Paris was less chaotic than I expected.

Katherine: Personally, it was my second time in Paris.

Nicholas: Brag.

Katherine: On the other hand, I had never seen beach volleyball, unlike you.

Nicholas: It was about time! A fabulous sport. Plus, what can we say about the location, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower!

Katherine: Awesome! I’ve only been there once. After a long day of diving, it was nice to get away from it all as a spectator. I think it was there, in front of the tower lit up with a thousand lights, that I realized I was at the Olympics.

Nicholas: What struck you the most?

Katherine: The view, the atmosphere, the caliber of play, the crowd yelling “Monster block, monster block!” All of it. I still can’t believe it.

Nicholas: I’ve been following and covering Brandie Wilkerson and Melissa Humana-Paredes for a few years now, and honestly, that night when they won silver is forever etched in my memory. What Canadian medal stands out to you the most?

Katherine: The one of Nathan Zsombor-Murray and Rylan Wiens in the 10m synchro was particularly touching because it was my first Olympic medal coverage. The one of Phil Wizard, in breaking, will also remain in my memory, but for different reasons.

Nicholas: What do you mean?

Katherine: This was my first time at the Concorde site. Coming out of the small outdoor stadium, I spent 45 minutes looking for the mixed zone. Even the 10 volunteers I asked for directions couldn’t help me. I’m not going to lie, I was so panicked that I had tears in my eyes. Luckily, a nice lady took me under her wing and got me there just in time for the interview with Wizard. That’s the story. But that was the only glitch I had! Otherwise, it was great.

Nicholas: At least we got to visit a ton of sites. But I agree, you had to adapt every time you discovered a new stadium. Still, I was amazed at how much the City was able to work miracles with the limited space it had to build new facilities.

Katherine: Absolutely. Hats off to you, Paris.

Nicholas: Especially in the Champ-de-Mars, where they built a judo arena and a beach volleyball stadium. It was magnificent!

Katherine: Well said, friend.

Nicholas: I prefer the use of the word “colleague.”

Katherine : -(

Nicholas: So what do you remember from your first Olympics?

Katherine: The emotions of athletes. Sophiane Méthot’s smile after her bronze medal in trampoline. Simone Biles’ redemption. Phil Wizard’s tears, the first gold medalist in breaking. Léon Marchand’s exploits. I’m writing it, and I get chills. I’ll send the question back to you… colleague.

Nicholas: I look back on this crazy experience as a dream come true. As simple as that. In my 6th grade yearbook^e year, I wrote that I wanted to become a sports journalist to cover the Olympic Games. Now it’s done. I had the privilege of asking questions to athletes that I usually watch from my living room. Katie Ledecky, Novak Djokovic, Caeleb Dressel… I also got to cover 11 different sports!

Katherine: As sports enthusiasts, we have had our fill!

Nicholas: Do you want to talk about food?

Katherine: No, I’ve eaten enough. Welcome back, Nicho!

Nicholas: Thank you, Katoche.