Marie-Philip Poulin is preparing for her fourth Olympic Games and she pinches herself again when she realizes how lucky she is to be able to spend the year preparing with her teammates.

Hockey Canada has a habit of regrouping its players in Calgary during Olympic years in order to fine-tune their preparation. The twenty female hockey players selected thus spend the winter in a professional environment.

“It’s a magical process. We can train full time,” Poulin said in a recent phone interview with The Canadian Press. These will be my fourth Games. It goes fast when you love what you do. I enjoy it a lot. »

Poulin has two Olympic gold medals and a silver to his name. She has scored five goals in three Olympic finals. Now 30 years old, the hockey player from Beauceville is able to take a step back by looking back on her long career and putting things into perspective.

“My family has helped me a lot in my career,” said the one who is an ambassador for the Hockey Canada Foundation Assistance Fund. There are many people who helped me to perform. I am very grateful for that. It’s hard to put into words. »

Among the people who have helped Poulin on her journey are her longtime teammate Lauriane Rougeau and her parents, Monic Levasseur and Pierre Rougeau, who welcomed her to Montreal in 2007.

“I came from Beauce. I didn’t have much, said Poulin. There is a whole second family that helped me in Montreal to pursue my dream of being part of the Canadian team. I wouldn’t have been able to do this without her. »

Rougeau and Poulin had already been rubbing shoulders in the summer for a few years, as part of a women’s team that criss-crossed the province to participate in tournaments.

“When it came time for her to make a decision for her future, she thought of Montreal,” explained Rougeau, who notably participated in the 2014 and 2018 Games alongside Poulin. My parents spoke to his parents to suggest they come live with us to help him with school and hockey. That’s what happened.

“It was very difficult for her because she didn’t speak English and she went to high school and CEGEP in English. But we see today that it was the right decision for her. »

Poulin also joined the ranks of the Montreal Stars, in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League, upon his arrival in the metropolis.

“There are players like Kelly Sudia, Lisa-Marie Breton-Lebreux and Brittany Privée who took Marie-Philip under their wing, who helped her feel at ease,” said Rougeau. It wasn’t easy. She was 16 years old and she was playing against professional women aged 25-30. It was another challenge for her. It helped her in her development, and also as a leader. She learned from them and blossomed as a player. »

Poulin was named the CWHL’s Most Outstanding Rookie that season. Today, she is captain of the Canadian women’s hockey team.

thirst for revenge

The United States ended Canada’s long reign at the Olympics in 2018, triumphing in a shootout in Pyeonchang. Poulin bluntly admits that this defeat left a bitter taste in the mouths of the Canadians, who had triumphed in the previous four Olympiads.

Several athletes would claim to have turned the page on this failure, but not Poulin.

“It was a heartbreaking defeat. She hurt, admitted Poulin. Honestly, it’s a great source of motivation and the fire burns in us! »

The Canadians satisfied some of their desire for revenge by defeating the Americans in the final of the Women’s World Hockey Championship in August. Lady of great moments, Poulin scored the winning goal in overtime.

The two teams also faced each other six times this fall in preparation for the Beijing Games. They shared the honors of the first four games, then Canada won the last two games, each time thanks to goals from Poulin in overtime.

Poulin had already made a name for herself with her game-winning goals in the Vancouver 2010 and Sochi 2014 Games.

She’ll never want to say it like that, but everyone knows there will be sparks when she’s on the ice, Rougeau said. She’s a ‘gamer’, she also wants to be on the ice. You see it in her eyes, she really wants to get on board and make a difference every time she’s on the ice. »

Poulin attended the induction of her former teammate Kim St-Pierre into the Hockey Hall of Fame in November. By virtue of her memorable goals and the mark she will leave on her sport, it’s obvious her turn will come quickly once she hangs up her skates. But she is in no rush to do so.

“It’s still too far,” she exclaimed at the thought of receiving such an honor.

Poulin may find that the years go by quickly doing what she loves, she has not finished writing her story.

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The women’s Olympic hockey tournament gets under way on February 3 when Canada takes on Switzerland. The final is scheduled for February 17.