Notable quotes from the Milan Cortina Olympics on Feb. 8, 2026

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This article was published 08/02/2026 (224 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Here are some notable quotes from the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics on Feb. 8, 2026:

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“I don’t claim to know what she’s going through, but I do know what it is to be here, to be fighting for the Olympics, and to have this course burn you and to watch those dreams die. I can’t imagine the pain that she’s going through and it’s not the physical pain — we can deal with physical pain — but the emotional pain is something else.” 

— American women’s downhill gold medallist Breezy Johnson, on her teammate Lindsey Vonn’s crash in the same event

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“It is an honour to be named captain of Canada’s men’s hockey team, which has so many great players and leaders. Connor and Cale, along with our entire group, provide incredible leadership, and I am happy to represent Canada together on the same team. We are all proud to wear the Maple Leaf and compete with Team Canada in Milan.”

— Sidney Crosby, on being named captain of the Canadian men’s Olympic hockey team, with Cale Makar and Connor McDavid serving as alternates.

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“Excited to be here and be with the guys and get out there and see the rink and get our first skate under us. It’s exciting. Surreal.

“It’s been a long time coming, so as I said, (I’m) excited to be here representing my country and be a part of a great group of guys.”

— Connor McDavid on how it feels to play on the Canadian men’s hockey team at his first Olympic Games.

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“We all skated as well as we could … It speaks to the potential as a team, and we’re a very young team, so we all have a lot of potential going forward.” 

— Canadian figure skater Madeline Schizas after the women’s single free skating team event.

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“To feel that Olympic spirit in the building was very motivating for us. That can go either way for an athlete, and I’m glad that we took that as motivation. That really helped fuel our performance today.”

— Canadian figure skater Lia Pereira after skating with partner Trennt Michaud in the pairs free skating team event.

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“Losing by this little, it hurts for sure. I guess I’m still happy with my riding today. It’s coming.”

— Canadian Arnaud Gaudet, who missed out on the parallel giant slalom semifinal by three-hundredths of a second to Bulgarian Tervel Zamfirov.

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“It’s been a journey. I grew up in Saskatchewan, it’s flat land, and then to be in Italy with the five rings on my bib. They’ve watched me every single step of the way. It’s almost as emotional and exciting for them to be able to come and know that all the work they put into me is paying off.'”

— Canadian moguls skier Maia Schwinghammer, on performing at her first Winter Olympics with her parents there to cheer her on.

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“I turned on the TV today and it’s hard not to live and die with the Canadian curling team. They got some bad luck today. I think they’ll be OK.”

— Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, in Toronto to face the Raptors, after Canada’s 7-6 loss to Sweden in mixed doubles curling.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2026.