MILAN – Here are some notable quotes from the Milan Cortina Olympics on Feb. 18, 2026:

“It was the one I was missing. I can’t say it’s never been on my mind, but I never wanted to really give myself hope, or make it an objective, because it’s so hard.

“It’s the toughest thing you can achieve, in short track, there’s so much happening. It’s difficult to describe it, honestly.”

— Canadian short-track speedskater Steven Dubois after winning gold in the men’s 500-metre race.

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“It’s really special. We all know that short track is a very intense sport. So coming to the finals, I think we knew we had a really strong team, and we were going to give it (our) all.

“How special is it to be called an Olympic medallist representing Canada at the highest stage? So I feel like it’d be a dishonour to not be satisfied with having that medal.”

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— Canadian speedskater Florence Brunelle after winning bronze in the women’s 3000-metre short-track relay with teammates Kim Boutin, Courtney Sarault and Danaé Blais.

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“I’m so thankful I was able to be out there. I was starting to taste it, I was riding well, I felt good, I knew I had what it takes. But I wasn’t able to just put all the pieces together, and that always stings, it hurts the heart. But there’s a lot of support out here, I’ve felt a lot of support. I’ve had a lot of Olympic Games go my way. It’s been a hell of a run, I’m thankful to be in the final, but it’s tough.”

— Canadian snowboarder and three-time medallist Mark McMorris, who finished eighth in the men’s slopestyle after coming back from a training injury.

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“We could have gotten pretty upset and pretty angry early in that game when we were down 3-0, but we didn’t. We decided to focus our energy on the right things, which was, how do we make shots out here? How do we figure out what’s going on with the ice and our stones? Because I think that’s really what cost us early in that game.”

— Canadian curler Brad Jacobs, on his team’s 8-3 defeat of Italy.

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“At least it’s not fourth, honestly. I’ve had too many fourths in my career. I’m just happy I had fun.”

— Canadian snowboarder Laurie Blouin, who finished fifth in the women’s slopestyle final on Wednesday.

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“You’re playing for an Olympic gold medal. It’s going to be the hardest game you play in in your whole life.”

— Canadian forward Blayre Turnbull ahead of a gold-medal matchup against the favoured United States.

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“It’s like … being born again.”

— American skier Mikaela Shiffrin, after ending an eight-race run without an Olympic medal with gold in the women’s slalom.

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“Michael Phelps is still ahead?”

— Norwegian cross-country skier Einar Hedegart after teammate Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo picked up his Winter Games-record 10th gold medal.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb 18, 2026.

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