Former Olympian wants to make Waterloo, Que., bobsled capital of Eastern Canada
Quebec trainer Yannick Morin has already lured rugby player, Rio bronze medallist Karen Paquin to new track
Waterloo, Que., has a new push track for bobsled training, and the Quebec athlete and power trainer who inspired it is hoping it will make the Eastern Townships a magnet for future sledders.
Yannik Morin was a member of the Canadian bobsleigh team for four years and competed at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. He's still passionate about the sport.
"Sometimes you're scared. Sometimes you're excited. But adrenaline is going through your veins," Morin said.
"It's a very, very good feeling going down a bobsleigh track."
Waterloo, 95 kilometres east of Montreal, installed the 125-metre track this summer.
It co-ordinated its efforts with Morin, the founder and president of Bobsleigh and Skeleton Quebec and the owner of a physical training centre in Waterloo called La Taule.
Any member of the public can sign up for an initiation, for a fee, and those who want to pursue a career in bobsledding have a place to work on their starts.
From bodybuilder to bobsledder
Like many other bobsledders, Morin came to the sport after a successful run in another athletic pursuit – in his case, bodybuilding. When it came to training, Morin realized Eastern Canada was missing something.
I started pushing a shopping cart. I pushed my car. I did different things, just to learn how to push things.- Former Olympian Yannick Morin
"I didn't have any tools to get better at pushing."
"I started pushing a shopping cart. I pushed my car. I did different things, just to learn how to push things," Morin said.
He eventually went to Calgary to train on a push track with wheels, similar to the new one now in Waterloo.
"If I would have had a chance to start pushing earlier, well, it would have been a lot better," he said.
The next hub for winter power athletes?
Morin said the track in Waterloo will allow more athletes to get the training they need to move on to a higher level of competition.
"I am totally convinced it's going to make a difference in the Eastern Canadian representation on the national team," he said.
He also wants to inspire a new generation of athletes.
The track is set up right beside the road in Waterloo, and, curious, many people have been stopping by to ask him about bobsledding.
He also hopes to entice athletes who are looking for a whole new athletic life in a different sport.
Rugby players, football players and sprinters have an obvious advantage.
"What matters is finding the athletes that have the power, that have the talent – and having a place for them to train and making sure they touch the sled and fall in love with it."
From rugby pitch to bobsled track
Morin has already helped one Quebec Olympian try her turn at bobsled.
Karen Paquin is a member of the Canadian rugby sevens team that brought home a bronze medal from Rio.
Kaillie Humphries, a gold medallist in bobsleigh at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, first planted the seed in Paquin's mind. In October, the rugby player came to Waterloo to try it out and get some tips from Morin.
"I gave it a little bit of a shot, and it was actually super fun, and I really enjoyed it. So I went back the next week to practise a little bit more."
She is travelling to Calgary next week for test runs with the national program.
Paquin was an ice canoeist previously and said she loves winter sports.
She said bobsledding and rugby are complimentary sports, and she can train in both as she prepares for the Women's Rugby World Cup in 15s next summer.
The podium for bobsleigh would be a dream, she says.
"Obviously, it's more of dream than an objective. There is nothing that is going to be handed to me. That's not the way elite sports work."