Vancouver 2010 Alexandre Bilodeau Talks about Gold

After winning the first Canadian gold medal on home turf freestyle moguls skier Alex Bilodeau had a press conference this morning which I sat in on at the BC International Media Centre. Press asked him about his career, his defining moment, and just how much partying he has done already.

Photo credit: John Biehler on Flickr / 2010.JohnBiehler.com

The very humble Bilodeau replied in both French and English, offering much praise to the Own the Podium program, his family (in particular his brother), and his fellow athletes. “This extraordinary effort does not come in isolation,” said Peter Judge, CEO of the Canadian Freestyle Ski Association. “First and foremost we are thanking Canada.”

Bilodeau said that in regards to the opening and closing ceremonies, “we all came in as a team and we’ll leave as a team.” Among those he credited with his success he gave a shout out to a man they affectionately refer to as “Databoy”. His real name being Alan, he was in charge of collecting data to help them train better, faster and strong.

Photo credit: John Biehler on Flickr / 2010.JohnBiehler.com

Running on 3 hours of sleep after many media meetings, appearances and television spots in the last 18 hours, Bilodeau did a great job of even addresses tough questions from press about judging at sporting events like his. “The only thing I can control is my performance,” he noted.

Bilodeau’s been a fan of freestyle skiing most of his life. He said (in French) that at 7 years old when watching Jean-Luc Brassard he would jump up and down with excitement. No one can deny his passion for the sport which has made him an instant household name in Canada.

When asked what his coach’s last words of wisdom were before he went down his medal-winning run he simply replied, “I said to him, ‘thank you’.”

Photo credit: John Biehler on Flickr / 2010.JohnBiehler.com

With many more press conferences, interviews, and photo ops on his horizon Bilodeau is ultimately looking forward to seeing his family tonight. He added, “for me it’s just the beginning of a great party & all of Canada is invited.”