Team Canada Pyeongchang 2018 Blog: Rachel Homan

By Rachel Homan (Team Canada skip)

Even though we didn’t like the end result, it was still amazing to be in the venue today for our first game at the Winter Olympics.

Photo, World Curling Federation/Curling Canada/Michael Burns

South Korea is a great team, and they played really well today — they really didn’t miss much. Even though we were still learning about the conditions here in the arena, they nailed it, so kudos to them. We’ll just take what we can from it, and keep learning about the ice and rocks. And if we keep playing like that, we’ll be really happy at the end of the week.

It was really fun to play out there today. The crowd was awesome and energetic. And they were really courteous and respectful, too. We’re really loving being here in South Korea; everyone has been so friendly and nice, and it really came through in the venue today.

Photo, World Curling Federation/Curling Canada/Michael Burns

The loss really isn’t the end of the world. There are a lot of great teams who lose their first couple games; it’s early. No one really knows the ice yet, no one knows the rocks yet, how they’ll react to different weights and releases. We actually made some great shots under pressure out there today, so we were really happy with how we were throwing.

It’s really hit me now that I’m at the Olympics; it’s fantastic to finally start our competition here. We were off the ice for a little bit for the last few days, and even though we were keeping busy exploring the Athletes’ Village and checking out other sports, it was really nice to get things started here.

It’s been a lot of fun being able to hang out with my friend (speed skater) Ivanie Blondin, and to be Olympians together. We’ve known each other for so long, and lots of our mutual friends, and our families, have come over here to cheer us on, and it’s nice to be able to share these experiences with them

I didn’t really have any must-do things on my list as I was thinking about coming to the Olympics. I don’t think anything HAS to happen. I’m just grateful for everything that happens here, every opportunity, every event that we get to go to, every time we get to cheer on our fellow Canadians — they’re all special moments for me.

We’ve already got so many wonderful memories from here — seeing our first Canadian medals, seeing John and Kaitlyn win. We were just so happy for them, and it’s a special time for Canada to be able to bring home gold from the first Olympic mixed doubles competition.

We’ll be back on the ice against Sweden tonight, and we’re looking forward to another great game. Hope you enjoy it at home!

(Rachel Homan is the skip of Canada’s Olympic women’s curling team, and is playing in her first Winter Olympics. Keep checking curling.ca for blogs from Canadian athletes and coaches attending the Winter Olympics; you can watch a replay of the game by CLICKING HERE)