Who should be Canada’s Olympic flag-bearers?

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Tomorrow morning, the Canadian Olympic team will announce its flag-bearers for the opening ceremony in northern Italy on Feb. 6. In keeping with the current International Olympic Committee guidelines, Canada will select one man and one woman to share the role.

So, this raises the classic pre-Olympics question: who should carry the Maple Leaf?

In real life, it’s a tricky one because of the many logistical issues involved. For example, some athletes who compete later in the Games might not arrive until days after the opening ceremony. Others might be in the country, but their competition takes place in a far-flung location. And some might simply not want to do it, whether due to the pressure it puts on them or another personal reason.

For today, though, let’s engage in a bit of fantasy flag-bearer picking and pretend that none of those complicating factors exist — everyone on the Canadian team is able and willing to do it. 

Here, then, are 10 athletes — five men, five women — who I think would be great choices to carry the Canadian flag:

Éliot Grondin: For me, an ideal opening ceremony flag-bearer is someone who has won an Olympic medal before and seems likely to do it again. The 24-year-old Grondin fits the bill as he captured two snowboard cross medals in 2022 (silver in the men’s event, bronze in the mixed team) and is currently the reigning men’s world champion and back-to-back World Cup title winner.

Ivanie Blondin: Another athlete who offers a great mix of past performance and promising future results, the 35-year-old long track speed skater won an individual Olympic silver in 2022 in the women’s mass start and captured gold in the team pursuit with Isabelle Weidemann and Valérie Maltais. The trio topped the World Cup standings in that event this season, while Blondin, a two-time world champion in the mass start, picked up three solo medals on the tour.

Sidney Crosby: There’s no way he actually gets the job — Crosby’s Pittsburgh Penguins play the night before the opening ceremony. But who could be better for it than the most famous Canadian athlete at these Games and the guy who scored the Golden Goal in 2010? Crosby, who will once again serve as Canada’s captain, and teammate Drew Doughty are going for their third Olympic title, which would be the most ever by a non-Soviet men’s hockey player.

Marie-Philip Poulin: The Canadian women’s hockey star is another unlikely choice as she already carried the Canadian flag at the 2022 opening ceremony in Beijing with short track speed skater Charles Hamelin. But hockey is king (and queen) in this country, so wouldn’t it be great to see a captains pairing of Crosby and Poulin, who will be playing in her fifth Olympics and is the only hockey player ever to score in four gold-medal games.

Mikaël Kingsbury: The moguls GOAT won Olympic gold in 2018, took silver in both 2014 and 2022, owns nine world titles and just recently earned his record-extending 100th victory on the World Cup tour. But Kingsbury has never been a flag-bearer, and this might be the last chance to give him the honour as he’s hinted this will be his final Games.

Rachel Homan: The notion of a flag-bearer “curse” is mostly a relic of the 1990s and early 2000s, when Canada had some high-profile flops. But, like any good curse, it lingers in the imagination, and I wouldn’t want to add any more pressure to Homan after she missed the playoffs at each of the last two Olympics. But the back-to-back women’s curling world champion is a clear favourite to win gold this time in one of Canada’s most popular winter sports.

Will Dandjinou: The unusually tall short track skater is poised to become one of Canada’s biggest stars at his debut Olympics. He’s dominated the World Tour over the last two seasons, winning back-to-back men’s overall titles while capturing four medals at the 2025 world championships, including one individual and two relay golds. The only thing is we may want to save him for the closing ceremony to honour what could be another multi-podium performance.

Marielle Thompson: Canada’s greatest ski cross racer won Olympic gold back in 2014 and took silver in 2022. She could’ve been a contender in 2018 too, but a devastating knee injury just a few months before the Games ruined her chances. Now, Thompson is coming back from another torn ligament in her right knee — this one suffered last March as she was gunning for her second straight World Cup title and fifth of her career. It looks like Thompson is rounding into form after a bronze-medal performance last weekend, and her grit and determination are qualities that every Canadian can admire.

Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier: As long as we’re picking two flag-bearers, how about a pair that actually work together? Gilles and Poirier have won a medal in the ice dance event at four of the last five figure skating world championships, including back-to-back silvers in 2024 and ’25. This is their third Olympics, and they’ll be in the hunt for their first medal in what could be their final season together.