Curse the Clock

Caroline Ouellette is a three-time Olympic gold medallist and five-time world champion! As accomplishments go, those alone are difficult to comprehend! That she's currently playing hockey in an arena that bears her name is a testament to the enormity of her contribution to Canadian sport! Caroline was in our studio yesterday, along with 2010 hockey Olympian and her newly-drafted teammate, Catherine Ward. They were there to talk about the Montreal Stars of the Canadian Women's Hockey League.

I may have met Catherine before, when she was a member of the McGill Martlets hockey team. Doing live segments for the morning show a few years ago, McGill womens' hockey coach Peter Smith was always willing to organize an early morning visit and scrimmage for our show. Catherine thinks she may have been part of one of those "crack of dawn" sessions!

Sitting with Caroline (left) and Catherine in-studio,  moments before taping begins.

The interview was very interesting. I didn't get to the question during the interview because I, as usual, ran out of time, but both players admitted one day having a womens' professional hockey league that pays players would be a dream come true. They're certainly doing what they can now to make that reality possible in the future. Even more important is their roles as inspirations. The more girls who get involved in sports and who remain active throughout their lives as a result of that involvement, the better! Caroline graduated from Quebec's  police academy a few years ago and is exploring coaching, while Catherine, after doing her undergraduate degree at McGill, completed her MBA at Boston University last year. Through all their projects, they never stop playing and never stop winning!

On the same show, I interviewed singer and former Canadian Idol winner Eva Avila, who was in-studio as spokesperson for the fourth annual Pedigree Adoption Drive. Eva's been going across the country, trying to get Canadians to consider shelter dogs for adoption, as well as donate to shelters and volunteer at them.

Eva is getting ready to begin recording a new French album and we learned, off-air, she's a "foodie" and her boyfriend is executive chef at Gordon Ramsay's Montreal restaurant, the former Laurier BBQ! She was energetic, well-spoken and very nice; I wish her all the success in the world! I'm still curious as to how she got the nickname "Eva le dragon", but as usual, I ran out of time!

I curse the clock.