New generation of Montreal athletes set sights on Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games
Posted July 13, 2026 7:54 am.
Last Updated July 13, 2026 11:46 am.
Nearly 50 years after Montreal welcomed the world for the 1976 Olympics, a new generation of Canadian athletes is chasing its own Olympic dream.
Young Olympic hopefuls say competing at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles would be the achievement of a lifetime.
“All the hard work, perseverance, determination and being able to wear the Canada jersey is just an unmatched feeling,” said Caroline Moquin-Joubert, receiver for Team Canada’s women’s flag football.
Teammate Sara Parker agrees.
“The pride of wearing the maple leaf, it’s years and years of preparation, years and years of sacrifices and hard work. So, it’s really a privilege to be able to wear the national team jersey,” said Parker.
That excitement extends beyond the athletes, with many Montrealers saying the city’s passion for sport makes it a natural Olympic breeding ground.
“We have so much culture of sports here. Hockey is home for a lot of Canadians and generally I would say every single person who lives hockey also is enthused about soccer, enthused about all other things, Olympics,” said Montrealer Ilkay Deneyci.
“Being able to play hockey and flag football at the university level and realizing that it’s not the end after university, I could continue and I could perform in Team Canada flag football was just amazing,” added Moquin-Joubert. “Like a dream come true.”
Despite that passion, some say elite athletes still face challenges accessing the facilities and resources in Quebec needed to compete at the highest level.
“A lot of high-level athletes, unfortunately, don’t have the prerequisites here at this moment to be able to train adequately, to be able to participate in Olympic Games and be at their best,” said Jeremey Filosa, sports reporter for 98.5 FM Sports.
“Everything related to sports in this province has sort of become taboo because so much money was spent on the Olympics that right now, any time you talk to anybody about a sports project here and any form of financing from the government gets a massive pushback from people in general.”
Even so, for young competitors, the focus remains firmly on earning a place in Los Angeles and turning years of training into an Olympic appearance.
“If I’m able to dream big, obviously in 2028, I would love to be on Team Canada again and try to make my spot and compete at the Olympic Games would be a dream,” said Moquin-Joubert.
