We continue the countdown to Women's Rugby World Cup 2010 by catching up with Canada wing Julianne Zussman, who reveals the impact the Winter Olympic Games had on the country and the team's attitude.
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It's an exciting time to be a national-level athlete in Canada, as two weeks after the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver the country is still beaming with national pride.
It's hard not to get wrapped up in the excitement of winning 14 gold medals - a record for any Winter Olympics Games - not to mention in front of thousands of Canadians at home in Vancouver.
But despite the medal count, the most exhilarating part of it all was watching Canadians get excited about sports.
In the post-Olympic climate, local papers are following national sports heroes at their international competitions. Pictures of athletes in red and white (and gold) are glowing beside the water cooler, people are talking about sports other than hockey, and the Government has just made a huge announcement to put $62 million of the federal budget towards participation in amateur sports.
Canadians are not typically outward about their national pride, but somehow when Sidney Crosby's shot hit the back of the net to seal Canada's victory over the US - and thus a gold medal in men's hockey - the country erupted.
Talking sport
In Montreal, my hometown, and not a typically patriotic crowd, the streets were flooded with people sporadically belting lines of the national anthem, cars were honking their horns and people were streaming down the streets in red and white paraphernalia.
Granted, it wasn't hard to get the crowd going when the final Olympic event conveniently pitted Canada against their North American rivals, particularly in Canada's national sport and in front of a home crowd.
But above and beyond that, throughout the previous 16 days we heard people from all walks of life animatedly talking about sports they had just seen for the first time. All of a sudden the general public were experts in figure skating, bobsleigh and ski jumping.
As an athlete, the Olympic events were especially exciting to watch. Witnessing national athletes turn out world-class performances is inspiring for anyone. But, as an athlete, you can relate to the huge amount of pressure the competitors feel after putting four years of training together with only one chance to perform a flawless run, jump, skate, push or shot.
Listening to post-game interviews and hearing the excitement - or disappointment - in their voices was something that hit home for me. The post-match reaction is always one that is rife with emotion, often in spite of the athlete's attempt to remain composed in front of the camera.
Inspired by Olympic success
Sometimes a victorious fist pump tells it all, other times it's the subtle look behind an athlete's eyes as they graciously applaud their competitors' success.
There are a number of images from the Olympic coverage that are stuck in my mind, and will stay there as our team continues to prepare for August and the Women's Rugby World Cup. They're quiet reminders of what's possible.
I, along with my Canadian teammates, was thrilled to witness fellow teammate Heather Moyse break start records and bring home a gold medal in two-man bobsleigh. It was truly a world-class victory.
The rugby girls were in touch across the country, watching together and boasting about how great her calves looked on national television! I couldn't help but grin when I watched her dance, literally, on the top of the Olympic podium.
While Heather is especially close to us because of her involvement on the national rugby team, many of the other Olympians we've seen at the gym, or met through common acquaintances. They are essentially part of our community.
Even if 15-a-side rugby is not an Olympic sport, we will undoubtedly carry the excitement from Vancouver over to England and into the World Cup. Many female Canadians athletes performed beyond expectation and set the bar high for those who follow.
Ready to get back out there
The disappointment was bitter when we received the official word that our team's tour to New Zealand was cancelled.
In the climate of Olympic enthusiasm, an international tour was an especially significant prospect. All Canadians are feeling particularly "Canadian" these days, and we couldn't wait for the opportunity to put on the maple leaf jersey ourselves and belt the national anthem.
But any opportunity to play will satisfy our hunger at this point. With half of our players currently living in climates too cold to play rugby, we're anxious for the snow to melt and for our team to come together in April.
We have a domestic training camp potentially lined up, and hopefully at that point we'll start to see the impact of what we've been doing in the gym.
The off-season lacks the immediate satisfaction of playing a game: scoring a try, making a tackle or clearing a ruck. After two weeks of living vicariously through our Canadian athletes, watching them put their hearts and bodies on the line for their country … we're ready to get back out there.
Next week we catch up with Non Evans, who will assess Wales' performances in the RBS Women's Six Nations and lessons learned with the World Cup in mind.
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