For Jason White, the Olympic Games has a been a long-term personal goal.
He wanted to make the medical team for Team Canada by at least the year 2020.
The athletic therapist was offered the opportunity to work with the Core Health and Science team at the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Games and it couldn’t be passed up.
“I was surprised to get the call. I had surpassed my goal and I am still hoping for 2020,” said the therapist. “The experience has been amazing. I was a little bit prepared with previous games, just learning the different aspects.”
White may be a little modest in his description of past game experience. His resume is miles long with involvement in numerous different events including Invictus Games, Canada Games and Pan Am Games, to name a few. In order to qualify for the medical team with the Olympics, you need lengthy experience in games at a local, provincial and national level, which White has possessed throughout his career.
White was born in Gander and moved around the province because his father was with the RCMP. They left Gander for Burgeo and landed in Stephenville, where his parents currently reside.
“I was always in swimming. It was hard moving around all the time and I needed an outlet,” he said. “Swimming was my life and I had dreamed of going to the Olympics for swimming.”
White has been to South Korea before, so his understanding of the food and culture is not completely foreign.
“The food has been phenomenal. This is a four-week stint, so that can take a toll. The language barrier is comical,” said White. “So far it’s been pretty smooth sailing.”
Canada has had a record medal high, taking home 29 medals from PyeongChang, along with some milestones and new competition, including big air snowboarding and mixed doubles curling, which both gained Canada a gold.
“The highlight was the all access and being behind the scenes for practices,” recalled White. “Having visibility of a skier coming off a hill, that was the best experience.”
