'I want to see more girls from Nova Scotia with gold medals': Jill Saulnier on Olympic win

Chatting with Olympic champion Jill Saulnier Ana Almeida chats with hockey player Jill Saulnier about her life after the Olympics.

When asked how it feels to have a gold medal put around your neck, Jill Saulnier stumbles over her words.

“I’m like stuttering,” said Saulnier. “It was very overwhelming, it was just such a cool experience.”

The 30-year-old from Halifax won women’s hockey gold with Team Canada at the Olympics in Beijing this year, after making her Olympic debut at Pyeongchang in 2018.

Due to COVID-19 protocol, her teammates placed their gold medals around each other’s necks.

“That was really special,” said Saulnier. “One of my own teammates, Fillier, who I was so proud of, a rookie, she got to put the medal for me around my neck.”

She says it’s incredible to see how far women’s hockey has come.

“Last night I was on the Zoom with a mentorship program I’m doing with younger girls,” she said. “It’s amazing to come home and get to see that, and see the experience that they are getting, that I just didn’t have.”

She says a lot of the girls ask how she got to the Olympics.

“It’s cool to share this with the younger generation and to see their eyes light up, you know, and it’s cool to see the excitement when they see the gold medal,” said Saulnier.

“I want to see more girls from Nova Scotia with gold medals.”

Saulnier says she keeps her new hardware on her almost all the time.

“I carry it around and share it with people. The excitement, and just the thrill in people’s eye when they get to hold it — it’s kind of heavy.”

She says when the Olympic buzz eventually wears off, she’ll settle down.

“But for now I want to share it with the province and share it with everybody, and hopefully inspire someone along the way.”