Charles Hamelin, 37, and Marie-Philip Poulin, 30, are two of the 215 athletes representing Canada at the 2022 Winter Olympics. Hosted by Beijing, China, the international winter multisport event will be held from February 4-20, 2022.

Including Canada and China, there are 91 countries and territories participating in the event. At the 128th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in July 2015, Beijing was elected as the event’s host city, marking the first time the Winter Olympics is held in China.

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On February 4, 2022, the opening ceremony of the 2022 Winter Olympics was held at Beijing National Stadium in Beijing. The final seven torchbearers mounted the torch itself into the center of a stylized snowflake that was constructed from placards bearing the names of the delegations competing in the event.

Hamelin and Poulin served as Canada’s flagbearers during the opening ceremony. He will compete in men’s 5,000m relay while she leads the country’s women’s hockey team.

Hamelin was born in Lévis, Quebec, Canada. His brother François Hamelin, 35, represented Canada in the Winter Olympics in 2014 and 2018.

At the 2006 Winter Olympics, Charles finished fourth in the 1500m event and won a silver medal as part of Canada’s men’s 5000m relay squad. He represented the country again in the Winter Olympics in 2010, 2014 and 2018.

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Born in Beauceville, Quebec, Poulin has been the captain of Canada’s national ice hockey team since 2015. The team won a silver medal at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, Gangwon, South Korea.

Including Charles, Poulin and 213 other Canadian athletes, a total of 2,871 athletes will compete in 109 events in seven sports. The events will be held not only in Beijing but also in other parts of China including Yanqing and Chongli.