Best of 2023: The teams of Team Canada who succeeded when it mattered most

As the cliché goes, teamwork makes the dream work. That was absolutely true for many teams that had the privilege of calling themselves Team Canada in 2023. 

For these squads, the goal is never about individual glory or the name on back of the jersey. It’s all about what can be achieved when everyone works together for the pride of the nation whose name is on the front of the jersey. 

Let’s salute the teams of Team Canada that made history, won medals, and gave themselves a shot at Olympic glory next summer. 

Women’s Tennis 

For a second straight year, Canada won a historic, first ever team title in tennis. This time, it was the women laying claim to the Billie Jean King Cup, following up last year’s Davis Cup victory by the men. 

It was a celebration that not many would have seen coming. A lot of pressure was placed on the shoulders of 18-year-old Marina Stakusic, who had earned her first career Billie Jean King Cup nomination for the November Finals. She won both of her singles matches in the group stage, which set the stage for Leylah Fernandez to secure the victories in those two ties with her own singles wins. 

READ: Fernandez and Stakusic propel Canada to first ever Billie Jean King Cup title 

Next up was a tough date with Czechia in the semifinals. After Stakusic dropped the opener against 10^th-ranked Barbora Krejcikova, Fernandez delivered an upset of world No. 7 Marketa Vondrousova to keep Canadian hopes alive. It would come down to the doubles, for which Fernandez teamed with Gaby Dabrowski who had been representing Canada for over a decade — back when the country wasn’t even in the World Group. They got the deciding victory, clinching Canada a spot in the final.   

Facing Italy, the Canadians came up with a little more magic. Stakusic performed beyond her years and experience to get the first win out of the way. Fernandez, who had done so much heavy lifting for the team in the Qualifiers back in April, had the honour of being the one on the court for the history-making moment that set off the confetti shower. 

Men’s Basketball 

History was made in Manila where Team Canada won its first ever medal at the FIBA World Cup. That they defeated their cross-border rivals from the United States in their final game made winning the bronze all that much sweeter. 

READ: Canada takes down U.S. to claim first ever FIBA World Cup medal 

Dillon Brooks put his name in the history books with 39 points in the bronze medal game, breaking a nearly 70-year-old record for most points in one game by a Canadian at the World Cup. 

Of course, the bronze was just one of the prizes they brought home. In the second round of the tournament, the team made a late comeback against Spain for a thrilling defeat of the world number one. That secured Team Canada a men’s Olympic basketball berth for the first time since Sydney 2000. 

READ: Canada qualifies for Olympics with win over Spain  

Women’s 3×3 Basketball 

Once again, Team Canada topped the FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series, just as they did in 2022. The quartet of Katherine Plouffe, Michelle Plouffe, Paige Crozon, and Kacie Bosch won the Ulaanbaatar Final in September where Michelle Plouffe was named tournament MVP. 

READ: Canada wins second straight FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series title 

The Canadians had previously won Series stops in Poitiers, Edmonton, Prague, Quebec City, and Montreal, clearly demonstrating their dominance. Canada sits atop the FIBA 3×3 women’s team ranking while the Plouffes are first (Katherine) and second (Michelle) in the individual rankings.

Women’s Soccer 

After an earlier-than-hoped-for exit from the FIFA Women’s World Cup, the reigning Olympic champions had their work cut out for them if they wanted a chance to defend that gold at Paris 2024. They were able to bounce back from whatever disappointment they felt to defeat Jamaica 4-1 on aggregate in a two-game home-and-home series in September. 

READ: Canada locks up Paris 2024 qualification in women’s soccer 

Those were the last competitive matches of Christine Sinclair’s incredible career representing Canada. A month later, the greatest goal scorer of all time in international soccer announced she would retire at the end of the year. Sinclair would play a few more friendlies, giving fans across the country the opportunity to say their fond farewell.  

Women’s Rugby 

The Canadian women’s rugby sevens team locked up qualification for a third straight Olympic appearance. In the RAN Sevens Olympic Qualifier in August, they had home field advantage in Langford, B.C and absolutely dominated the competition. They outscored their opponents 288-7 in five games played. The only game in which they gave up any points was in the semifinal. 

READ: Canadian women’s rugby team qualifies for Olympics 

Men’s Volleyball 

There will also be a third straight Olympic appearance for the Canadian men’s volleyball team. They booked their spot by finishing second at one of three Olympic Volleyball Qualifying Tournaments in October. The team wasn’t favoured heading into the tournament but wins in their first two games – including a huge upset of Argentina – set them off on the right foot. Even when they lost to world number one Poland, the Canadians pushed the match to a tiebreaker set.

The tournament was not without its dramatics, but in the end, it came down to a win-and-get-in match against Mexico. Three easy sets later, the ticket to Paris 2024 was secured. 

READ: Canada secures Paris 2024 qualification in men’s volleyball 

Equestrian Dressage, Eventing, and Jumping Teams 

Not since London 2012 had Canada qualified full teams in all three equestrian disciplines for the Olympic Games. But at the Santiago 2023 Pan Am Games, that is exactly what happened for Paris 2024. 

First up was dressage, as four young female equestrians from Quebec won team bronze. Only 26-year-old Naima Moreira Laliberté had previous multi-sport Games experience. But Beatrice Boucher, Camille Carier Bergeron and Mathilde Blais Tetreault didn’t let their rookie status get in the way of their goal. 

Next was eventing, in which Canada had only qualified one athlete for Tokyo 2020. The quartet of Colleen Loach, Lindsay Traisnel, Karl Slezak, and Michael Winter weren’t about to let that happen again. In third place after the cross-country test, they put together a string of strong performances in the jumping test to leapfrog the teams ahead of them and grab the gold medal and the Olympic ticket. 

Canada will also increase its Olympic presence in jumping from one athlete to a whole team. The extremely experienced foursome of Mario Deslauriers, Tiffany Foster, Amy Millar, and Beth Underhill would not have been satisfied with anything but an Olympic spot and they got it when they won the silver medal. 

Men’s Hockey 

For the 28^th time, Team Canada won the world title in men’s hockey. It was the fourth straight worlds at which Canada was on the podium, getting a second win in three years. It’s hard not to cheer for a group of guys who at the end of a very long NHL season (in which their teams were eliminated from the playoffs) decide to suit up for their country and compete for a trophy that is not the Stanley Cup. 

READ: Team Canada captures gold at IIHF World Championship 

Women’s Hockey 

Sadly, the winning streak had to end at some point. After back-to-back world titles – sandwiched around an Olympic gold medal – Team Canada came away from the 2023 IIHF Women’s World Championship with the silver medal. As we have gotten used to, it came down to a final showdown with the United States and this time the pendulum swung the other way. 

READ: Team Canada wins silver at IIHF Women’s World Championship 

Men’s Curling

For the second straight year, Team Canada ended up in second place at the World Men’s Curling Championship. Team Gushue (Brad Gushue, Mark Nichols, E.J. Harnden, Geoff Walker) ran into a tough Scottish squad in the final after defeating the top team from the round robin, Switzerland, in the semifinal and dispatching powerhouse Sweden in the qualification playoff game. 

READ: Team Canada secures silver at World Men’s Curling Championship 

Women’s Curling 

Team Canada won a second straight bronze at the World Women’s Curling Championship. Team Einarson (Kerri Einarson, Val Sweeting, Shannon Birchard, Briane Harris) defeated Sweden on their home ice in the bronze medal game. 

READ: Team Einarson wins bronze medal at World Women’s Curling Championship