COC celebrates the team behind the team with 50 days to go to Milano Cortina 2026
TORONTO (December 18, 2025) – With 50 days to go until the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games Opening Ceremony, the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) has announced key members of its Mission Team who will support Team Canada.
- Cendrine Browne, OLY, Kasia Gruchalla-Wesierski, OLY and Jonathan Guilmette, OLY – Athlete Services Officers
- Lisa Hoffart – Mental Health Lead
- Dr. Alexis Gagnon-Dolbec and Susan Cockle – Mental Health Practitioners
- Evelyne Telmosse – Lead Performance Dietician
- Martin Fréchette – Performance Dietician
“Our standing as a world leader is made possible in part due to the small details and the way we build the famous team behind the team,” said Eric Myles, Chief Sport Officer at the Canadian Olympic Committee. “These people play a fundamental role in our success and in the way we support Canadian athletes to enable them to reach their full potential at Milano Cortina 2026. We are really proud of this mission team we assembled for these Games.”
In their roles as Athlete Services Officers, Browne, Gruchalla-Wesierski and Guilmette will act as the “front of house” in the Team Canada spaces of the Olympic Villages in three clusters servicing all Team Canada members. They will be a key contact for providing information, helping connect team members and acting as a supportive and friendly resource to athletes and sport staff in meeting the challenges of performing at the Olympic Winter Games, while working to maintain a positive and welcoming experience for the entire Canadian delegation.
Browne will return to the Canadian Olympic Team in the Athlete Services role after having competed at both PyeongChang 2018 and Beijing 2022 in cross-country skiing. Browne is passionate about women’s sport and diversity and inclusion, having co-founded the Féminaction program which focuses on keeping girls and women involved in sport. She currently works as a sport equity program advisor with Égale Action. Browne will be based in Milano.
Gruchalla-Wesierski, Olympic champion in rowing at Tokyo 2020 and silver medallist at Paris 2024, will experience her first Olympic Winter Games. No stranger to winter sport, she grew up as a competitive alpine skier before switching to rowing. The experience Gruchalla-Wesierski gained by competing at Games with and without pandemic restrictions will serve her well as she supports Team Canada athletes while they navigate the Milano Cortina 2026 Games environment. Gruchalla-Wesierski will be based in Cortina.
“I’m beyond honoured to be part of the team behind the team,” said Gruchalla-Wesierski. “There’s a special pride in standing behind Team Canada, knowing my role is to help athletes shine when it matters most.”
Guilmette, Olympic champion and three-time Olympic medallist in short track speed skating, knows the nuances of an Italian Games well, having competed at Turin 2006, along with Salt Lake City 2002 and Nagano 1998. After having worked as a coach for both Speed Skating Canada and the Japanese Speed Skating Federation, Guilmette is an experienced high performance sport manager at the Olympic Oval in Calgary. Guilmette will be based in Livigno.
Browne, Gruchalla-Wesierski and Guilmette will work alongside Jenn Heil, Team Canada’s Milano Cortina 2026 Chef de Mission.
“This is an incredibly special Mission Team that together, with a shared pride, purpose and belief in Team Canada, will be here to help our athletes feel confident, supported, and ready to shine on the world stage at Milano Cortina 2026,” said Heil. “What makes this moment even more meaningful is working alongside fellow Olympians who understand the heartbeat of the Games. Their lived experience brings a depth of empathy and a spark of energy that strengthens everything we do.”
Lisa Hoffart will serve as Team Canada’s Mental Health Lead for Milano Cortina 2026. Hoffart is a Registered Psychologist and Certified Mental Performance Consultant with over 16 years of experience in the field, as well as a Game Plan Advisor with Game Plan, Canada’s holistic athlete support network. Her wealth of experience, including serving in the role of Team Canada’s Mental Health Lead at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games and Mental Health Practitioner at Paris 2024, will be invaluable to the services that the mental health team will provide the entire Team Canada delegation at Milano Cortina 2026.
In collaboration with Hoffart, Dr. Alexis Gagnon-Dolbec and Susan Cockle will serve as Team Canada’s Mental Health Practitioners. Dr. Alexis Gagnon-Dolbec, a bilingual clinical psychologist and Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC), serves as an integrated sport psychologist with Speed Skating Canada and the PWHL team La Victoire de Montréal. He supported athletes in preparation for, and during, the Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022 Olympic Games, and was on site at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with Boxing Canada and as a member of the COC’s Mission Team. Cockle, a Registered Psychologist and Certified Mental Performance Consultant, has worked with athletes and coaches in preparation for seven Olympic Games. She was the Mental Health Support Officer at Beijing 2022, and served as Team Canada’s Mental Health Lead for the Tokyo 2020, Beijing 2022 and Paris 2024 Paralympic Games as part of the Canadian Paralympic Committee’s Mission Team.
The role of Team Canada’s Performance Dietician for Milano Cortina 2026 will be filled by Evelyne Telmosse, with previous experience in this role at both Paris 2024 and Santiago 2023. Telmosse is a dietician at the INS Québec, supporting athletes with performance nutrition on a day-to-day basis, as well as working with many National Sport Organizations. She has been responsible for nutrition support for Team Quebec athletes at the Canada Games since 2022. Telmosse will work closely with Martin Fréchette, also a nutritionist at the INS Québec. Fréchette has worked with the INS Québec for over 12 years, and has also consulted as a sport nutritionist with the Montreal Canadiens, following his role as the Director of Food Services at the Canada Games.
The COC’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Mike Wilkinson, will once again oversee Team Canada’s health services team, including a core Mission Team of twelve health professionals in addition to multiple team physicians and therapists spread throughout each cluster.
The Canadian Olympic Committee is on track to nominate more than 200 Team Canada athletes to compete at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, who will be supported by approximately 370 coaches, support staff and Mission Team in Italy, as well as 45 Mission Team based in Canada. There will be a total of 16 Canadian Olympians and three Pan American Games athletes supporting Team Canada as part of the Mission Team in a variety of functional areas including Village operations, performance integration, legal services, and outfitting among others.
The Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games begin on February 6 and end February 22, 2026, and will feature approximately 2900 athletes from over 90 National Olympic Committees competing across eight sports and 16 disciplines. Two sports, curling and short track speed skating, have already announced their athletes nominated to the Canadian Olympic Team, with approximately 15 team announcements to come throughout the next six weeks.
To stay updated on the latest news and information about Milano Cortina 2026, please visit our Press Resources page.
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