I spent most of Sunday on and off the phone with my mother and father. They were phoning in updates on Chris and the heats from Lake Placid, N.Y. Each time the phone rang, I took a breath and answered. Each time, they screamed, "He won!"

The last call came in from my father, it was so loud, I could hear the race announcer yelling Chris's name.  

My dad shouted, "He won, he won! No question now, he's going to the Olympics!"  Chris added a third gold medal to his collection and gained some major confidence heading into the Olympics.  

I never really questioned whether Chris would be on the Olympic team or not, but it is complicated. I read on Saturday that the CBC was confident Chris would be named. I took a long moment. Read. Reread. And read again. My brother was going to be an Olympian.  

I hadn't been that proud of him since the day we picked him up from 90 days in a rehabilitation program. Yup, I cried.

I have been watching a lot of winter sports lately. I've been astonished. Most of you just watch and find the beauty in figure skating, the thrill in luge, the XXX in skicross. To watch through my eyes is different. I know what these athletes face.  

We mortals report to an office each day. We might have an office, we have a desk, we have coworkers and bosses. We take a day or two off and we do it all over again. These athletes are different.  

They have no permanent office. Most have no steady income. Many have had family and friends chip in with coaching and travel expenses. The schedule is full-time and year round. Yet, every day they are in the gym, on the mountain, in the rink. Pushing themselves to the limit. Giving their life to a dream and a goal.  

On Monday, Chris was officially named to the Canadian Olympic freestyle team. He will be one step closer to his ultimate goal--winning an Olympic gold medal. He is 27-years-old. He has spent over half his life's journey attempting to get to this point. His journey has been marked with twists and turns, highs and lows. Through it all, he still held the same ultimate goal in his heart. I am fascinated with that idea.  

From the depths of battling alcoholism, to his miraculous recovery, he still held on. He never wavered. For that, today, I am so proud. Never underestimate the power of the human spirit.

Today, as he has done in the past, Chris proved to us that anything is possible. Today, as he has done in the past, he made us all so proud. Today, we can call Chris an Olympian.