Name Catriona Le May-Doan 

Olympics 1998 Nagano, Japan 

Event Speed skating, 500 metres 

The setting Le May-Doan and fellow Canadian Susan Auch were the two favourites for the race. Auch, at 31, was the veteran, participating in her third Olympics. Le May-Doan, however, was the bigger threat at age 27. Le May-Doan, participating in three events in Nagano, was trying to emulate American Bonnie Blair in shooting for three gold medals.

On the day Auch and Le May-Doan clocked in first and second in qualifying, meaning they were paired together in the last grouping. Canadians, up until that point, had never won gold and silver in the same event, but the two skaters ended that streak. Auch jumped off to an early lead, posting a world-record split through the first 100 metres. However, it was Le May-Doan, the Saskatoon student, who had the extra stamina. A former world record holder in both the 1,000 metres and 1,500 metres, Le May-Doan pulled away at the end of the race. She ended up winning by an aggregate total of 0.33 seconds. "I'm proud of Canada's one-two. It was great to have Susan to race with me," Le May-Doan said. "It's great to see the Canadian flag up there ... two Canadian flags."

Afterlife Le May-Doan could not complete the triple gold, earning bronze in the 1,000 metres and finishing off the podium in the 1,500 metres. She would, however, pick up a gold medal in the 500 metres in 2002. Le May-Doan retired in 2003, and has served as a colour commentator in two Olympics. She was also named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2005.