MONTREAL, Canada – After a grueling workout at McGill University on Saturday, that included 4x200m with 45 second recovery, followed by a full out 300m, Luguelin Santos and his longtime coach Jose Rubio were surprised with tickets to their first Montreal Canadiens Game.
"When an athlete comes to Montreal from abroad, one thing they have to experience, is a Canadiens match" said Santos's Manager Kris Mychasiw of Sprint Management. "We wanted him to be indulged in our culture whereas the Habs are the most prominent sports team in the city, if not in Canada"
Luguelin and his coach entered the famous Bell Center not knowing what to expect, but before they knew it, they joined in with the 24,000 plus fans chanting "Go Habs Go" The Canadiens were hosting one of the top teams in the NHL, the Chicago Black Hawks; who like the Habs, are one of the original six teams in the League.
As both new fans chanted and roared during the game, they were greeted by Maxime St-Laurent, who's the Senior merchandise coordinator for the Canadiens, who presented them both with authentic Montreal Canadiens jerseys, both were customized bearing their names and the number 400 on the back!
"It's always great to see people and athletes from all over the world come to Montreal to watch the Canadiens play, even if they have never been to hockey game by the end of it, they are on the edge of their seats anticipating what will happen next" said St-Laurent.
The Canadiens, fought hard and played a great match ultimately winning in overtime 2-1 over the Hawks, leaving Santos & Rubio as two of the newest fans of the team!
"We are heading over to Europe on February 3rd for the indoor circuit, but we will continue to follow the team throughout the season, the experience was absolutely amazing" Rubio said after the match.
"I never expected the stadium to be so noisy, these fans love their team and I'm hoping we can get to see one more before we leave Montreal" Santos mentioned.
Santos will continue to train over the next weeks, as he prepares for a Thomlinson Fieldhouse record attempt on January 25thover 300m, his final preparations for his road to Gold at the IAAF World Indoor Championships.
