A large contingent from West Elgin Secondary School was cheering on one of their own at the Para Hockey Cup on Wednesday.
"There [are] 100 West Elgin students from West Lorne, Ont. where James Dunn is one of our students. He's number four for Team Canada out here," explains West Elgin teacher Rob Tait.
And the 18 year old didn't disappoint. He picked up a couple of early assists, then in the second period, he scored.
Dunn was appreciative of the support.
"It was great to be able to play this close to home and for them to come out and watch. I missed the first one chance to score but then the same shift I came down and there was a guy screening him, and I guess on the shot, the goalie missed it.”
This matinee featured over a thousand school kids from the Thames Valley District School Board in the stands.
The rowdy, fun atmosphere was exactly what Tourism London’s Cheryl Finn envisioned when they brought this event to the city.
"For a lot of these fans this is the first time they've been exposed to live para hockey. You see it in the Olympics but it’s a totally different experience to see it live."
Canada won the game 4-0, but it’s a very respectable result for Team Korea who have spent the last two weeks seeing the local sights and training for the tournament.
Through an interpreter, head coach Hyunwook Park said it’s an opportunity to learn more advanced hockey and it is a pleasure to be training in Canada.
Canada is preparing to meet the top-seeded Americans Thursday, who they’ll likely face again Saturday in the gold-medal game.
