Sharing your Olympic journey is more than just a good story.

How do you explain what it feels like to compete at the Olympic Games?

‘I can’t describe this feeling…I’m lost for words…I don’t know what to say…’

Sure, these familiar sound bytes from post-event interviews make for emotional TV, but the truth is some experiences can’t really be explained. As athletes, you either know the feeling or you don’t; it’s a difficult thing to express.

Until now.

The “Olympic Experience” has amazingly turned into something anyone can touch, hear and see — right in the heart of Montreal. Located inside Canada Olympic House at 500 René-Lévesque Blvd O is a sample of that “indescribable” feeling.

The doors officially opened June 20 with financial support from the Government of Canada, the Government of Quebec and the City of Montréal. It features more than 200 athletes in an Experience that lasts around 90 minutes. The idea came to fruition with the leadership of the COC’s Chief of Sport, Eric Myles, who says the project was another way to connect the community with the Olympic Movement.

“It’s an incredible showcase for our athletes and rich sports history.”

Walking into the dedicated space, it’s easy to see how tourists are attracted; The bold red-and-whites, the inspiring words, the Canadian Olympic ‘sensation’ is surely on display. But It’s clearly not a regular visit-to-the-museum on your list of things to do in Montreal. This is an experience — in every sense.

After full cross-section analysis of athletic potential, you virtually step into the Olympic environment with Canadian legends in their sport; bobsleigh, track and field, fencing, freestyle skiing. Yes, they literally talk to you.

It’s a next-level how-to guide for anyone with a dream.

But what makes this digital experience different from your out-of-the box virtual reality simulator is the unwavering sense of belonging to the Canadian approach to sport: This is for all of us. Every national sport federation has contact information at your fingertips, and in this context it makes perfect sense. The “dream” is accessible here.

In the second phase of this Experience, the curtain really opens up. It’s a deep dive into marquee performances; personal accounts of hugely influential Olympic moments; and a technical overview of what makes an athlete tick.

It’s not the dusty archive. This is a vivid snapshot of where we come from, who we are and what we are capable of as Canadians. Just standing there creates a big sense of pride. But for the dreamer in all of us, it surely evokes that personal, specific inspiration which is so hard to explain. And ten steps down the hallway, that feeling is amplified.

The sights. The sounds. The feeling of being there, in the Olympic moment; a 360-degree experience.

In the last of three rooms of this “Canadian Olympic Experience” a peculiar feeling is brought to life in a visual, panoramic climax of any Olympic journey. For anyone who has ever wondered: ‘what is it like?’ this video has the answer.

But as exciting as it is to know this opportunity exists, especially for students eager to learn, nothing can truly express what it feels like to put on the uniform and do the thing — unless you’ve done it. The moment is an accumulation of too much. The journey is too personal to describe. Thanks to this project, however, we no longer have to. We can simply share the Experience.

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Check out the video!

Designed, built and installed by GSM project, the Canadian Olympic Experience is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Admission: Children (aged 7-17) – $9 per person; Regular – $13 per person; Family Package (2 adults + 2 children) – $9.75 per person. (Canadian Olympians proudly enter for free.)

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit ticketpro.ca.