Doing it 'the Canadian way': Cynthia Appiah revels in World Cup bobsleigh silver

Fresh off a World Cup silver medal in monobob, Canada's Cynthia Appiah is feeling a deep sense of national pride after making it onto the podium. 

"I think a lot of people are digging their heels into what it means to be a Canadian," Appiah told CBC Sports.

"For me, that moment, I did it my way, which is the Canadian way: be fair, be nice, be a good compatriot with your fellow teammates, but also be a good competitor."

In March, the 34-year-old from Toronto will compete at the world championships in Lake Placid, N.Y.

"The ultimate goal is to be world champion. For the first time in my career, I fully believe that I have what it takes to be a world champion," Appiah said. "To finish on that podium in second place by the thinnest of margins … it's coming at the right time."

WATCH l Appiah joins CBC Sports to discuss what's next after World Cup silver:

Canadian bobsledder Cynthia Appiah reflects on World Cup silver and the season ahead

With less than a year out from the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympics, the bobsledder has big goals to fuel her training.

In her Olympic debut at Beijing 2022, Appiah took eighth place in both the monobob and the two-woman events — a Games in which she says rookie mistakes led to her underwhelming results.

Gearing up for her second Olympics, Appiah says she will be a more "calm, cool and collected" version of herself.

"I thought I had the confidence because I had such a great World Cup season leading into the [2022] Games, but then I second guessed myself," she said.

For Milan-Cortina 2026, 90 per cent of the venues are being reused. However, for bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton, the host city is reconstructing the Eugenio Monti track where the events will take place.

While the $120 million US