From classroom to Pacific Coliseum, Canada's Thompson back on Olympic path

MILAN, Feb 2 : Canada's Claire Thompson missed out on the inaugural Professional Women's Hockey League season but after pausing her studies she is back on the ice with another Olympic gold medal very much on her mind at this month's Milano Cortina Games.

Thompson delivered standout performances in Beijing four years ago, helping Canada win gold while setting a record for most points by a women's defenceman at a single Games and earning a place on the tournament all-star team.

The first fully professional women's league in North America was announced in August 2023, with the opening puck dropped at the beginning of 2024, timing that forced Thompson to sit out.

"The league came together very quickly," she told Reuters in an interview.

"It was never my intention to take a full season off hockey, but by the time the league came together late that fall and then it started in early January, I was already enrolled in my classes for that year and it wasn't possible to do both."

Forced to watch from afar while studying medicine, Thompson was left weighing her next move.

"The league did really well, so being on the sidelines that first year and only being able to watch it happen was definitely disappointing," Thompson said.

"It really solidified that I did want to put my studies on pause and come back and play.

"I think my sights were always set on the 2026 Olympics, and making sure I was as prepared and the best athlete I could possibly be by this time. Everything was planned around the Games, but I definitely also wanted to be part of the PWHL."

For Thompson, the idea of a professional career in hockey once seemed unimaginable.

"Growing up, I could never imagine a league like the PWHL where we're selling out NHL arenas, where there's full