How Cindy Klassen became an Olympic legend 19 years ago in Italy

A few hours before she'd become an Olympic champion, a little boy waving a Canadian flag caught Cindy Klassen's eye.

Inside the Lingotto Oval, where speed skating events took place during the 2006 Olympic Games in Torino, Italy, Klassen had a chance to get a feel for the ice she'd be racing on that day.

Klassen had already earned silver and bronze at the Olympics. The only colour she hadn't yet placed around her neck was gold. The 1,500-metre race was the perfect opportunity to climb to the top of the podium.

She looked back on that race in a conversation with CBC Sports, as Italy prepares to host the 2026 Olympics in one year's time.

After finishing her training session that day, Klassen motioned for the boy to come down to ice level. She learned the boy, who was named Vito, and his father had come to Italy to watch Canadians compete. She added her signature to the collection of autographs on his flag.

Vito left an impression on Klassen, who was 26 at the time, as she prepared to race.

"I just thought, I want to show him how much fun the sport of speed skating is," Klassen said. "He was my motivation that day. I just remember going to the line and feeling confident. I was racing the top skater in that distance in the 1,500 and I just felt good. I just felt calm and confident."

With Vito in the stands, Klassen put up a time of 1 minutes 55:27 seconds. She was golden. Her teammate, Kristina Groves, won silver. Both raced faster than Dutch legend Ireen Wüst.

After she and Groves sang O Canada on the podium, and Klassen received her first Olympic gold medal, she made her way over to where Vito was sitting. She tossed her flowers and motioned for someone to hand them to the boy. 

Nearly two decades after she became Canada's