Team Behind the Team: Canadian nutritionist Angela Dufour: “The Olympic dining hall is my office”

Behind every Olympic medal there is a dream backed by a lot of sweat and work. But not every drop is provided solely by an athlete. Many people are working around the clock to make sure their athlete and/or team arrives at the Olympics in peak form.

Just two months before the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, Olympics.com talked to Team Canada’s nutritionist about food and its impact on sporting performance.

Home away from home

Angela Dufour is a former dancer and skater, and now a nutritionist for Team Canada. With such a wealth of experience, she understands the importance of nutrition at high-stakes events like the Olympics better than anyone else. One of her key remits is to make sure athletes feel at home - whether they are in PyeongChang, Tokyo or Beijing. 

“Food is not just a way to enhance performance and recover from everyday training and injury. It is also our comfort and support,” she said in an exclusive interview with Olympics.com.

“It’s about combining what you want and what you need with tackling the challenges of travel and limited access to comfort and traditional foods. It’s educating athletes on what to bring so that they can supplement their on-site nutrition.”

For Dufour, the Olympics begin long before the Opening Ceremony. The journey starts with a meeting with the “boss” of the dining hall: AKA the chef.

“The dining hall is my office,” Dufour explained with a smile. “At the beginning of the Games, I ask for the tour of the back of the house. In PyeongChang, I got a two-hour tour of the kitchen and met the chef. When I made this connection and established that relationship, I was able to request certain things for Canada.”

However, not every food item is available in the Village, and the second part of Dufour’s job is grocery shopping for comfort foods. With maple syrup safely stashed away in her bag before departure, the biggest items on Dufour’s shopping list are bread, cereal and peanut butter - all essential treats for North Americans.

Pandemic concerns

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way Dufour approaches her work, whether that’s finding creative ways to make meals for athletes in isolation in Tokyo, or having fresh food delivered without leaving the Olympic bubble. 

“One has to have a keen eye on how the food is prepared and delivered to ensure people can dine safely together.”

Other than that, Dufour’s duties have remained the same as always. 

“I sit down with the athletes, eat with the team, get their feedback, and manage their requests like boxed lunches or issues they may have at the venues.”

Pancakes for a gold medal match

The historic women’s football final between Canada and Sweden took place on a hot Tokyo evening. With all previous games having taken place in the morning, the team had become accustomed to eating pancakes with maple syrup for their pre-match meal. If you were in the canteen on the day of the final, you may have noticed someone stacking pancakes into a container. That someone was Dufour, who was storing up fuel for the team in preparation for this vital game.

“I managed to get what they needed. It was their gold medal game, and it was their comfort food,” she said.

Dufour has also worked with Maude Charron, the Olympic weightlifting champion, who needed to gain weight ahead of competing in Tokyo,

“She said she was sweating too much as it was too hot in Tokyo. We met a few times, and we made a plan leading up to her competition.”

Dufour admits that her favourite Olympic moment was in PyeongChang, as she watched Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir skate to a historic gold.

“When they finished, all of Team Canada in the stands got up and started all crying. After the competition, I told her [Tessa] that I was there crying after her performance. And she said, “Yes, I know, I saw you.” They must have recognised Team Canada in red and saw our support from the ice!”

With Dufour now heading to Beijing, the Canadian hockey teams can be reassured of one thing: their three-week supply of maple syrup will be well taken care of.