There Was a Big Hurrah in Kandahar!

On the front lines in Kandahar, the crowd went wild
The crowd at New Canada House during Sunday's the gold-medal hockey game, Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan. Steve Rennie/The Canadian Press
Canadian troops in Afghanistan cheer on Team Canada's nail-biting win over the U.S.
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Article Comments (42) Josh Wingrove

Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan — Globe and Mail Update
Published on Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010 8:28PM EST

Last updated on Monday, Mar. 01, 2010 5:23AM EST


From the beginning, Corporal Nicole Harcombe had a feeling.

Wearing a Team Canada T-shirt and waving a Canadian flag, Cpl. Harcombe took a second-row seat in a theatre at Kandahar Airfield's New Canada House just after midnight Monday morning.

The military clerk is the middle of a tour here in Afghanistan. Her husband, Peter, a soldier and Afghan veteran himself, was across the world in Edmonton, but she was sure they were both settling in for the same event, albeit at different times of the day - watching the men's hockey gold-medal game.

The married Cpl. Harcombe was, however, forthcoming about a wee crush, a player she felt sure would win it for Canada. A certain slumping star forward from Cole Harbour, a Nova Scotia town she once lived in. The player who'd win it all?

"Sidney Crosby," she says before the game, breaking a wide smile.

The gold-medal match was aired live throughout the Canadian buildings at Kandahar Airfield, the home of Canada's military efforts in Afghanistan. Most prominent, however, was the gathering at New Canada House, where about 200 people crowded in to watch the game. Whether sitting on chairs, stairs, the floor or standing in back, the late hour didn't discourage many people, though free Timbits and coffee were served as incentives.

At another Canadian recreation centre nearby, where the game was also being shown, U.S. Marine Rene Garcia sat in the corner - he'd come there with two friends to take in the game, leaving the safety and taunt-free American section of the military base.

"We came to party in your house... It's good to watch with a little bit of a rivalry," said Chief Warrant Officer Garcia, who plays in the on-base ball hockey league.

"It's better to watch the game with people who know hockey," added his fellow American, soldier Kevin Bartlett, a native of Pittsburgh, where Mr. Crosby now plays for the NHL Penguins.


“ Why does it always have to come like this? Every time? We can't ever get a good, easy win. But it couldn't have ended any better. ”
— Canadian Corporal Mike Zebiere, 33


The scene back in New Canada House was a raucous one during the game. Cheering erupted at almost every occasion, however mundane - puck drop, body checks, missed body checks, a good clearing attempt, the end of a shift, the appearance of William Shatner on television, or whenever the game's broadcaster cut to a live shot of them. Many soldiers, in keeping with policy, had their weapons slung over their Team Canada jerseys and shirts.

But no cheers were so loud as in overtime, when Mr. Crosby took a pass from Jarome Iginla to beat United States goalie Ryan Miller, sealing the gold medal for Canada.

"I'm actually at a loss for words," a beaming Cpl. Harcome said at the end, adding a message to her Cole Harbour crush: "God bless, and we love you over here. And, you did your country proud."

Beside her, Corporal Christopher Nadon, 25, said that despite the shots of celebrations in Vancouver, he wouldn't have watched the game anywhere else. However, he and his friend beside him, Matthieu Couture, were due at work at 8 a.m. Monday, fewer than five hours after the game's end.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Canada won gold in Canada, and we got to watch it in Kandahar serving our country," Cpl. Nadon said.

"It was worth staying up all night," added Mr. Couture, who took a leave from his airline job to work a civilian contract in Afghanistan.

The head of Canada's mission here, Brigadier-General Daniel Ménard, came in plain clothing, taking a seat in the centre of the front row and cheering loudly throughout the game alongside his soldiers. Top diplomat Ben Rowswell, Canada's representative in Kandahar, also came to watch.

The Canadian soldiers and civilians in KAF were lucky. Most Canadian bases, where much of the country's infantry are scattered, were too remote to view the game.

Others at the base nearly missed it. Corporal Mike Zebiere, 33, a Canadian helicopter flight engineer, returned with his team from a mission just before puck dropped, taking a seat on the staircase. Afterward, he lamented the up-and-down nature of the win - the gut-wrenching third period collapse and the elation of the overtime goal.

"Why does it always have to come like this? Every time?" Cpl. Zebiere said with a smile. "We can't ever get a good, easy win. But it couldn't have ended any better."