Jonny Murray, a Quebec linesman for the National Hockey League based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has been selected to be one of the official hockey referees at the Winter Olympics in Italy, which take place from February 6 to 22.
Le Soleil de la Floride had the opportunity to congratulate him in person and ask him how he heard the good news: “Through a phone call last summer,” Mr. Murray said humbly. « I was told that I had been chosen to be one of 13 linesmen at the Winter Olympics. Seven of us from the NHL were drafted, and the other six linesmen come from all over the world. Thirteen referees were also selected, for a total of 26 hockey officials for the global sporting event. »
In terms of preparation
The professional, originally from Quebec City, says he stays focused on his training and does everything in his power to avoid injury. He points out that this is the most important thing, because injuries can unfortunately happen often in this field. He adds: “At the end of August, we had a three-day training camp with the IIHF (International Ice Hockey Federation) on the rules that are changing compared to the National Hockey League, which people will hardly notice because they are internal rules that don’t change anything in the games.”
Excitement and experience
When we spoke to Jonny Murray, he was quietly preparing to leave for Italy and was starting to feel the excitement, which was heightened by his family and friends in Canada. “It’s exciting,” says the 51-year-old. “The excitement is starting to build here, but it will really intensify once I get there.” It must be said that he carries his 26 years of NHL experience well. « I’ve been to world championship finals, Four Nations finals, and Stanley Cup finals. So I’m excited, but it’s a good kind of excitement; it’s not nervousness. It’s the one thing left for me to experience in my career: the Olympics.“
How do you feel about experiencing the Olympics as a linesman?
”As I said, this is my 26th year in the National Hockey League, and I have four years left after this year. It’s an event that I’m going to experience with my whole family, in the sense that my wife and two children from Quebec City will be there with me. I get a little emotional when I talk about it because it’s not just me on this journey; it’s my family, the days and holidays I’ve missed, the Christmases I’ve missed without seeing my children. Having them with me at an event like this means the world to me. » His wife, Julie Murray, is well known in Southeast Florida as a French-speaking real estate agent who has been working in the area for twelve years.
Congratulations again to Jonny Murray!
We wish him an extraordinary experience at the Olympics, accompanied by his precious loved ones.
