On the last day of the Games it all became clear to me.  

I was in the presence of the Olympians, athletes with skill and drive who have the ability to work magic and restore faith.

People like 27-year-old Devon Kershaw of Sudbury, Ont, who raced his heart out in the cross-country marathon only to finish fifth and miss a medal by six-10ths of a second. Kershaw's result was the best ever by a Canadian in this event. He more than held his own against the legendary European giants of Nordic sport.

A sidebar to Kershaw's tale rested with Brian McKeever, the teammate he bumped from the race's starting lineup. McKeever, a visually impaired athlete, was hoping to become the first Paralympian to compete at the Winter Olympics.

"It hurt when the coaches told me I wouldn't be racing. Almost as much as it did when I found out I was losing my sight," McKeever lamented.  "I came here to race not to be a spectator."

His was a huge disappointment.  

It was a very human reaction from an Olympian who lives to excel.

The thing with Olympians is that outwardly they resemble the rest of us.  They come from small towns and loving families and are built in a variety of shapes and sizes. What distinguishes them is an ability to express incredible talent and grace in a pressure filled crucible on the international field of play.

No better illustration exists than Joannie Rochette, the figure skater who survived the sudden death of her mother mere hours from the biggest moment of her life. Rochette soared to a bronze medal and delivered the most inspirational performance of the Olympics.

She is a remarkable young woman, the girl next door if you will, with the ability to conjure up a heroic act.

"I cannot begin to understand what she is going through," marveled bobsleigh gold medallist Heather Moyse of Summerside, PEI. "Her mother is gone now. Joannie was left to honour her memory with her performance and she did."

The Canadian men who captured precious hockey gold here received the lion's share of the attention and that is understandable. We live in a country where supremacy in that sport is a vital element to the people's sense of worth.

But we should never forget that all of the Olympians who graced the stage in both Vancouver and Whistler have been an equally enormous part of the story at these Games. They have fashioned a legacy of achievement for generations to come.

From across the country, they are our neighbours, our friends, our sons and our daughters. Together they reflect the great potential of the nation's youth and suggest there is hope for a bright and productive future.

These Canadian Olympians are ordinary people, it's true, but they have proven they are capable of creating extraordinary memories.

The kinds of things we'll never forget.