He’s living the American dream; but he happens to be living it in Calgary.
Steve Mesler, 31, is an American Olympic bobsledder on his way to the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver and after training in Calgary for the last seven years, he has now decided to call the city his home.
“I knew this was the best place for me to train … but over the past couple years I have really fallen in love with the city and now I know it’s the best place for me to live,” the Buffalo, N.Y., native said.
Mesler said after the Olympics he plans to come back and enjoy the city and everything it has to offer — even having already secured his permanent resident status for Canada.
“I love everything about the city, the mountains, living close to the river and especially the people. The people have really welcomed me and supported me.”
Mesler said although he will be wearing American colours when he competes in the Olympics next year, the city has always made him feel like one of their own, especially his chiropractor and a Bridgeland eatery called The Main Dish.
“They have pictures of Canadian athletes up on the wall, and they also include me. They are really supportive even though I’m an American athlete.”
Carissa Lazette, marketing leader for The Main Dish, said Mesler is popular at the shop and the company sponsors him with free healthy meals so he doesn’t have to cook.
“He’s here all the time and our staff loves him. Everyone is always like ‘hi Steve.’ We don’t care if he is American or Canadian,” she said, adding they will be cheering for Mesler.
