Olympic figure skater Michael Marinaro returned home on Sunday to thank the community that helped him reach his dream.
The Sarnia-native alongside his family held a meet-and-greet at the Point Edward Arena where he spoke with fans, snapped pictures and signed autographs for over three hours.
"There's always tons of support when I come home, some other athletes don't even have a quarter of this," he says. "This is where I took by first few steps, where the dream started, so to be here on the ice is definitely very, very special."
Marinaro and partner Kirsten Moore-Towers finished 11th in pairs figure skating in Pyeongchang this winter.
A GoFundMe campaign raised over $20,000 to help send his parents, Bev and Albert, and his brothers to the Games.
It was Marinaro’s first time competing on the biggest stage in the sport and he says it won't be his last.
"I thought I was motivated before the Olympics but now after tasting that, we are ready for even bigger things. This is only the beginning," he says. "We came back and we were right back at it until this week, so this is the first rest I've had since the games."
The 26-year-old will visit students at Bridgeview Public School on Monday before heading back to Montreal later this week to train and teach figure skating.
Moore-Towers of St. Catharines was unable to attend the meet-and-greet because of a prior commitment.
