Alexandre Bilodeau's hometown is awash in red scarves.
Rosemere prepared for Bilodeau's Olympic competition by handing out 6,000 red scarves, and residents took in his winning freestyle ski run at a jubilant tailgate party Sunday night.
Now they're wondering what to do for an encore, after Bilodeau made Olympic history by becoming the first Canadian to win gold on home soil.
A hero's welcome, when Bilodeau returns
Mayor Helene Daneault promised Monday that there would be a big surprise when the local hero returned home.
She was wearing one of red scarves that read: "Good luck, Alexandre."
The mayor said the young man is highly disciplined about skiing, but is very cheerful and easygoing away from the slopes.
"Obviously he couldn't have such great performances without that discipline," Daneault said.
"(But) he was always taking part when we had community fund-raising events. He was always very available…(He's) always very jovial and in a good mood."
Bilodeau's father, Serge, who is in at the Games, says his son might actually not make it back until late March.
The freestyle skier has events coming up in Japan, Sweden and Spain, and he also has a national competition in Calgary around the end of March.
"Crazy 12 hours"
After his dazzling run down the slopes in B.C., Bilodeau said the victory felt surreal.
"I don't think I've realized that I've won (...) It's been a crazy 12 hours," he said.
Closer to home, at Mont St. Sauveur -- where Bilodeau first started training at the age of seven -- his former ski coach Christian Dufour praised the Olympian's dedication.
"Even at a young age, he was very determined, he was very focused, and he was also very disciplined," Dufour said.
