Pump-up tracks: Canadian Olympic athletes reveal the songs that get them in the zone

The 2018 Olympic Winter Games are kicking off in Pyeongchang, and Canadian athletes from coast to coast are flocking to the South Korean city to compete against many of the world's greatest athletes.

But before they hit the ice and the slopes, there was one key question we needed answered: What song do they listen to when they need to get pumped up?

Their answers range from brand new pop to classic hip-hop, and there are some serious surprises. Check them out:

Athlete: Rosanna Crawford
Age: 29
Hometown: Canmore, Alberta
Residence: Canmore, Alberta
Event: Biathlon
Song: Taylor Swift, "This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things"
"I'm a huge fan of Taylor Swift, so pretty much her new album has been my pump up album this whole season," says Crawford. "But I really love 'This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things.'"

Athlete: Eric Radford 
Age: 33
Hometown: Balmertown, Ontario
Residence: Montreal, Quebec
Event: Figure Skating
Song: Robin Schulz, "Shed a Light"
"For the last four weeks I have been listening to 'Shed a Light' by Robin Schulz every day to get me pumped up for my training sessions. I love the energy. I love the rhythm. I like the lyrics. And it combines some orchestral elements. There are a lot of strings in it which I love, and it all comes together and gives me energy and pumps me up," says Radford. "And I play it on speakers, so everyone who is there with me has to put up with it too."

Athlete: Julia Ransom
Age: 24
Hometown: Kelowna, British Columbia
Residence: Canmore, Alberta
Event: Biathlon
Song: Caravan Place, "Black Betty" 

Athlete: Brendan Green
Age: 31
Hometown: Hay River, Northwest Territories
Residence: Canmore, Alberta
Event: Biathlon
Song: AJR, "Sober Up"
"I just heard it on the radio the other day and I don't know, there's something about the beat," says Green. "I'm feeling it."

Athlete: Sébastien Toutant
Age: 25
Hometown: L'Assomption, Quebec
Residence: Repentigny, Quebec
Event: Snowboard
Song: Drake, "God's Plan"
"I'm a really big fan of hip-hop," says Toutant. "And one of my favourite songs right now is the new Drake song 'God's Plan.'"

Athlete: Cassie Sharpe
Age: 25
Hometown: Comox, British Columbia
Residence: North Vancouver, British Columbia
Event: Freestyle Skiing
Song: M.O.P., "Ante Up"
"Every year it kind of changes," says Sharpe. "I've always got the one song that fires me up for the year and it's the one song that I'll click into right before I drop. And this year it's a throwback to the '90s — 'Ante Up' by M.O.P. It's a rap song — pretty good beat, kind of fires me up and blocks out all the other noise so it's good. 

"I don't like hearing the announcer, and in the halfpipe you've got speakers all the way down," says Sharpe, who wears earphones as she competes. "If you didn't have them you're hearing them call your tricks or hearing them talk about you while you're skiing. And I can't do that. If I heard them I wouldn't be in my zone. So it really keeps me focused and keeps me in my own space."

Athlete: Noah Bowman
Age: 25
Hometown: Calgary, Alberta
Residence: Calgary, Alberta
Event: Men's Halfpipe
Song: Shakey Graves, "If Not For You"

Athlete: Evan McEachran
Age: 20
Hometown: Oakville, Ontario
Residence: Oakville, Ontario
Event: Freestyle Skiing
Song: Grits, "My Life Be Like (Ooh Aah)"
"It's a song from one of my favorite ski movies from back in the day," says McEachran, "and it just makes me grateful for being out here doing the same thing I was watching."

Athlete: Simon D'Artois
Age: 26
Hometown: Whistler, British Columbia
Residence: Whistler, British Columbia
Event: Freestyle Skiing
Song: Cypress Hill, "Insane in the Brain"

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