No one gets to carry an Olympic torch on the way to school.

Unless you're Josh Whincup, that is. Whincup, 19, arrived at Briercrest College and Seminary just hours after participating in the Olympic torch relay through Regina on January 9, 2010.

He smiles as he describes the run. Everyone watching was so excited, honking their horns, and shouting, “Go, Canada!” he says.

When he asked some people watching whether they’d like to touch the torch before he began running, “their faces just lit up.”

“It was an amazing experience,” he says. “It made me feel proud to be Canadian.”

He was able to travel with the other torchbearers, one of whom is a former Olympic medalist. She said being a torchbearer was second only to winning the medal. “Knowing this is second only to that—it’s pretty amazing,” he says.

For Whincup, starting at Briercrest College and Seminary just weeks ago represented a new beginning—and the relay was the first step.

Originally from Delta, B.C., Whincup won the chance to run in the relay through an iCoke contest.

Whincup completed the Kaleo program at Camp Qwanoes on Vancouver island last April. He plans to complete a B.A. in Christian Ministry with an emphasis on youth at Briercrest College and Seminary.