The Olympics are finally here.

Sure, the entire world knows that but it finally sunk in for a few hundred people at GE Ice Plaza at Robson Square Sunday when two Olympic legends took to the ice for a special reunion.

Germany’s Katarina Witt and Canada’s Elizabeth Manley, the glamour girls of the 1988 Winter Olympics, shared the ice for the first time since they battled to gold and silver, respectively.

The sight hammered home the Olympic experience to the people who packed into the plaza.

“We knew about this and wanted our kids to just experience the Olympics,” said Luisa Cenedese, who brought three children to the event. “It’s incredible. It’s a once in a lifetime experience and I think it’s important for the kids to see real role models.”

Olympic minister Mary McNeil told 24 hours the event, which attracted heavy international media attention, captured the spirit that will engulf the city when the Games begin Friday.

“It makes [the Olympics] real,” she said. “This is already feeling like the place to go, I’m meeting people from all over who have come here. It’s very neat to see these heroes on the ice.”