How historic Olympic medal catapulted Canada's Eleanor Harvey into fencing's elite

It was one of the indelible moments from the Paris Olympics.

The look on Eleanor Harvey's face — a mixture of shock, awe and numbness — after the Canadian won her bronze-medal fencing bout, securing the country's first-ever podium appearance in the sport.

Harvey's reaction may have led you to believe her win was a one-off — that she had even seemingly surprised herself and authored one of those classic Olympic underdog tales.

Not so fast.

Instead, Harvey's follow-up season has cemented her as a legitimate contender on the international fencing circuit. The 30-year-old has claimed four medals in five competitions, including Canada's first World Cup gold.

"It's definitely going better than I would have ever hoped for," Harvey said of her season. "I mean, of course, every tournament that I go to, I always want to win it. I always believe I can win it. At least, you know, win a medal. Every time I step onto the podium, it's a huge milestone in my career and my life."

WATCH | Harvey reflects on historic bronze-medal win at Olympics:

But Harvey's belief, if not newfound, was certainly boosted by her triumph in Paris.

"I think my performance at the Olympics was definitely a huge confidence booster and it made me very secure in my ability to handle high-pressure situations because nothing, no competition, is as full of pressure as the Olympics," she said.

First and foremost, it reinforced the value of resilience. Typically, fencing competitions do not include third-place bouts — events hand out two bronze medals instead.

Not at the Olympics.

"I think that it made me feel really able to come back from hard situations better," said Harvey, who beat Italy's Alice Volpi to reach the podium in women's individual foil.

"I didn't win because I'm better at fencing," she continued. "I won because I was able to somehow remove the pressure from the situation and have fun. And I think I've been able to kind of shrink that down and use that on a smaller scale within bouts."

Which brings us to Cairo, Egypt — the site of her World Cup gold medal.