Dancing Gabe | |
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![]() Gabe at the 2017 Canada Summer Games | |
Born | Gabriel Langlois January 29, 1963 |
Years active | 1984–present |
Known for | Dancing at Winnipeg Jets, Winnipeg Blue Bombers, and Winnipeg Goldeyes games |
Gabriel Langlois (born 1963), better known as Dancing Gabe, is a well known fan of the Winnipeg Jets, Manitoba Moose, Winnipeg Blue Bombers, and the Winnipeg Goldeyes.[1][2] He first gained notoriety in 1984, when he attended a Bombers game and was noticed dancing in the crowd.[3] On December 20, 2014, Gabe danced at his 1,000th professional hockey game in Winnipeg.[4]
Gabriel Langlois was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba on January 29, 1963, to parents Angelina and Louis Langlois.[5] He was diagnosed with autism at the age of three and was institutionalized in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, at the age of six.[6][7] He was non-verbal until he was ten years old.[8] He took specialized classes in Notre Dame de Lourdes, Manitoba, where a nun taught him how to read and write.[9] On July 8, 1974, Langlois returned from the institution to live with his parents and siblings in St. Vital.[10] He graduated from Glenlawn Collegiate in 1981.[11]
On January 21, 1991, Gabe and his brother were attending an NHL game at the Winnipeg Arena, when he was given a personalized Winnipeg Jets jersey by Mike O’Hearn, who was the Jets director of public relations at the time.[12] Gabe often wears the number 91 on his jerseys to commemorate this moment.[13]
In 2013, Gabe was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.[14][15] In 2020, he received the Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers by the Lieutenant governor of Manitoba Janice Filmon.[16][17][18][19]
In February 2021, he was awarded an honorary diploma in community development from Red River College Polytechnic.[20]