Gabriel Langlois (born 1963), better known as Dancing Gabe, is a well known fan of the

Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment, pl ...

Manitoba Moose The Manitoba Moose are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and a member of the American Hockey League (AHL). The team plays its home games at Canada Life Centre, the home arena of its parent club, Winnipeg Jets o ...

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fiel ...

, and the

Winnipeg Goldeyes The Winnipeg Goldeyes are a minor-league baseball team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The Goldeyes play in the American Association of Professional Baseball, which they joined in 2011. Previously, the Goldeyes were members of the Northern ...

. He first gained notoriety in 1984, when he attended a Bombers game and was noticed dancing in the crowd. On December 20, 2014, Gabe danced at his 1,000th professional hockey game in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

Early life

Gabriel Langlois was born in

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

on January 29, 1963, to parents Angelina and Louis Langlois. He was diagnosed with autism at the age of three and was institutionalized in

Portage la Prairie Portage la Prairie () is a small city in the Central Plains Region of Manitoba, Canada. As of 2016, the population was 13,304 and the land area of the city was . Portage la Prairie is approximately west of Winnipeg, along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

, at the age of six. He was non-verbal until he was ten years old. He took specialized classes in

Notre Dame de Lourdes, Manitoba Notre Dame de Lourdes is an unincorporated community recognized as a local urban district in the Municipality of Lorne within the Canadian province of Manitoba that held village status prior to January 1, 2015. It is located within the Central P ...

, where a nun taught him how to read and write. On July 8, 1974, Langlois returned from the institution to live with his parents and siblings in St. Vital. He graduated from

Glenlawn Collegiate Glenlawn Collegiate is a public English-language secondary school in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, located at 770 St. Mary's Road, Elm Park in the suburb of St. Vital. It is part of the Louis Riel School Division.NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

game at the

Winnipeg Arena Winnipeg Arena was an indoor arena located in the Polo Park district of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The arena was the city's premier ice hockey venue from 1955 to 2004 and is best remembered as the home of the first Winnipeg Jets franchise, whic ...

, when he was given a personalized

jersey by Mike O’Hearn, who was the Jets director of public relations at the time. Gabe often wears the number 91 on his jerseys to commemorate this moment.

Honours

In 2013, Gabe was awarded the

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

. In 2020, he received the

Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers The Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers (french: Médaille du souverain pour les bénévoles) is a Canadian medal intended to honour volunteers who have made a significant and continual contribution to their community, either in Canada or abroad. The ...

by the Lieutenant governor of Manitoba

Janice Filmon Janice Clare Filmon ( Wainwright; born ) is a Canadian former social worker who served as the 25th lieutenant governor of Manitoba from 2015 to 2022. Her appointment became effective June 19, 2015. She was the viceregal representative of Quee ...

. In February 2021, he was awarded an honorary diploma in community development from

Red River College Polytechnic Red River College Polytechnic (RRC Polytech) is a college located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is the province's largest institute of applied learning and applied research, with over 200 degree, diploma, and certificate programs, and more ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gabe, Dancing 1963 births Franco-Manitoban people Living people People from Winnipeg People on the autism spectrum Sports spectators