Celine Dion meets hockey players in rare appearance since stiff-person syndrome diagnosis

Celine Dion has returned to the public eye, meeting and taking photos with hockey players, in a rare appearance nearly a year after she revealed her stiff-person syndrome diagnosis.

The "My Heart Will Go On" singer and her son, René-Charles Angélil, 22, met with the Montreal Canadiens on Monday as they faced the Golden Knights at Las Vegas' T-Mobile Arena.

Dion, 55, wearing a beige sweatsuit under a white puffer vest, also met Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis.

"I remember when you were 14 years old, you sang for the pope 'Une colombe,'" St. Louis said in French of the singer's 1984 performance at the Olympic Stadium in Greece when she was 16. "I was there."

"It's been a while since then," the Grammy-award-winning singer said. "We've changed a little since then, but not too much."

Dion also shared advice for the players.

"Stay strong, healthy – nothing wrong," she said, switching to English. "Do what you do best."

The singer said in December she had been diagnosed with a neurological disorder called stiff person syndrome in an emotional Instagram video. The singer said the symptoms are what have been causing her to have severe muscle spasms in the past. 

"The spasms affect every aspect of my daily life, sometimes causing difficulties when I walk and not allowing me to use my vocal cords to sing the way I'm used to," Dion said. "I have to admit it's been a struggle. All I know is singing, it's what I've done all my life."

Dion's diagnosis caused the singer to reschedule and cancel her entire 2023 tour.

Stiff-person syndrome, or SPS, is a disease that causes "progressive muscle stiffness and painful spasms" that are triggered by environmental factors such as "sudden movement, cold temperature or unexpected loud noises," according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. 

The disease is considered to be rare and only affects approximately one in a million people.

Contributing: Elise Brisco