Olympics Notebook: Vancouver 2010
Oh no Canada! But don’t be so quick to write off these Olympics
The 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver have been beset by tragedy and trials, from the death of the Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili, through the Goldilocks weather up at Whistler and Cypress — too much snow or too little snow, it’s never just right — to a biathlon scoring fiasco described as “the blackest day ever“.
Then there was the opening ceremony fail with the missing fourth ice pillar, the PR disaster of moving ugly chain fencing in front of the outdoor cauldron so no one could take a decent picture, the thousands of ripped up tickets and having to call on Calgary to the rescue after the ice machines broke down.
It’s quite a list of mess-ups and there are plenty more besides.
But calling these the Worst Games Ever? That’s quite a stretch just a few days in and it may have more to do with certain sections of the media looking for a good overarching narrative — a theme they can keep going back to in every story they write. An entire press pack cannot live on one outside hope of a curling medal alone.
I don’t want to skate over the problems — see what I did there? — so I encourage you to follow the links above to read all we’ve written about them, but I also think we risk losing sight of a few things that have gone well in Vancouver. Here are a few reasons why these might well turn out to be not such bad Games after all.
1. Lindsey Vonn. Her gold in the women’s Alpine skiing downhill means the American skier may end up giving us a great story of triumph in adversity, after she came her worried that a badly bruised shin might mean she wouldn’t be able to compete at all. Vonn is competing in four other medal events, meaning a huge gold rush is still possible. That sort of achievement would change the whole mood of these Games and make them one of the most memorable … for the right reasons. The downhill itself was spectacular as well, with so many skiers ending up on their backsides in the icy conditions. Made for terrific viewing.
2. These are the Games we’ve stopped being snooty about arriviste sports like snowboard and freestyle skiing, and put these wonderful athletes at the heart of the Olympics. Just think about the significance of starting the opening ceremony with the image of a snowboarder freestyling off a cliff and leaping through the Olympic rings. How’s that for a ringing endorsement? And the action itself has been at times beyond description, culminating in Shaun White’s outrageous skill and daring in winning gold in the halfpipe on Wednesday night. Awesome, as they’d probably say themselves.
Olympic icon carries hands-off warning
The hot Olympic ticket for those without tickets to the Games seems to be a trip down to the Vancouver waterfront to see the four-pronged metal cauldron where the Olympic flame is burning.
Except that heading down to the waterfront means joining tens of thousands of others with the same idea, and obeying the strident instructions from Olympic volunteers trying to herd the horde in the right direction without letting people fall under a bus.
It’s a slow trek through the crowds, with disappointment at the end. The flame, symbol of the Games, is half-hidden behind hoardings and a tall chain-link fence, both to protect the public and to stop anti-Games protesters getting their hands on it.
Organizers promise to look at ways to replace the ugly fence with something somewhat more photogenic, but right now the message seems to match the sign: “No Trespassing.”
I have to laugh at the British press who declared this “the worst games ever”. Wait – the London Olympics are coming, and the pratfalls there will be different, but just as embarrassing.
So, a hydraulic arm failed after hundreds of tests. So what! Gretsky stood in the back of a pick up truck. He’ll dry out.
But leading of (as # 1) the “triumph” of Lindsay Vonn – give me break! Whether it was a psych out or just a poor-me, she comes across as a whiner and complainer who will trade on the “miracle” of her gold and the gullible American public will conveniently forget her mishap today. Miracle indeed!
For whatever issues there are with the games: Weather, ticket cancellations, poor judgment of fence placement and the failure of the other arm at the opening ceremony, the inclusion and welcoming by the leaders of the land we live in, inclusion of the diverse peoples and languages of this country are something no other Games has done, and most probably, COULD NOT do.
Despite all the mentioned warts, and more, the Gold for Alexandre Bilodeau and his dedication to his handicapped brother is so much in the keeping of the ideals of Olympic participation, every participant should take note – win, loose or draw.
I live with the beauty of this city every day, and I love it and want to never live elsewhere. We hope every one of you who is/was here to party with us will come back and make our society better.