Team Canada Unveils Powerhouse Line-up

Let the scrutinizing begin.

The most talked about roster perhaps in hockey history was released by Hockey Canada executives Wednesday afternoon and now Canadian fans and, really, hockey fans around the globe, have two and a half months to dissect, critique and scrutinize the decisions that were ultimately made by Team Canada Executive Director Steve Yzerman.

With Doug Armstrong, Kevin Lowe, Ken Holland and coach Mike Babcock sitting to his left at the dais in Saskatoon, Sask., Yzerman announced Canada's roster for the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver.

He selected players with Olympic experience, but also went with a roster that has a strong flavour of youth.

Highlighting the team that is expected to compete for gold in Vancouver are the obvious choices of Sidney Crosby, Jarome Iginla, Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger and Martin Brodeur.

Niedermayer will be Canada's captain in Vancouver and Pronger, Crosby and Iginla will be his alternates.

Niedermayer, Pronger, Iginla and Brodeur are the remaining members of the Canadian team that won gold in Salt Lake eight years ago. It was Canada's first gold in 50 years. Crosby was not selected for the team in 2006 that finished a disappointing seventh.

"It's a big transition from players that were there in '06 and '02 to what's going to be in 2010," Brodeur said. "The guys like Sidney Crosby, he's been like the top player since he got drafted, he's won a Stanley Cup now. This is a step for him to really establish himself. That's the beauty of our country -- you'll see a lot of young players really needed to take over. Before it was really rely on older players to do so. Now it's going to be different. In '02 we had Mario Lemieux with us, Joe Sakic, Rob Blake, a lot of older guys. Now, transition, like with the game, it's a lot of younger players. It'll be nice to see how every one is when the games start."

For Brodeur, being selected to his third Olympics continues a family legacy.

"(When) I grew up, it was all about Team Canada because my dad (Denis) played in the Olympics," Brodeur said. "It wasn't the Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens, it was Team Canada in 1956 because my dad played. It was always a special place in our household."

"This is a pretty special honour and obviously it's been something that has been talked about for a while now so there is a lot of anticipation and I'm pretty proud to be part of it," Crosby told TSN.

Joining Crosby and Iginla up front will be Rick Nash, Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Eric Staal, Jonathan Toews, Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley, Patrick Marleau, Patrice Bergeron, Brenden Morrow and Mike Richards.

"I don't think any of us were 100 percent sure until we heard our names called this morning or until we go the phone call," Chicago's Toews said. "You hear a lot of talk and people are going to gossip and give their own opinion on who they think is going to be on the team. Once you hear your name mentioned it begins to sink in that you might have a chance. But I was definitely pretty nervous this morning."

Niedermayer and Pronger will be joined on the back end by Shea Weber, Dan Boyle, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Drew Doughty, who at 20-years-old is the youngest player on the roster.

"I'm just thrilled. I'm really honoured," Seabrook said. "There're so many great players that weren't able to make the team. It's a dream come true and I'm really looking forward to it."

Keith echoed his teammate's comments.

"I'm extremely happy," Keith said. "My whole family was pretty excited this morning to get the news. To see your name listed there with all the great Canadian players, there're so many great players that didn't make the team. To be one of the guys lucky enough and fortunate enough to make the team, you definitely feel honoured to be a part of it and we'll do everything we can to make it a success."

Brodeur will face competition for playing time from Marc-Andre Fleury and Roberto Luongo, who was with Brodeur in Torino four years ago.

"I'm dealing with the top goalies in Canada, so regardless if you think I'm going to be the No. 1, I still have to go out and prove it," Brodeur told NHL.com. "Competition in that way will be healthy and you know what, you never know. It happens quick. Games are won and lost pretty quickly in the Olympics and you need guys that want to be there to be there 100 percent mentally. I'm looking forward to that challenge. I think it keeps you accountable when you have people there to take your job."

"It's a big deal," Fleury said. "It's the Olympics. It's not only hockey. You want to do (well) for your country. You want to get that gold medal especially since it's in Canada. It should be fun."

Fleury said he raced for his cell phone after teammate Sidney Crosby had a voice mail from Yzerman Wednesday morning.

"Sid checked his phone, and he had a voice mail," Fleury told Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "I ran in to check it out and I had a nice voice mail (from Kevin Lowe)

"Pretty cool," Fleury continued. "Maybe we will all realize it more once we get there, but it's great news.

Fleury already is looking forward to partnering with Brodeur and Luongo.

"They're too amazing goalies, guys I look up to and love to watch play," he said. "It will be a pretty amazing chance to play with them."

The hype around the Olympics in Canada has been huge, and not lost on the players.

"All the pride you can think of is going to be in that building and around the country you're going to be able to feel it," Marleau told NHL.com. "It's being pumped up pretty good, but with all good intentions. It's center stage, basically."

Yzerman wound up leaving former Olympians like Vinny Lecavalier, Shane Doan, Ryan Smyth, Brad Richards, Jay Bouwmeester and Martin St. Louis off the roster. They played on Canada's disappointing team in 2006.

Mike Green and Jeff Carter were also getting serious consideration, but neither made the final cut.

Yzerman talked throughout this difficult process about how Team Canada would have a youthful appeal to it and he stayed true to his word. Twelve of the players on the 23 man roster are 25 or younger and 15 have never played in the Olympics before.

However, he also selected enough veterans with Olympic experience to guide the squad.

Brodeur and Pronger are headed to their fourth Olympic Games with Hockey Canada while Niedermayer, Nash, Iginla, Luongo, Heatley and Thornton all have Olympic experience as well.

Niedermayer had to withdraw from the 2006 Olympics due to injury.

If you wanted to project lines, Babcock could put Crosby in the middle of Nash and Iginla. That trio played together during the orientation camp in Calgary in August.

It would also seem appropriate for Babcock to put the three Sharks together since Thornton, Heatley and Marleau have already established excellent chemistry playing together inSan Jose. And, you'd expect Getzlaf and Perry will be on the same line.

Bergeron, who was the only player selected that wasn't invited to the orientation camp, also has a history of playing with Crosby. They were together in the 2005 World Junior Championship and at the 2006 World Championship.

"I think whoever you play with this group of players is going to be pretty awesome, Crosby said. "I look back to the evaluation camp this summer and I played with Rick Nash and Jarome Iginla and that was a pretty fun time for me. There is so much talent that I think making lines should be a pretty easy thing to do."

 

SOURCE: http://www.nhl.com

 

It's D-Day for Canadian Hockey!

The gut-wrenching wait is about to end for the 30 or more NHL players considered candidates for Canada's Olympic hockey team.

General manager Steve Yzerman and his staff gathered Tuesday for a final meeting to decide on the 23-man roster that will compete for Canada at the Vancouver Winter Games in February.

The announcement will be made at noon ET on Wednesday at the WorldFest venue at the world junior hockey championship in Saskatoon. Canada's Olympic broadcast consortium will have exclusive rights to the announcement, which will be carried live on some 13 networks, including CTV, TSN and Rogers Sportsnet.

It will be euphoria for those whose names are called and crushing disappointment for those left off a team that will have the rare opportunity to battle for gold in its home country.

No country cares more about hockey than Canada, or has the sheer number of world-class players to choose from. Star players will be left out. Debates will rage over who should or shouldn't have been picked.

As Martin Brodeur recently put it: "It is the ultimate for hockey."

While most of the players are obvious picks, there are really only two who are beyond discussion - Pittsburgh Penguins star centre Sidney Crosby and Brodeur, the New Jersey Devils goaltender who is the NHL's all-time leader in wins and shutouts and who is still at the top of his game.

If the team is shut out of the medals, as it was in Turin, Italy, at the 2006 Games, fingers will be pointed at Yzerman, a 2002 Olympic gold medallist and three-time Stanley Cup winner with the Detroit Red Wings, and the staff that assembled in Saskatoon to make the final decisions.

Joining Yzerman were Detroit general manager Ken Holland as well as former GMs Kevin Lowe and Doug Armstrong, head coach Mike Babcock of the Red Wings, and Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson and vice-president Johnny Misley.

Together, they watched hundreds of games over the past two seasons, tracking any player with a vague hope of making the squad. They got together every few months to compare notes and analyze performances, most recently in December. Other experts, including coaching legend Scotty Bowman, were brought in to watch players and offer their opinions.

So far, the players who appear to be locks to make the team are:

-Goaltenders Brodeur, Roberto Luongo of the Vancouver Canucks and, thanks to his Stanley Cup heroics last spring, Marc-Andre Fleury of the Penguins.

-Defencemen Scott Niedermayer (Anaheim), Chris Pronger (Philadelphia), Shea Weber (Nashville), Duncan Keith (Chicago) and Dan Boyle (San Jose).

-Forwards Crosby, the San Jose trio of Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley and Patrick Marleau, Rick Nash (Columbus), Anaheim's Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, and Jarome Iginla (Calgary).

There is little debate on the goaltenders, last year's rookie sensation Steve Mason and Carolina's Cam Ward having played their way out of contention.

Defence is another matter, as there are likely only two spots open for another seven candidates.

Some like Brent Seabrook to play with his regular partner Keith for some instant chemistry. Mike Green (Washington) is a dynamic offensive player who is in the top 25 in league scoring and is sixth in plus-minus at plus-15, but is said to have defensive shortcomings.

Robyn Regehr (Calgary) is as strong in his own end as any one, while rangy Jay Bouwmeester (Calgary) has extensive international experience. Another Flame, bruising Dion Phaneuf, has not had a good year.

Names that filtered out as being under consideration include Drew Doughty, the gifted young Los Angeles rearguard who will likely be a lock in 2014, if the NHL goes to Russia, and Dallas veteran Stephane Robidas.

Selecting another five forwards won't be easy either.

Martin St. Louis is in the top 10 in league scoring and should make the team again, but while his Tampa Bay teammate Vincent Lecavalier has picked up his scoring, he looks to be out of contention.

Philadelphia's Kerry Carter and Mike Richards were strong candidates last summer, but less so now. Richards still has a shot for his strong penalty killing, and he has 16 goals this season.

Eric Staal (Carolina) has all the talent to make it and his younger brother Jordan (Pittsburgh) may just be the physical checking forward they want.

Brendan Morrow (Dallas) is strong at both ends of the ice, Team Canada veteran Ryan Smyth (Los Angeles) is back from an injury that stalled a strong comeback season, and Brad Richards (Dallas), also on a comeback, is in the top 15 in league scoring.

Many like young Jonathan Toews (Chicago) to make the team for his skill, reliability and promise for the future.

But there may yet be surprises.

Big left-winger Milan Lucic (Boston) was invited to the team's summer camp and is on the mend from a sprained ankle. He should be ready for the Games, where on an NHL-size ice surface; his bruising, intimidating style could make an impact. Plus, he's from Vancouver.

His teammate Patrice Bergeron, a strong faceoff man with a scoring touch, is another candidate as is Mike Fisher of the Ottawa Senators.

And no one mentions Mike Cammalleri (Montreal) or Dustin Penner (Edmonton), who each have 19 goals this season. Cammalleri, a left-winger, is third in the league with 16 even-strength goals and is plus-12.

Stay tuned – more to follow …

Torch Run: Sneak Peek

Well, I did it. In short - it was awesome! I'm still waiting for a LOT of photos and videos to arrive - but here is proof that it really did happen.

Before I forget, I do want to thank my employer, Bell Canada for this one-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Amazingly enough, the highlight for me was not even my run - but riding through downtown Paris as hundreds of people spontaneously broke into a heart-warming rendition of our national anthem. WOW! Lost more to follow ... here's what I have so far:

(some browsers hate these videos - if yours is one try HERE)

What a day! Thanks to all for their best wishes and support. Alright - I'm out for now.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL FROM ME AND MINE TO YOU AND YOURS.

CHEERS!

Greenest Games Ever?

Uganda doesn't participate in the Winter Olympics, but that doesn't mean they won't be touched by them.

Wood burning cook stoves for the African nation are one of the projects being funded in the quest by Vancouver Games organizers to negate the environmental impact of hosting the Games.

With just under 100 days to go until the Games begin, organizers said Tuesday they now have a better idea of the environmental scale of their operations and are confident they'll be able to be carbon-neutral.

It's now estimated that 268,000 tonnes of carbon emissions will be produced by the Games, according to a study commissioned by the organizing committee and carried out by the Centre for Sustainability and Social Innovation at the University of British Columbia's Sauder School of Business.

Two years ago, a study by the David Suzuki Foundation predicted there would be more than 300,000 tonnes of emissions.

"Since then, we've changed some of our plans, we haven't built quite as many venues, we've reduced the size and scope of the operations in order to achieve better efficiencies,'' said Linda Coady, vice-president of sustainability for the organizing committee, known as VANOC.

An estimated 118,000 tonnes are direct emissions from Games operations, and the rest is from indirect causes such as spectator travel or Games-time events held by sponsors.

Earlier this year, the organizing committee signed a sponsorship deal with Offsetters, a Vancouver-based carbon offsetting company, to help negate its own emissions.

That includes accounting for the emissions created by all 7,000 athletes and officials who are attending the Games.

But on Tuesday, they announced that 25 of their partners will be voluntarily working with Offsetters as well to make up for their own impact.

"We're taking a wide slice on this and deploying two different types of strategies against it,'' said Coady.

"One is VANOC and Offsetters taking responsibility for direct and then the voluntary component leaves the opportunity for spectators and partners to go a bit further and look after the aspects of their indirect footprint.''

For spectators, Offsetters launched a carbon calculator on Tuesday to see how much carbon is emitted when someone travels to the Games.

For example, two people coming to Vancouver from Montreal for four nights and attending three events would be responsible for 2.46 tonnes of carbon, according to the calculator.

To offset that would cost $64.13, which the company would invest in clean energy technologies, including the wood-burning stoves in Uganda and wind farms in Turkey that make up what it calls its 2010 Legacy Portfolio.

VANOC's carbon emissions take into account one of its most ambitious projects - the torch relay.

Currently underway, the relay is travelling over 45,000 kilometres by land, sea and air.

The 2007 report that first analysed the Games' carbon footprint suggested the relay would create about 1,500 tonnes of emissions.

The report estimated that the flame itself - which will be fuelled by a blend of propane, iso-butane and hydrocarbons - will be responsible for about five tonnes of carbon emissions.

To put those numbers in perspective, the David Suzuki Foundation said driving a mid-size car for a year produces about five tonnes of carbon dioxide.

Coca-Cola and RBC, the two presenting sponsors for the relay, have pledged to offset all of their emissions from putting on the 106-day events.

On the web:

http://www.offsetters.ca/2010-travel-and-accommodation-calculator

 

 

SOURCE: http://www.ctvolympics.ca/

 

Watch the Torch Relay Live!

I know a lot of you want to watch me run on December 22^nd – heck, some of you may even want to watch someone else. While others just want to watch the torch run and could care less who is carrying it. Well, you are now in luck -- Using a specially-mounted streaming camera on the media truck accompanying the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay, CTVOlympics.ca and Canada’s Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium are proud to present live coverage of the torch relay as it crosses the country. Want to have a look – go here:

 

http://www.ctvolympics.ca/torch/follow-torch/index.html

 

Enjoy and go Canada!

My Torch to Bear

Well, I've been talking for some time about me running with the Olympic torch, and have previously published some details (Dec. 22 - Paris Ontario - 8Am). Anyways, I'm excited to announce that I received my torchbearer outfit the other night. After reading the accompanying booklet I learned that I should (against my better judgment) try said uniform on just to make sure it fit. So I did. Yes, there is a picture below but I think there is some important facts to relay first:

• I'm currently participating in Movember, whereby one grows a moustache and people sponsor said moustache and the proceeds go to Prostate Cancer. I look terrible in a moustache but it's for a good cause. Actually, that being said - if you care to sponsor me you can do so HERE. Regardless, it will be gone when I run with the torch.

• I'll be carrying the Olympic torch. It is my sincere hope that this fact alone, coupled with the lack of moustache should subtract from the overall dorkiness.

Okay, I've kept you in suspense long enough, I'm not exactly sure I'm allowed to do this but then again I don't remember reading anywhere that I couldn't. I mean, we see the torchbearer uniform all the time on TV now right? OK - here goes nothing:

I know what you are thinking and yes - sorry ladies, I'm taken! I figure if nothing else this outfit will help ensure the torch does in fact reach Vancouver on time. Me - beating the ladies off with one had as I run for my life - it will be a sight to behold! Anyway, there is your sneak peek and thanks for coming by .. you can see future details as they come available by stopping by here or my other place. All the best and GO CANADA GO! Cheers! PS - I almost forgot, for those who actually hope to be there but are not sure how there are a TON of contest running right now and certainly more on the way - check HERE for details.

Torch Relay Bearly Continues

The Olympic flame began its journey to the furthest point north in its history by stopping off first at a town known for the Arctic's most familiar icon - the polar bear.

Unfortunately, the torch relay didn't venture near Wapusk National Park on the shores of Hudson Bay, just near here, where the polar bears congregate in the hundreds this time of year waiting for the ice to freeze so they can go seal hunting for a few months. The convoy with the Olympic flame was, however, briefly interrupted while driving in from the airport when a polar bear crossed the road.

The people of Churchill have a complex relationship with the polar bear, says Paul Watts who, when he isn't volunteering to drive torch relay staff around when they come to town, is studying the polar bear. He has a doctorate in Arctic studies from the University of Oslo.

While it is the largest and most deadly terrestrial carnivore, the polar bear also represents a meal ticket, of sorts. Thousands of tourists descend on Churchill every fall to see the bears as they gather in anticipation of heading out onto the ice fields. For a town of just over 1,000, there are eight hotels - mostly to accommodate tourists.

"When you live here you don't do anything without considering the polar bear," Dr. Watts said. "When you take out the garbage you're aware. When you take your kids to school it's the last thing you tell them - look out for bears.

"There a number of reasons why a bear might come after you: because you've surprised them; because you've come between a mother and her cub; because they're hungry or because they just want to kill and eat you - but you may want to phrase it a little differently than that."

Roberta Wokes, who was born and raised in Churchill and has eight children she looks after, says the surest sign that a bear is roaming around town is when you hear a gunshot.

"Most people have a shotgun with them when they go out because you just never know," Ms. Wokes said. "It's just a fact of life here. Most people don't lock their doors because you never know when someone might need a place to run into."

Dianne Howell remembers the day a few years ago when she came face to face with a polar bear. Fortunately, the bear was on the other side of a glass window.

"But as soon as he saw me he stood up on his haunches and he was just gigantic and I completely froze," Ms. Howell recalled. "I was at the school I was working at and I left the room and started walking down the hall and the bear started following me on the outside. I went into an office and looked out and who was staring right back at me?"

Churchill shut down the famous garbage dump outside town that the bears would come and feast at - and which provided a staging ground for so many photo opportunities for tourists. The town instituted a polar bear alert program that has drastically reduced the number of bear-human interactions.

The town also has a polar bear jail out near the airport. This is where they keep bears that are repeat offenders - bears who insist on wandering into town. The bears are kept inside small cages - accommodations meant to send a message that this is what happens when you stray where you shouldn't. After some time, the bears are taken out to a remote area and released.

In recent years, Churchill has been invaded by wildlife scientists who are studying the polar bear population and looking for signs that it may be in trouble because of the effects of global warming.

Air temperatures in the Arctic have increased, on average, about 5 degrees over the last 100 years. Arctic sea ice, particularly in the Hudson Bay area, shrank 3 per cent between 1978 and 1996. And most scientists believe it may have shrunk another 1 or 2 per cent since the last study period concluded.

The state of the sea ice is particularly worrying for the polar bear. It needs the ice so it can go out and feed on ring seals in the winter. For every week the ice breaks up earlier than normal, the bears come ashore 10 kilograms lighter and in poorer condition. Reproductive success is also tied closely to body condition.

The torch relay was scheduled to leave Churchill yesterday afternoon to head to Alert, Nunavut. Alert is only 500 miles from the North Pole - the farthest north the Olympic flame has ever travelled.

SOURCE: http://www.ctvolympics.ca/

Canadian Athletes Acting UnCanadian?

They are worthy heirs to the Rocket's incandescent eyes, which is appropriate given Canada's national short-track speed-skating team has been based at the Aréna Maurice-Richard for the past 14 years.

As the 100-day countdown to the 2010 Vancouver Olympics begins, the Canadian team hosts its international rivals for a World Cup event this week. And if there's a whiff of renewed competitive spirit and, dare we say, swagger, among Canada's Winter Olympic athletes, few embody it as convincingly as the short trackers.

Take François-Louis Tremblay, a Saguenay native who won a pair of silver medals at the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy.

"I don't think there's any benefit to false modesty here, we aren't going to the Olympics just to finish in the top 10," he told The Globe this week.

As befits its namesake, the Richard arena, which slouches in the shadow of the Olympic Stadium in Montreal's east end, is a venue for auspicious occasions. Since its dedication in 1961, the building has hosted such events as Olympic boxing and the founding convention of the Parti Québécois.

But this week is all about short track. And the hometown athletes are keen to make some noise at the World Cup and in their final tune-up next week in Marquette, Mich.

"We want to arrive at the Olympics as a dominant team that everyone else will be watching closely," said Mr. Tremblay, who has been a national team member for 12 years.

That confidence is hardly misplaced.

The Canadian athletes are about to embark on the final stretch of a four-year training and development program that was set out in the weeks after the 2006 Games.

They have been working essentially without pause since April - six days a week, on the ice and in the weight room.

First-time Olympian Guillaume Bastille, a 24-year-old, 1,500-metre specialist from Rivière-du-Loup, Que., has even doubled up his training schedule: He follows the national team training program and also skates with the development team.

"It's been pretty intense, but I need to do a lot of work to feel ready," he said.

Although short track is known for its nonconformists and spirited rivalries, the Canadian team is close-knit and determined to draw maximum benefit from the home-country Games.

"I'd say there are no self-proclaimed leaders here, everyone brings something to the training sessions, we all work with one another, and it raises the level for everyone," Mr. Tremblay said.

He missed a large chunk of the team's off-season training after stepping on a tree root and damaging an ankle; he earned a medical exemption into the Olympic squad. Although just 28, Mr. Tremblay passes for a grizzled veteran presence on a squad that features a gaggle of first-time Olympians.

Short-track skating - so called because the athletes whiz around a hockey-sized rink on speed skates - is something of a frantic pursuit, replete with frequent falls, crashes and disqualifications.

That makes predicting outcomes a dodgy proposition, but Canada's national team has set a goal of winning six medals at the coming Games.

Given this country's past Olympic successes in the discipline - 20 medals since the sport debuted at the 1992 Albertville Games - the target seems reasonable.

Charles Hamelin of Lévis, Que., is the current world champion at 500 metres and is one of Canada's brightest medal hopes in Vancouver. "I feel great, and I think we're exactly where we wanted to be at this point in terms of preparation. ... This week feels like a smaller version of the Olympics, 100 days ahead of time," said the 25-year-old, who won a relay silver in Turin.

Mr. Tremblay and the irrepressible, dreadlocked Olivier Jean of Lachenaie, Que., are also top contenders at 500 metres (they finished third and fourth at the Worlds). Both are also threats at 1,000 metres (as are Mr. Hamelin and his younger brother François) and at 1,500 metres.

On the women's side, world 500-metre bronze medalist Jessica Gregg and two-time Olympic silver-medal winner Kalyna Roberge lead a contingent that will contend for several medals - although they'll have a tall order in trying to overtake China's Meng Wang, the most dominant woman in the sport, for gold.

Although the current World Cup arrives on the heels of an exhausting eight-week conditioning stretch, the Canadians are primed for this week. The energy has been palpable in the Canadian quarter of the Aréna Maurice-Richard.

On Monday, the athletes milled among the television cameras and munched on oranges (it's flu season, after all). "We're at home, so it would be fun to put on a show, but we're not putting any pressure on ourselves," said Marianne St-Gelais, one of two 19-year-olds who will skate in the Olympics. "We're a little febrile, but in a good way."

Ms. Roberge of St. Étienne-de-Lauzon, Que., who also won silver in Turin and, at age 23, will skate in her second Games, said this week's event, which is expected to unfold before a packed house, is a nice tonic for athletes so resolutely focused on February.

"If you're always looking through binoculars at something that's three months down the road it gets heavy after a while," she said.

At the same time, the physical and mental preparations are ramping up.

"We're starting to show our teeth a little in training, you can see it in the relays," Ms. Roberge said.

"The idea that we could find ourselves on the podium with medals around our necks in Vancouver is starting to settle in."

* * * * *

THE PREDICTION

Canada 29, U.S. 28, Germany 28, Norway 25, Austria 18

SOURCE: http://www.ctvolympics.ca/

Part of the Vancouver 2010 Family

I’m assuming a lot of you heard me state earlier that I was running with the torch and assumed I was kidding.

Actually, it was true – and I now have my exact route details for those who want to cheer me on – see below:

On behalf of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay presented by Coca-Cola and RBC and supported by the Government of Canada, we're pleased to confirm you are one of 12,000 Olympic Torchbearers who will soon hold history in your hands when you carry the Olympic Flame in the Vancouver 2010 Torch Relay. Your story will help create our path of northern lights along the 45,000 kilometre journey of the Olympic Flame.

THE DETAILS OF YOUR RELAY SEGMENT

Community:	Paris
You will be carrying the Olympic Flame for a distance of approximately 300 metres. Your segment details are:	Starting along: Willow St
	From: Yeo St
	To: House 58
	On: William St
Approximate time of your segment:	7:57 AM EST
Your torchbearer number is:

Congratulations again! And thank you for being an everyday champion of positive change in your community. We wish you the very best in your personal endeavours and hope you'll take this moment to celebrate — with glowing hearts — and to cherish what it means to be part of the Olympic Movement.

We look forward to meeting you. The Vancouver 2010 Torch Relay team

So, that’s it – Paris, Ontario – December 22^nd. Hope to see you there.

CHEERS!

We Have Ignition!

The 2010 Olympic torch was lit Thursday by the rays of a scorching Grecian sun beating down into a mirror during a theatrical and symbolic ceremony attended by dignitaries and tourists.

The drama, amid the ruins of the site of the ancient Olympic Games, was lit in the Temple of Hera by an actress playing a high priestess.

She said a prayer to Apollo, the Greek god of sun, asking him to "send your rays and light the sacred torch for the hospitable City of Vancouver."

The prayer also asked Zeus to "give peace to all peoples on Earth and wreath the winners of the sacred race."

With the presentation of an olive branch and the release of a white dove, the torch departed with a Greek runner, the start of a seven-day historic relay through Greece.

It will then be handed over to Vancouver 2010 officials next week and flown to Canada for a 45,000-kilometre, 106-day trek criss-crossing the country before culminating with the start of the Winter Games in February.

The ceremony moved many of the dignitaries in attendance that have been planning the Games for years.

"When you see it actually lit and he runs out, you know it's here," said B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell.

"The Games are coming."

Added Vancouver mayor Gregor Robertson: "It feels very real. Being here in the cradle of ancient Greece makes it as real as it could be."

John Furlong, chief executive officer of the Vancouver organizing committee, told the ceremony the lighting of the torch creates a bridge between ancient Greece and a much-younger Canada.

"The flame has a unique power to unite us as countries and as people," he said, adding being in Olympia for the ceremony was a "treasure."

"We are joined together by common ideals and an eagerness to make the world a better place through fair play, respect and a commitment to peace and the power of sport."

Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee, called the torch a message of friendship, respect and peace.

Several hundred people attended the lighting ceremony; with dignitaries seated on chairs and hundreds more spectators sprawled on the sloped, grassy hills that ring the stadium.

Four Canadians who had made a special trip to witness the historic moment were also on hand.

The federal government is contributing $12.5 million to the relay, and there are two corporate sponsors: Coca-Cola and RBC.

The Greek portion of the relay see about 700 people carry the flame through villages and towns until it reaches Athens.

There, a handover ceremony at the stadium that hosted the first modern Olympiad will see the flame handed over to Canadian officials.

Of course, the real fun won’t start until December 22^nd when yours truly will be running with the torch. Mark your calendars! (Yes, I’m serious.) CHEERS!

El Nino Working for the Crazy Canucks?

As weather gurus monitor ocean temperatures and wind bursts to track El Nino's progress across the Pacific, a different group of experts is beavering away on strategies to give Canadian skiers an edge if the weather pattern hits Whistler during the 2010 Olympic Games.

The Canadian ski team is working on some "top secret" El Nino projects, Alpine Canada president Gary Allan said Wednesday.

But just what they're testing - whether it's new wax, different equipment or something else entirely - nobody will say, disclosing only that the technology is Canada's alone.

"We're bound by confidentiality," Mr. Allan said, adding that funding for the research came in part through Canada's Own the Podium program.

"What we're trying to do is assess what might come at us in the future and adjust accordingly so there aren't any surprises."

El Nino is a recurring weather pattern that can bring warmer, drier weather to the usually soggy cities of Vancouver and Seattle and that's linked to weather consequences around the globe, ranging from torrential rains in the southern United States to brush fires in Australia.

An El Nino year typically means less snow and warmer temperatures for Whistler, the venue for Alpine skiing events.

This year's El Nino trend, identified in June, is expected to build steam through the winter. In a bulletin Wednesday, American weather firm Accuweather.com said the Olympics "could be impacted by the lack of snow and cold weather" and that a "dry and mild" pattern could develop near to or during the event.

Whistler's elevation and usually abundant snowfall (Whistler Blackcomb boasts average yearly snowfall of 10.22 metres at its summit) would likely blunt any El Nino-related impacts, Accuweather meteorologist Dave Samuhel said.

The Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee has extensive weather-related contingency plans, including snowmaking equipment at outdoor venues and plans to stockpile snow as soon as temperatures allow.

Mr. Allan believes El Nino could actually work in skiers' favour. Ski race courses depend primarily on man-made, not natural, snow.

As long as temperatures remain around or slightly below the freezing mark, "we can produce very good, wet damp snow," he said.

Crushing and packing that artificial snow into a hard, icy surface results in a perfect racing surface.

Natural snow - especially the soft, sloppy stuff Whistler is known for - can create problems when it's packed down on top of a course.

If El Nino makes its presence felt in Whistler this year, it could be in the form of less rain and clearer skies.

But if the system doesn't blow in and fog prevails, the Canadians won't be downcast. They consider fog a competitive advantage, having trained extensively at Whistler, where several team members grew up and learned to ski in the mountain's notoriously variable weather conditions.

Two-time Olympian Emily Brydon experienced the ski-by-feel phenomenon during training with the Canadian alpine team earlier this year.

"I'm not even kidding, I couldn't even see the next gate," Ms. Brydon said. "My coach is like, ‘This is going to be the Olympics,' and I was saying, ‘I can't even see the gate.' "

She is, however, not the least bit worried, now that the terrain has become as familiar as an old shoe.

"I could probably ski it blind," she said, but added she's thankful there's also something else to help connect the dots. "Thank God for blue dye on the course."

Alpine Canada has a publicly stated goal to capture three medals at the Games. It's a tall order for the team, which hasn't won an Olympic medal in alpine skiing since the Lillehammer Games in 1994, when Edi Podivinsky took bronze in the men's downhill.

 

SOURCE: http://www.ctvolympics.ca/

Yzerman to Take Closer Look at Players

Steve Yzerman and Team Canada's management group will give Olympic prospects a few more games before the process of aggressively scouting these players begins.

The 46 men invited to this past summer's orientation camp are clearly on the radar, but others are expected to emerge based on their play.

Carey Price played himself out of contention last season; however providing he can sustain his current level of play, Price's involvement may require further discussion.

Steve Mason, last season's rookie of the year has been sensational, while both Roberto Luongo and Martin Brodeur have staggered out of the gate, and while there's a lot to be said for the experience these two goaltenders provide, Yzerman and company will fill the crease with whoever is hot.

The pressure to win in Vancouver will trump any sense of obligation.

With Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St Louis on the outside looking in, the Tampa Bay Lightning will be heavily scouted. Steven Stamkos will get a good look because of that and he could play his way on to Canada's Olympic team.

Boston's Milan Lucic had an impressive orientation camp. While his play is being carefully monitored this season, so will that of his teammate, non-invitee Marc Savard.

As early as this Thursday's game in San Jose between the Sharks and the Columbus Blue Jackets, we will start to see familiar faces such as Yzerman's, Doug Armstrong's, Kevin Lowe's, Ken Holland's...and, potentially Wayne Gretzky's peering down from the press box.

Gretzky's role as a consultant remains the same. How active he intends to be remains in question.

What won't be questioned, according to Hockey Canada is the amount of preparation management intends to invest to win gold in Vancouver.

 

SOURCE: http://www.ctvolympics.ca/

 

Red Mittens to put Own the Podium in Black

NOTE: As many of you may already be aware … I don’t need to buy these – I’ll be running with the torch on December 22^nd!

VANOC is hoping sales of red mittens designed to match those of the Vancouver 2010 torchbearers will help make up the final gap in funding for the Own the Podium program.

Own The Podium is a five year program designed to fund world class training and equipment for athletes in an effort to see Canada top the medal haul at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games. Own the Podium is funded in part through special programs like the Red Mitten campaign.

"As an athlete, it's incredibly motivating to see the support of Canadian fans in the crowd at the Games," said Veronica Brenner, a silver medalist in aerials at the Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Winter Games. "The Red Mittens campaign takes that support even further - it's a visible reminder that the wearers of the mittens believe in you as an athlete and are supporting your efforts to fulfill your dreams in 2010 and beyond."

For athletes, the funding from Own the Podium can make a very real difference in the training and equipment each athlete has leading into the 2010 Olympic Games.

"Own The Podium has been a huge support for the big blocks at Alpine Canada like coaching, physio and medical teams," said alpine skier Kelly VanderBeek. "We've also got money for programs that would never see it otherwise, like the materials our suits are made of, the machines that sharpen our edges. We're ahead of the curve in some places, where other countries are trying to learn from us. It's a great position to be in."

The knitted red mittens sport a white maple leaf stitched onto the palm, with the Olympic rings and Vancouver 2010 stitched on the back. 

"I'm envisioning looking up from the finish line at a sea of red mittens," said VanderBeek. "It will be wonderful to know that all Canadians will be behind us across Canada." 

Alpine skier Erik Guay shares VanderBeek's opinion.

"We (the athletes) hope this initiative can bring Canadians together from coast to coast," says the skier from Mont Tremblant.

"We don't want to see anything but red when the time for the Vancouver Games comes. The public will feel like a partner in our adventure."

In an effort to make sure the stands at Olympic competitions are filled with fan sporting the mittens, fans will be able to purchase the mittens for $10 at the Bay, Zellers and Home Outfitter stores as well as Olympic stores in both the Vancouver International Airport and Whistler. Red mittens will also be available in a selection of communities scheduled as part of the torch relay.

Any funds raised beyond the needs of Own the Podium will be put towards sports programs across Canada.

 

SOURCE: http://www.ctvolympics.ca/

NOT THE SOURCE: http://theehlist.com/

 

Canada Playing Nasty?

Count the American speed skater Catherine Raney among the athletes, coaches and officials of several sports surprised by Canada's approach to hosting the Winter Olympics in February.

Raney spent seven years living in Canada, attending University of Calgary and training with Olympic champion Clara Hughes and other Canadian skaters. For four years, a Canadian national coach was her coach, too.

But after the 2006 Games in Italy, Raney needed to find a new home and a new coach. She was told the Canadians did not want foreign athletes training with them prior to the 2010 Games in Vancouver. Raney and many other foreign athletes expected to spend quite a bit of time practising at the Vancouver-area Olympic venues, but have been granted only minimal access.

"They're playing nasty," said Raney, now based in Utah. "I think every one of us would love to prove to them that what they did wasn't right, and we're ready to show it on the ice.''

The way Raney and athletes, coaches and officials of several other sports see it, limiting access to the sites means the Canadians are more serious about mining medals than evincing Olympic spirit.

Canadian officials said they have been following rules of access to competition sites, as set by each sport's governing body. But they also intend to protect the Olympic host's home-field advantage.

Canada has made a public quest to win more medals than ever, and more than any other country.

"By virtue of being at home, you have more access to venues,'' Cathy Priestner Allinger, executive vice president for sports of the Vancouver Organizing Committee, said this summer. ``That's the nature of it. There's no country or organizing committee that would tell you otherwise, or that wouldn't try to take advantage of some of that.''

The colliding notions of sportsmanship and gamesmanship require a delicate balance. Some say Canada may have tilted too far.

An open-access agreement between the Canadian and U.S. luge teams has come undone. Americans said most Canadians took 60 to 100 extra practice runs in Utah before the 2002 Games. Canada offered the U.S. 18 this time, in a trade for 18 Canadian runs at this year's world championships in Lake Placid, N.Y. The Americans refused.

"I guess I can intellectually say I understand it," said Ron Rossi of USA Luge, upset that a gentlemen's agreement dating to the 1980 Games has ended. "But as an honourable thing, I don't support it, and I think it shows a lack of sportsmanship.''

Last winter, foreign speed skaters were denied access to the Richmond Olympic Oval, Canadian officials said, citing a lack of proper arrangements and a last-minute decision to shut the site to add lighting. A German team spent days waiting to get in. The conflict and confusion made headlines in Canada.

At the Whistler downhill course, several medal contenders were left watching over a fence as the Canadian team trained.

"Everybody was pushing to get on that downhill," said Max Gartner, Alpine Canada's chief athletic officer. "That's an advantage we cannot give away.''

Canadian officials said that they had provided more access than any previous host, largely because their sites were completed early. But they acknowledge they are also driven to succeed at these Olympics.

"We're the only country to host two Olympic Games and never have won a gold medal at our games," Priestner Allinger said, referring to Montreal in 1976 and Calgary in 1988. ``It's not a record we're proud of.''

Canada's target this time is 35 medals, 11 more than it won in 2006 in Turin. Its Own the Podium program is pumping $110 million into the medal push, with focus on athletes most likely to win. Alpine skiers, for example, are being counted on to win two medals. Besides gold medals in hockey and curling, Canada expects big hauls from speed skating and the sliding sports.

Own the Podium emphasizes the advantage gained by giving athletes time to acclimate.

"Increased track exposure will provide athletes with the confidence they need to reach the podium," reads a section about bobsled and skeleton in the program's literature. Speed skaters were given "a strategic plan to maximize their comfort level" at the Olympic oval. Even biathletes were granted ``additional training opportunities to ensure athletes know every inch of the course.''

The benefits of familiarity vary by sport. It is vital on one-of-a-kind new sites like the track for luge, bobsled and skeleton. Canadian athletes will have had hundreds of trips down what is widely considered the world's most treacherous course. Foreign athletes will have had a few dozen.

"For sure, there's an advantage," said Tim Fars tad, executive director of Luge Canada. "That's the nature of our sport – every country has an advantage on its own track. It's not like a 100-metre sprint, where it doesn't matter where you sprint.''

At last February's luge world championships in Lake Placid, the American Erin Hamlin became the first non-German woman to win in 16 years. Weeks later, on the same track, Steven Holcomb and his four-man bobsled team became the first American world champions in 50 years.

To improve Canada's chances in skiing, the downhill course at Whistler was built each of the last two springs and surrounded with safety fencing, at a cost of $100,000.

"Once we go to downhill training in Whistler, it has to be exclusive to Canadians," Gartner said. "It is an advantage if you've run that downhill a few times. No question.''

Some rivals, including the U.S. ski team, expressed disappointment. But many understand Canada's reluctance to open up competition sites, even if the pressure to win stems largely from the organizing committee.

"It just doesn't seem like it's in the Olympic spirit," said Derek Parra, a skating medallist who now coaches the U.S. team. "It's un-Olympic.''

Among his charges is Raney, still close friends with Canadians she'll race against in February. She might have the sharpest rebuke to her neighbours to the north.

"It's un-Canadian," Raney said, laughing. "Isn't it?''

 

SOURCE: http://www.thestar.com/