Yet Another Victory Ceremony at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics
Posted by Stephen on
February 21, 2010
Canada didn’t get to jump on the podium this past Friday evening like it did last Monday thanks to the efforts of Alexandre Bilodeau. However, Friday’s Victory Ceremony was just as exciting for the Aussies and Yankees. But before hardware was given out, we had to raise a flag, and celebrate the Northwest Territories.
Sitting way up in the nose bleeds in the cheap 22 buck seats, here’s what my Telephoto lens and I captured…
Before any hardware was given out, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, better known as the RCMP, brought in the colours of the Olympics and hoisted them up high for all to see.
Next, the Northwest Territories did their thing with some dancing…
Then they did a little singing for us in. Oddly enough, it wasn’t in Inuit so everyone could understand…
And they also showed us what a real Winter Olympics looks like. Apparently, it has to do with sitting on your ass and kicking a seal pelt among other things.
They also showed off some Inuit Rap and Hip Hop. If Ice Cube is from the US, then this guy must be IceBerg.
After the cultural exchange, it was time to give out the medals. Australia’s Torah Bright took home the Gold in Women’s Half Pipe while the US’s Hannah Teter grabbed the Silver, followed by Kelly Clark also of the US for the Bronze.
Of course, a ton more pictures can be found after the jump. Stay tuned for more pictures from the evening starring Theory of a Deadman in a post coming up.
The Streets Of Vancouver During the 2010 Winter Olympics
Posted by Stephen on
February 18, 2010
After Monday’s Victory Ceremony this ad said it all. Canada broke a streak of no home soil gold medals thanks to the brilliant performance of Alexandre Bilodeau. NIKE was all over this projection billboard along Robson Street that greeted people as they left BC Place. In addition to this ad, NIKE also had one for Moguls and Hockey. They’re featured in the gallery at the end of this post.
After the victory ceremony, Kelly and I decided to take a walk around Vancouver to see some of the Olympics inspired sights and sounds that were being offered to the public during the games. With Robson and Granville Street closed off, the streets were full of people from around the world.
One of Robson Street’s biggest attractions is the indoor skating rink. The venue was packed with tourists and throughout the night due to the live performances and events taking place there.
Directly behind it was the zip line attraction that allows brave souls to hook themselves to a steel wire and zip across Robson Street, high above the crowd. This was one of the most popular attractions as people start lining up at around 7AM in the morning just to be the first one on.
Taking a turn onto Granville Street there were a number of artistic displays including this row of trees made up of lanterns from the recent Lunar Festival.
Also on Granville Street was the Royal Canadian Mint Display which is normally the Segal School of Business. Here you can take your loonies and toonies and other Canadian coinage and change it up for Olympic editions. No doubt our Canadian one dollar coin (pictured above oversized) was embedded in many of the courses that have led to medals for our athletes.
Finally, the Olympic Cauldron was the last stop on our walk through Vancouver. This picture was taken before VANOC improved the viewing situation by moving the barriers forward and cutting a hole in the chain link fence so that people could actually get an unobstructed shot. And yes, Jor El wants his Fortress of Solitude back.
With the excellent weather this week (for walking around, not so much for Winter Sports) and tickets to Friday’s victory ceremony, I’ll definitely be checking out some more of the sights and sounds (and hopefully some food too) from this one in a lifetime opportunity known as the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. More pictures after the jump!
Witnessing Canada’s First Gold Medal On Home Soil Awarded
Posted by Stephen on
February 18, 2010
Although Kelly and I were sitting in the last row inside BC Place, it didn’t ruin our experience as the energy inside the dome was overwhelming. Luckily, I was packing the telephoto lens and was able to snap a few useable pics.
Before the medals were given out, we were treated by performances by some of Quebec’s artists. Although I couldn’t understand a word they were saying, they were very energetic and parts of the crowd that did understand French were happily singing along.
We were also treated to some acrobatics by one of Quebec’s acrobatic troops. Can’t remember what they were called but they were quite good. After the performances, it was time to give out some hardware!
