I can't tell you how happy I am that I wasn't one of those "get me outta town before all the people arrive" kind of vancouverites. The 2010 Winter Olympics were the most amazing weeks I've ever spent in this city. From the little moments, like helping tourists find their way around our sun soaked city, to giant moments, like listening to the nation explode when Crosby found the net.......here's a quick rundown of some of my favourite memories of the 2010 Winter Olympics:Joannie Rochette. Her ability to put forward a bronze winning free skate days after losing her mother made me weep, not for her loss, but for her resilience.
The Olympic Torch. Shortly after I found parking, the torch had already passed me by. In ridiculous high heeled shoes, I raced down steep White Rock streets for blocks on end and made it to Marine Drive, just in time. I found a spot in the sea of red-dressed locals and cheered at the top of my lungs as the torch lit up the darkened early morning streets.
Our Olympic event. The only tickets we had were for a Finland/Belarus men's hockey game. It's noon on a weekday, we've got our beers in hand and the arena is packed to the rafters with Finnish and Belarusian fans waving flags - it was electric. The ironic thing is that when we bought the tickets, months before the Olympics had begun, we had no idea that Smiley would have to do a 3 week work stint in Belarus. Merely days before our event, Smiley returned and had a new fellowship with Belarusians, which made the occasion even more momentous.
Alexandre Bilodeau. Everyone knew it would happen. Eventually we would win a gold medal on Canadian soil. But little did I know, the first event that I got to sit down to watch, would be of such historic measure. The Men's Moguls made us believe with Alexandre the great.
Canadians. I have never seen so many citizens flashing their pride. Everywhere you turned you'd see red, white and proud. Canada was written everywhere -on t-shirts, mittens, toques and tattoos. People ran through the streets wearing our flag for a cape. Line-ups for the Bay's Olympic store ran longer than beer gardens. The word was out. It was hip to be Canadian.
Our Atheletes. 26 Medals (14 gold, 7 silver, 5 bronze). Impressive. But when you see the performances behind the numbers: Kevin Martin, John Montgomery, Virtue and Moir, Clara Hughes to name a few - you remember where you were and just how loud you screamed.
Friends/Family: Nothing is more fun than sharing the Olympic events with friends & family. Whether we were at a pub, a friend's house, a free outdoor concert, or among thousands of people on Robson street cheering at a jumbo screen, it was the best entertainment ticket in town. You were always at the right place at the right time.
The Game. It's funny because I had said that it didn't matter what the outcome was. We kicked ass at the olympics and truly bonded as a nation. I didn't want one final hockey match-up to define our success at these games. We had shown the world our strength in so many arenas: curling, speed skating, skeleton, ice dancing, bobsledding. We had spent weeks in a swell of Canadian pride. But when the game started I couldn't sit down. When Zach Parise scored in the last minute of the third period he silenced a nation. I don't think I took a breath in the overtime period. I literally ran on the spot. And here I was telling everyone at the beginning of the game that it doesn't matter about the outcome. Doesn't matter my ass. When Crosby pushed through a wall of US players, and Iginla passed him the puck from the corner, Crosby found a home for that puck. The 80% of Canadians glued to the game all erupted at once. The sound was simply awesome. We celebrated as a nation - everyone unified.
