Luge slides back to 2010 Olympics venue

Felix Loch has mastered the Whistler Sliding Centre.

The German won the Olympic gold medal at the track during the 2010 Games and he was atop the podium again Dec. 9 during the second International Luge Federation world cup stop of the 2011-2012 season.

Loch’s combined time of 1:36.48 was 0.278 better than fellow German Johannes Ludwig. David Moller, the 2010 Olympics silver medallist, completed the German podium sweep.

“I like the fast track here, the start is good for me, it's not too steep. It's good for all Germans. The sled was today very fast,” Loch said. “The track became more safe, those nations that are not on the level of Germany, they are learning and getting better on this track.”

Calgary's Sam Edney was fifth in 1:37.061. Edney's seventh-place in the Olympics at Whistler was a best for a Canadian in men’s singles.

“Five Germans and a Canadian (among the last six) -- it's clear to me where they have that edge, at the start,” Edney said. “This has got to be the best track in the world. The feeling you get when you're sliding down you can't express it, the speed and that feeling of that adrenaline rush. Hearing the crowd as you're sliding down is one of the coolest things you can ever feel as you're sliding.”

Italy's Armin Zoggeler, the 2002 and 2006 Olympic champion and bronze medallist in 2010, was a disappointing 13th.

The first FIL world cup in Whistler was in 2009 when Moller won gold, Zoggeler silver and Loch bronze. Ludwig was fourth and Edney 12th.

* * * * *

In the men's doubles, 2010 Olympic champions Andreas and Wolfgang Linger of Austria won gold, beating countrymen Peter Penz and Georg Fischler by 0.244. Italians Christian Obsertotz and Patrick Gruber were third.

Linger and Linger established a doubles track record of 41.255 seconds. Penz and Fischler, however, are FIL leaders after two rounds of the nine-stop World Cup tour, which continues next weekend in Calgary. The Lingers are second.

Canada's Tristan Walker and Justin Smith were 10th.

* * * * *

No sliders from Georgia have competed in the first two rounds of the FIL world cup. But Georgia’s flag was displayed in memory of Nodar Kumaritashvili.

The 21-year-old died after crashing near the end of his last training run on Feb. 12, 2010, the opening day of the 2010 Winter Olympics. A small flag marks the spot where the tragedy happened.

A bigger flag is outside the track offices, near the Olympic podium.

The start area for women’s races continues to be used, as it was the day after Kumaritashvili’s crash. A safety audit ordered by the British Columbia Coroners Service was conducted by the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology. The results are expected to be made public in the first quarter of 2012.

During the summer of 2010, concrete on curves 12 to 16 was modified with the blessing of FIL and the International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation. More changes are coming.

Whistler Sliding Centre begins its second season of public skeleton rides on Dec. 16. On Dec. 22, it launches a public bobsled program. The two-hour courses are $149. The bobsled experience includes professional pilots. Retired Canadian legend Pierre Lueders, the 1998 Olympic champion and two-time world champion, will be among the guest pilots this winter.

* * * *

The official attendance wasn’t announced. In diplomatic terms, other things must have occupied the collective interest of Whistler locals and visitors. There were more athletes and reporters at the end of the track than there were fans.
Whistler is host of the 2013 world championships.

Riot review was a VANOC reunion

The Sept. 1-published "The Night the City Became a Stadium," the fancy title for the Stanley Cup riot review, has John Furlong and Doug Keefe's names on it. It was ghost-written by Stewart Muir, whose wife is Premier Christy Clark's deputy minister.

Now we know that there was another ex-VANOC executive involved. Terry Wright of IPS Consulting was the executive vice-president for the 2010 Winter Olympics whose portfolios included transportation, accommodation and security. He worked closely with VANOC CEO Furlong. Wright also relied heavily on Vancouver city manager Penny Ballem and Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson for the vital people-moving plan during the Games.

Wright was paid at least $24,000 for his work on the Riot Review, according to records released by the Public Safety and Solicitor General ministry after a Freedom of Information request by me. Not bad for a summer job. Not bad when there are no Olympic gigs happening for either of them.

Furlong and Wright were both in Durban in early July for the International Olympic Committee's annual meeting and left off the coordination commission for the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. The IOC traditionally appoints a top executive from the most-recent completed Games to the panel that oversees planning and organization of the next. There are no Vancouver 2010 executives on the 2018 checkup group.

There is a perception by anyone who observed the 2010 Winter Olympics that both Furlong and Wright owe a debt of gratitude to Ballem and Robertson for handling the urban domain so well during the Games (not to mention, being responsible for the in-receivership Olympic Village). VANOC sources have told me how Vancouver city hall did yeoman's work before and during the Games. One can reasonably question the independence of their review. Why would Furlong and Wright want to stand back and criticize -- without fear or favour -- those who helped them in the defining moments of their careers?

If Premier Christy Clark really wanted an objective investigation of the public authorities' role in the June 15, 2011 Stanley Cup riot, she could have easily hired a retired judge.

Vancouver Riot Review was a VANOC reunion

Riot review due Aug. 31, reviewers without contract

Back on July 15 -- the one-month anniversary of the 2011 Stanley Cup riot -- I told you on this blog that Premier Christy Clark did not have a briefing note about the Stanley Cup riot. She didn't order one, nor did her staff see fit to produce one proactively.

A briefing note is a standard, internal analysis of an issue relevant to government. They're dime a dozen. It's often the first step or last step in the journey of decision-making. If you don't believe me, read more about briefing notes on the B.C. government website.

In a Vancouver Courier story, I listed all the reasons why a briefing note should have been produced after the Stanley Cup riot. It wasn't just a problem for Mayor Gregor Robertson and the City of Vancouver. It was a problem for the British Columbia government, too.

Well, wonders never cease. On Aug. 25, I learned that there is another dearth of post-riot paperwork. This time, it has to do with the co-chairs of the Vancouver Riot Review, former Nova Scotia deputy minister Doug Keefe and VANOC chief executive John Furlong.

Their review of the events of June 15, ordered by Clark, is due Aug. 31. As of Aug. 24, they had no contract! It appears that they were simply handed a copy of the June 20 press release and told they'd be reimbursed for their time and costs later.

This is contrary to the way a sophisticated, business-like government normally works. Government normally "papers" everything, with agreements of all sorts. Signatures, witnesses, etc. Not so anymore?

Maybe this is simply the way the Christy Clark Show works.

Read more below.

PSS-2011-01129

The Vancouver Olympics Cables: Day 3

From Feb. 14, 2010, as published April 28, 2011 by WikiLeaks

10VANCOUVER66 2010-02-14 21:09 2011-04-28 00:12 UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Consulate Vancouver

UNCLAS VANCOUVER 000066

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
STATE FOR DS/TIA
STATE FOR DS/DSS/DO
STATE FOR DS/P/MECU
STATE FOR DS/DO/P
STATE FOR DS/ICI/CI
STATE FOR DS/T/ATA
STATE FOR DS/TIA/ITA
STATE FOR DS/TIA/PII
STATE FOR DS/TIA/CC
STATE FOR S/CT
STATE FOR CA/OCS/ACS/WHA
STATE FOR DS/IP/WHA
STATE FOR WHA/CAN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC KOLY CASC CA PTER AMGT PINR OVIP
SUBJECT: Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: Situation Report #4

¶1. (SBU) The following report provides security-related
information for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games as of noon
on February 14, 2010. Please visit the following link for
additional classified reporting:
https://nol.nctc.sgov.gov/ng/cgi-bin/nctcHome .cgi?event=Vancouver_2
¶010. The interagency USG Joint Operations Center can be contacted
on a 24-hour basis at 604-692-2509, ext 4013.



SECURITY ISSUES



Olympic Protests:



¶2. (SBU) February 13 Protest Activity - Approximately 250
individuals - many of them affiliated with so-called "Black Bloc"
anarchist groups - engaged in acts of vandalism during the "Heart
Attack" march, which was apparently part of a broader "2010
Autonomous Day of Action." One group threw red paint at the Hudson
Bay Company store at Granville and Robson Streets and smashed two
windows with a newspaper box. In a similar incident, the Toronto
Dominion Bank sustained damage to one of its street-level windows.
Newspaper boxes, rubbish bins, and caf???? furniture were also
dragged
into the street at various locations to obstruct traffic. Broken
windows and spray paint graffiti on cars and buses were reported at
other locations. Vancouver Police arrested at least seven for
attempted assault at West Georgia and Cardero Streets. The Lions
Gate Bridge was also temporarily closed to vehicular traffic due to
reports that protestors were moving in that direction. The bridge
was never affected and later reopened.

¶3. (SBU) Current Protest Activity - The 19th Annual Women's
March will take place from noon to 4 p.m. today. The march will
begin at the Carnegie Community Centre and proceed through Downtown
Eastside. This event is not Olympics-related, and anti-Olympics
protesters are discouraged from attending. Vancouver's 36th Annual
Chinese New Year Parade, expected to draw up to 20,000 people,
coincides with the march.



¶4. (SBU) Anticipated Protest Activity - Another "2010
Autonomous Day of Action" is scheduled for Monday, February 15. As
evidenced in Saturday's demonstrations, small groups of anarchists
may engage in acts of vandalism and confrontations with local law
enforcement. An "Anti-War and Anti-Militarization Moving
Spectacle" will take place at the Vancouver Art Gallery (Georgia
Street side) at 6 p.m.



Incidents:



¶5. (SBU) Subject Detained at Opening Ceremonies - An
individual who attempted to enter the International Olympic
Committee presidential box inside BC Place during Friday's Opening
Ceremonies using fake accreditation was detained. While the motive
is unclear, the subject is not a known activist and did not appear
to have malicious intent.



Threats:

¶6. (SBU) At this time, there are no known specific, credible
terrorist threats against the Vancouver Olympics.



¶7. (SBU/LES) Alleged threat to Olympics deemed non-credible -
According to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) information,
Vancouver police were notified that an inmate at Pinellas County
Jail, Florida, conversed with a prisoner of Arabic origin regarding
a possible terrorist attack on February 20 involving an aircraft
flown into the main area of the Olympics in Vancouver (NFI). The
FBI ascertained no individuals matching the alleged Arabic inmate
are presently incarcerated. This threat is considered non-credible.






SECURITY OPERATIONS



¶8. (SBU) U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is scheduled to attend
several Olympic events in Vancouver today. The Vice President is
scheduled to depart Vancouver on Monday, February 15.





PUBLIC AFFAIRS/PUBLIC DIPLOMACY

¶9. Public affairs staff continued to assist White House
advance with setting up press interviews, with Vice President Biden
taping one interview with NBC Saturday evening, and another with
CBS on Sunday morning. The Globe and Mail's Jane Tabor has
requested an interview with Ambassador Jacobson for early next
week. No press inquiries on Olympic-specific topics.



CONSULAR ISSUES



¶10. There is no significant information or activity to report.

POLITICAL/GENERAL ISSUES



¶11. Vice-President Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen
Harper held a bi-lateral meeting Saturday. They discussed issues
ranging from security to the economy and the upcoming G8 and G20
summits. (Will be reported septel).



¶12. Unseasonably warm weather conditions, fog, and heavy rain
continue to interfere with Olympic competitions. Olympic officials
have been forced to reschedule many outdoor events.



¶13. During a rainstorm on Cypress Mountain, American women's
freestyle mogul skier Hannah Kearney upset Canadian gold medal

hopeful Jenn Heil to unexpectedly take the first US gold medal of
the Games. Canadian efforts to win a gold medal on Canadian soil,
a feat never achieved in the Winter Olympics, has been a constant
feature of Canadian media coverage leading up to the 2010 Games. A
schedule and results of all competitions throughout the Games can
be found at http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-schedule -results/.







.
CHICOLA

The Vancouver Olympic Cables: Day 2

From Feb. 13, 2010, as published April 28, 2011 by WikiLeaks

10VANCOUVER64 2010-02-13 22:10 2011-04-28 00:12 UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Consulate Vancouver

UNCLAS VANCOUVER 000064

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
STATE FOR DS/TIA
STATE FOR DS/DSS/DO
STATE FOR DS/P/MECU
STATE FOR DS/DO/P
STATE FOR DS/ICI/CI
STATE FOR DS/T/ATA
STATE FOR DS/TIA/ITA
STATE FOR DS/TIA/PII
STATE FOR DS/TIA/CC
STATE FOR S/CT
STATE FOR CA/OCS/ACS/WHA
STATE FOR DS/IP/WHA
STATE FOR WHA/CAN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC KOLY CASC CA PTER AMGT PINR OVIP
SUBJECT: Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: Situation Report #3

¶1. (SBU) The following report provides security-related
information for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games as of noon
on February 13, 2010. Please visit the following link for
additional classified reporting:
https://nol.nctc.sgov.gov/ng/cgi-bin/nctcHome .cgi?event=Vancouver_2
¶010. The interagency USG Joint Operations Center can be contacted
on a 24-hour basis at 604-692-2509, ext 4013.



SECURITY ISSUES



Olympic Protests:



¶2. (SBU) March to BC Place Mostly Peaceful - The "Take Back
Our City" march at 3 p.m. yesterday, February 12, drew an estimated
1,000 people before police stopped it near BC Place, the site of
the Opening Ceremonies. Several protesters threw small items and
police arrested a few demonstrators, but the march was mostly
peaceful and dispersed by 7:40 p.m.



¶3. (SBU) Current Protest Activity - Bands of protesters, some
affiliated with the "Heart Attack" march and the "2010 Autonomous
Day of Action," are reportedly circulating throughout the city,
some numbering up to 250. Reports of violence and property damage -
in the form smashing windows of retail stores, damaging cars, and
throwing objects at police officers - are being received. Police
escorts are accompanying several groups, and anti-riot police are
stationed at key locations in downtown Vancouver. The Vancouver
Police Department and Royal Canadian Mounted Police have made

several arrests.



¶4. (SBU) Anticipated Protest Activity - The 19th Annual
Women's March is scheduled from noon to 4 p.m. tomorrow, February
¶14. The march will begin at the Carnegie Community Centre and
proceed through the Downtown Eastside. Anti-Olympic protesters are
discouraged from attending.



Incidents:



¶5. (SBU) There are no incidents to report.



Threats:



¶6. (SBU) At this time, there are no known specific, credible
terrorist threats against the Vancouver Olympics.



SECURITY OPERATIONS



¶7. (SBU) U.S. Vice President Joe Biden arrived at Whistler
Mountain today and is attending several Olympic events.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS/PUBLIC DIPLOMACY



¶8. The presence of Vice President Biden was mentioned several times
during and after the Olympics' opening ceremony, and the Vice
President was briefly shown on-screen during the march-in of Team
USA on CTV. Prior to the opening ceremony, the VP's meet and greet
with Team USA athletes was covered by Getty, NBC and Associated
Press journalists, which post's public affairs staff worked to get
into the event.





CONSULAR ISSUES



¶9. There is no significant information or activity to report.



POLITICAL/GENERAL ISSUES



¶10. The Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics officially opened with a 3
hour celebration at BC Place. During a dramatic display of lights
and music, athletes from around the world were greeted by tens of
thousands of energetic spectators, as well as international

leaders, and celebrities. The elaborate ceremonies placed a special
emphasis on the diversity of Canadian cultural history, especially
aboriginal.



¶11. Post Political/Economic Officer Beau Fancher observed
anti-Olympic protests in downtown Vancouver immediately prior to
Friday's Opening Ceremonies. An estimated 1,000 protesters, many
carrying banners and yelling slogans of various causes from
pro-environment, pro-aboriginal, to anti-capitalist, protested the
Opening Ceremonies. The march was met by massed police lines in a
sometimes tense, but otherwise peaceful demonstration. The
protesters were contained and unable to seriously impede access to
the Ceremonies. The protest was centered at the meeting point of a
main entrance to the Ceremonies and the provincial representative
Alberta House. Many of the protesters carried signs and banners
critical of the controversial development of Alberta oil reserves,
known as "tar-sands." A senior representative from the BC Civil
Liberties Association, a group that has been highly critical of
Vancouver Police Department's (VPD) planned handling of potential
protests, expressed praise for VPD's "measured" response to the
protesters at the Opening Ceremonies.



¶12. Following arrival in Vancouver, Vice President Biden and rest
of the Presidential Delegation attended an afternoon USOC hosted US
athletes' pep rally. The Vice President addressed approximately70
US athletes, wishing them well in their upcoming competitions and
taking the opportunity to speak with each team individually while
taking team photos. The Vice President and Dr. Biden then attended
the GOC hosted Heads of Delegation reception before proceeding to
the Opening Ceremonies. Vice President Biden and the rest of the
Presidential Delegation attended the Opening Ceremonies and stayed
through the entirety of the festivities. Competitions begin this

morning with the first medals awarded in the final round of men's
ski jumping. A schedule and results of all competitions throughout
the Games can be found at
http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-schedule -results/.
CHICOLA

The Vancouver Olympics Cables: Day 1

From Feb. 12, 2010, as published April 28, 2011 by WikiLeaks

10VANCOUVER62 2010-02-12 22:10 2011-04-28 00:12 UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Consulate Vancouver

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
STATE FOR DS/TIA
STATE FOR DS/DSS/DO
STATE FOR DS/P/MECU
STATE FOR DS/DO/P
STATE FOR DS/ICI/CI
STATE FOR DS/T/ATA
STATE FOR DS/TIA/ITA
STATE FOR DS/TIA/PII
STATE FOR DS/TIA/CC
STATE FOR S/CT
STATE FOR CA/OCS/ACS/WHA
STATE FOR DS/IP/WHA
STATE FOR WHA/CAN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC KOLY CASC CA PTER AMGT PINR OVIP
SUBJECT: Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: Situation Report #2

¶1. (SBU) The following report provides security-related
information for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games as of noon
on February 12, 2010. Please visit the following link for
additional classified reporting:
https://nol.nctc.sgov.gov/ng/cgi-bin/nctcHome .cgi?event=Vancouver_2
¶010. The interagency USG Joint Operations Center can be contacted
on a 24-hour basis at 604-692-2509, ext 4013.



SECURITY ISSUES



Olympic Protests:



¶2. (SBU) Minor Disruption of Olympic Torch Relay - As anticipated,
the Olympic Torch Relay encountered minor disruptions as it
circulated through urban Vancouver this morning. At one point, the
relay halted as a knot of activists blocked a downtown
thoroughfare, after which local security personnel and Olympics
officials re-routed it. As of this writing, protest activity has
been light, and there have been no arrests or incidents of property
damage or violence.



¶3. (SBU) Anticipated Protest Activity - The Opening Ceremonies
commences at 6 p.m. today at BC Place Stadium; anti-Olympic
factions - including umbrella organizations like No2010 and the
Olympics Resistance Network - are planning a 3 p.m. "Take Back Our
City" march from the Vancouver Art Gallery to the stadium.
Canadian officials expect between 1,000 and 1,500 protesters during
the rally.

Incidents:



¶4. (SBU) Suspicious Package at SeaBus Terminal Rendered Safe - A
suspicious package was identified Thursday evening in North
Vancouver at Lonsdale quay near the north shore SeaBus terminal.
SeaBus (water taxi) service between Vancouver and North Vancouver
was suspended while RCMP EOD personnel examined the package. There
was additional concern because the package was located near fuel
tanks. RCMP, utilizing a water cannon, neutralized the package and
determined it contained fishing rods and equipment. The SeaBus
terminal subsequently reopened.



¶5. (SBU) U.S. citizen deported from Canada - The Canadian Border
Security Agency deported AmCit Gregory Marks to the United States
after finding an inert hand grenade and pornographic literature in
his vehicle. Marks also possessed a typed paper outlining a
scenario for paragliding into the opening ceremonies of the
Vancouver Winter Olympics. The scenario describes launching from
Whistler with the goal of gaining notoriety. An FBI interview
determined Marks was emotionally disturbed and has no ties to
domestic militia groups.



Threats:



¶6. (SBU) At this time, there are no known specific, credible
terrorist threats against the Vancouver Olympics.


SECURITY OPERATIONS



¶7. (SBU) U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is wheels down in Vancouver
today, February 12, and is scheduled to stay at the Vancouver
Fairmont Hotel.



PUBLIC AFFAIRS/PUBLIC DIPLOMACY



¶8. Public Affairs staff was fully engaged today in attending to
media needs surrounding the opening ceremonies. PA staff from
Mission Canada worked with press staff from the Office of the Vice
President to manage press at the arrival of Air Force 2, the
athletes' meet-and-greet with the Vice President and Ambassador,
and the GOC reception for Heads of delegation. Call volume to the
Public Affairs telephone line in the OCO was light.



CONSULAR ISSUES



¶9. Whistler ACS reported that an alpine skier on the U.S. Olympic
Team was injured in a practice run at Whistler. She has been
evacuated by helicopter from Whistler. DS FLO reports the Amcit
probably had a concussion and was evacuated from Whistler most
likely as a preventative measure. ACS has no further information
about her situation at this time.

¶10. ACS reported the Consulate visit of an Amcit claiming USG
officials had promised her "Olympian" status. ACS spoke to her
mother who indicated that her daughter is not taking her
medication. RSO was able to confirm through CBP that the Amcit
has a return ticket to Ohio on 13 February. ACS will remain alert
to any further developments.



POLITICAL/GENERAL ISSUES



¶11. Celebratory atmosphere in Vancouver is increasing as the
Olympic flame makes it way around the city streets. The flame
crossed over the Lion's Gate Bridge a little before 0700 PST.
Shortly afterward, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
carried the flame through the Park, passing off to past Olympian
Sebastian Coe. The flame will continue a meandering movement
through the city until arriving at the Opening Ceremonies at BC
Place shortly after 2000 PST.



¶12. The only sad news on an otherwise festive day was the report
out of Whistler of the death of Georgian Luge athlete Nodar
Kumaritashvili. Kumaritashvili was on a practice run at the
Whistler Sliding Center when his sled veered out of control up the
side wall at the fastest part of the track. The athlete was thrown
from the sled into a pillar and died of his injuries a short time
later. It was estimated he was traveling at nearly 90 mph at the
time of the accident.



¶13. Vice President Biden and the rest of the Presidential
Delegation to the Opening Ceremonies arrived safely in Vancouver at

noon 2/12. They have a full program in the afternoon, including a
Meet and Greet with U.S. Olympic Athletes and attendance at the GOC
hosted Heads of Delegation reception. The final event is the
Opening Ceremonies, which are scheduled to begin at 1800 PST and
are estimated to last three hours. Preliminary round competition
started this morning in Whistler for the men's individual ski
jumping. Competitions begin in earnest tomorrow morning with the
first medals awarded in the final round of men's ski jumping. A
schedule and results of all competitions throughout the Games can
be found at http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-schedule -results/.
CHICOLA

More Village idiocy

Yet another chapter was written in the history of the Vancouver Olympic Village on Feb. 26 with a pro-housing protest turned awry.

I'm not in Vancouver this weekend. I'm instead in Los Angeles, where the 1984 Olympic Village was a truly sustainable project that left a legacy of student housing.

The Vancouver project was marketed as sustainable. Sure, it has green roofing, energy use monitors and other pioneering features. But, until proven otherwise, it is a financial disaster. Activists are also quick to remind us that it is also not socially sustainable. The promised 252 affordable units were halved.

The tent village threatened for Feb. 12 didn't happen. It was delayed two weeks, but is unlikely to become an ongoing protest. The weather and the police may have the last say. Here are two reports from those involved in the incident.

From Tristan Markle of VAN.ACT at 6:16 p.m.

On February 26th 2011, housing activists and community groups set up a tent city in the public square in the Athlete's Village. The police shut it down. The activists moved to an unused lot near the Athlete's Village and the police once again kicked them off the land. Determined not to be intimidated by the police and to still draw attention to the lack of social housing at the Athlete's Village and on the Downtown Eastside, activists have now, as of 6:00pm, occupied a large suite on the main floor in the Athlete's Village.

Text message from activist Alissa Westergard-Thorpe at 8:36 p.m.

"Nine or 10 arrests for break and enter and assault by trespass (not for violence but only criminal charge that exists for trespass), for all -- as we heard it anyway. Person in Olympic Village suites opened door on 1st between Ontario and Manitoba and as many got in as could or wanted to before shutout. We protested outside and they put up signs inside and took cops a while to arrest them. Before that, 100 plus people moved by cops as (the people) tried to tent in a couple places and cops blocked entry to Creekside centre. No tents stayed up, replanning before next try."

Were you a witness? Were you a protester? Do you live in the Village on False Creek? I want to hear from you. Please email bob.mackin@sunmedia.ca

Where are they now?

Some called them Smurfs. Others simply "Blue Jackets". They were the core employees of the Vancouver Olympic committee. Many of them gathered at the Vancouver Convention Centre for a reunion on Feb. 12, after the Olympic cauldron on Jack Poole Plaza was re-activated.

VANOC executives and management have gone their separate ways. They appear to have followed three different paths. Some are continuing in the world of sport, others were appointed to senior positions with British Columbia Crown corporations while several have embarked boldly on new ventures.

SPORT

CEO John Furlong is now chairman of the Own the Podium advisory board and a director of Whistler Blackcomb, which is now traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Furlong's main source of income, for the short-term, appears to be as a motivational speaker. His Patriot Hearts memoir is key to that strategy. Furlong was named to the board of the Rocky Mountaineer tourist train in March.

Furlong is a former CEO of SportBC, the province's umbrella for amateur sports organizations. VANOC's vice-president of sport Tim Gayda was appointed CEO last year.

The only senior VANOC executive to have a senior appointment with the International Olympic Committee is chief financial officer John McLaughlin. McLaughlin was appointed to the 2018 Winter Games evaluation commission. The temporary appointment means trips to Annecy, France, Munich, Germany and PyeongChang, South Korea. McLaughlin is the commission's financial specialist.

Director of ice sports/general manager hockey Denis Hainault has a similar job with Sochi 2014.

Paula Kim was in charge of press operations at B.C. Place Stadium, the opening, closing and medals ceremonies venue. She is senior communications manager with the International Triathlon Union in North Vancouver, the only summer Olympic sports federation based in Canada.

Brand creative director Ali Gardiner is now vice-president of marketing and game presentation with Canucks Sports and Entertainment. Lawyer Chris Gear now heads CSE's legal department.

Canada's next sports mega-event is the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto. Vice-president of workforce Allen Vansen is the senior vice-president of transportation, security and village for the Toronto 2015 organizing committee. He was appointed days after the riot-marred G20 summit.

Director of merchandising and licensing Dennis Kim was appointed the Canadian Olympic Committee's executive director brand marketing.

Jason Macnaughton went to the Vancouver Whitecaps of Major League Soccer as communications director and wrapped up a one-year contract March 31, leaving the reins to fellow VANOC alumnus Carly Thorson Jokic.

CROWN CORPS

Top level executives have made their way into jobs with British Columbia Crown corporations. This demonstrates the influence of Premier Gordon Campbell.

Construction executive vice-president Dan Doyle: BC Hydro chairman was first in summer 2009. Deputy CEO Dave Cobb followed in May 2010 to become the power monopoly's CEO. Cobb, in turn, hired VANOC vice-president of communications Renee Smith-Valade, Chris Brumwell, Greg
Alexis and Jennifer Young in a major overhaul of the communications department.

Chief Information Officer Ward Chapin now has the same job with ICBC. Workforce and sustainability executive vice-president Donna Wilson is Vice-president of industry services and sustainability at WorkSafeBC. Government relations and celebrations executive vice-president David Guscott is the E-Comm 9-1-1 CEO.

NEW VENTURES

The best advice imparted by Furlong to the Sochi 2014 organizing committee at the June 2010 knowledge transfer sessions in Russia was to "stick together."

That's precisely what several VANOC employees have done, creating their own post-Games clusters.

Vice-president marketing Andrea Shaw is managing partner of the Twentyten Group. Shaw's company in the Landing in Gastown became the post-October 2010 home of VANOC, or what was left of it. Coincidentally, Twentyten Group's office is one floor below where the Vancouver 2010 Bid Corporation was based when it was awarded the 2010 Games on July 2, 2003.

Shaw is joined by commercial rights manager Bill Cooper, who is a senior partner with Twentyten. Associates include Mags Doehler, Breedon Grauer, Catherine Locke, Rob Mullowney, Kala Polman-Tuin and Stephanie Cornish.

Paralympics director Dena Coward leads a group at the Rick Hansen Foundation's Man in Motion 25th Anniversary Celebration. Torch relays director Jim Richards is coordinating Hansen's international tour. VANOC communications staffers Suzanne Reeves, Mary Fraser and John Gibson have joined them.

Vice-president of partnerships and strategy Taleeb Noormohamed is president of e-learning concern Serebra Learning Corp, and running as the Liberal Party candidate in the May 2 federal election in North Vancouver. Director of ticketing Chris Stairs is Serebra's vice-president of sales, while manager of partnerships Matthew Bonguorno is sales manager and torch relay communications manager Jenee Elborne is director of communications.

Did I miss anyone? Let me know: bob.mackin@sunmedia.ca

Bonuses that go bust and disappearing trust

Number two on the list of the five corporate values adopted by the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics organizing committee was “trust”.

According to Webster, trust is defined as:

1 a: assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something; b: one in which confidence is placed
2 a: dependence on something future or contingent : hope; b: reliance on future payment for property (as merchandise) delivered : credit
3 a : a property interest held by one person for the benefit of another; b : a combination of firms or corporations formed by a legal agreement; especially : one that reduces or threatens to reduce competition
4 archaic : trustworthiness
5 a (1) : a charge or duty imposed in faith or confidence or as a condition of some relationship (2) : something committed or entrusted to one to be used or cared for in the interest of another.

VANOC disclosed in its report for the year ended July 31, 2008 that it created a trust on July 1, 2008 “for the purposes of holding certain of the assets of the Employee Completion and Performance Plan [the “Plan”]. Employees were to be rewarded, based on length of service and seniority, once when they finished their assignments and again several months later.

“The purpose of the Plan is to support the retention of employees through to the end of the term of their employment agreement (“completion entitlement”) and reward achievement of organizational performance results. The purpose of the Trust is to hold the contributions to be made by VANOC relating to the completion entitlement of eligible Operations employees. VANOC has accrued $8,600 at July 31, 2008 related to the completion entitlement, which will be paid into the Trust once the Trust has been fully set up. Transactions between VANOC and the Trust will be measured at fair market value at the date of contribution. VANOC has an economic interest in the Trust as it is a named beneficiary together with the eligible employees, and is entitled only to the interest, capital gains and dividends earned on the Trust’s assets.”

By Oct. 31, 2008, VANOC “accrued” $9.8 million. Another $731,000 was added by Jan. 31, 2009 when it stood at $10.601 million. By April 30, 2009, it was $14.534 million.

Three months later -- when the fiscal year ended July 31, 2009 -- the “fair value of the trust’s assets” was $16.3 million.

The last citation was in the Dec. 21, 2009-released report for the period that ended Oct. 31, 2009 when the trust was worth $17.774 million.

There was no mention in the Dec. 17, 2010-published, post-Games financial report.

On Jan. 6, 2011, ex-employees were notified via an email memo from chief financial officer that there would be no final instalment of the staff bonuses. Happy new year!

One trust disappeared and another trust was broken.

That's how it ended. How did it begin?

VANOC planned to reward staff with bonuses, so as to prevent an exodus in the months before the 2010 Winter Olympics. The $44.576 million in the May 2007 business plan and budget for "additional compensation costs" was branded a "slush fund" by then-NDP Olympics critic Harry Bains.

The story had a second go-round in October 2009 when the $30 million Employee Completion and Performance Plan caused VANOC to go into damage-control mode while preparing for the Olympic torch relay.

"This helps us reassure our employees -- particularly in the face of a challenging economy -- that they can complete their commitments without the pressure of trying to find a new job or being recruited in the final months before the Games," said a prepared statement from deputy CEO Dave Cobb in October 2009.

Shortly after he arrived at Olympia, Greece's Amalia Hotel for the Oct. 22, 2009 torch-lighting, CEO John Furlong mentioned that he paid a visit to the publisher of The Vancouver Sun (a VANOC sponsor and no relation to Sun Media) to express his dismay at the paper's coverage of the issue. It was an insult to the hardworking men and women of Vancouver 2010, Furlong said.

It's no surprise that the bonuses went bust. We eventually found out a week before Christmas 2010 that VANOC got a $187.8 million bailout from taxpayers in order to show a balanced $1.884 billion operating budget. No taxpayers' money was supposed to be used for operations. But the recession happened and VANOC was not prepared. Dollars were being shifted from department to department and account to account. Because of one of my sources, we now also know that employee bonuses were a casualty.

Certainly there may be some ex-VANOC workers who qualified for a bonus who may be feeling jilted about the post-Christmas memo. But there are many more taxpayers wondering: Why didn't VANOC talk about this? It's evidence that the organizing committee made sacrifices like the rest of us.

Ken Dobell, the chair of the finance committee, did not want to comment. McLaughlin did not directly reply to my queries. Spokeswoman Renee Smith-Valade claimed to be conveying a message from McLaughlin that:

"Page 8 of the final financial report indicates that compensation costs totaled $308.3 million across the organization for the duration of the project and that these costs were embedded in the reported cost of each division. The funds paid out of the trust were included in this total as they were part of the compensation costs."

Not good enough. Show me.

This begs some simple, reasonable, key questions for VANOC.

1) What was the financial standing of the trust from Nov. 1, 2009 onward?

2) After diligently reporting the evolution of the trust since it was established, why was it omitted from the final report? (If you’re an eligible ex-VANOC employee, you are a beneficiary and have the right to ask for the statements of this trust.)

3) Was auditor Ernst and Young supplied sufficient information about the state of the trust after Oct. 31, 2009?

4) Finally, what else are you hiding from Vancouverites, British Columbians and Canadians?

As usual, I gladly accept answers at bob.mackin@sunmedia.ca and even plain, brown envelopes at 554 E. 15th Ave., Vancouver, B.C. V5T 2R5

Vancouver 2010: more to come

This has been an extraordinary year for Canadian sport.

But the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics were not just about sport. That is what I have sought to convey in this blog and will continue to do so as long as there are readers like you interested in the stories I have to tell.

Canada's Games. The Sea-to-Sky Games. The Games of the Great Recession. The Bailout Games. Whatever you call it, Vancouver 2010 will continue to have ripple effects from coast-to-coast-to-coast in 2011 and beyond. The costs, the legacies, the behind-the-scenes secrets. Three words: More to come. The first anniversary is rapidly approaching on Feb. 12, 2011.

The biggest, most-expensive event in Canadian history was also about politics, economics, security and culture. Will Canadian athletes remain a force to be reckoned with in winter sports or become contenders in summer sports? Is Vancouver a better place, after having held the Games? Will the city's poverty and homelessness ever be solved? What were the real costs to taxpayers? Was it all worth it?

The event ended when the cauldron was extinguished, but not the questions. Thanks again for reading and interacting.

May 2011 be a year of less fear, less greed, more peace and more fair play.

Happy New Year.

* * * * *
On the last day of 2010, I am dedicating my posts on this blog this year to Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili, Minnesota bus driver Dale Roberge and my family dog, Lucky.

Kumaritashvili, 21, lost his life on Feb. 12, 2010, the opening day of the Games, during a luge training run at the Whistler Sliding Centre. Roberge, 71, died Feb. 22, 2010 while working in the Vancouver Olympic Bus Network. Lucky succumbed to liver failure Dec. 20, 2010. It was a difficult Christmas without her, but I am thankful for the kind words of friends. She was called Lucky, but I was among the lucky ones who shared 14 years with the world's friendliest dog. Consider donating to the SPCA.

Twenty questions for Vancouver 2010

An open letter to the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games:

As you fade away, after claiming a balanced $1.884 billion budget, I thought I would mark the occasion with 20 questions. This is not a game, but a last-ditch attempt to get answers. You see, the more you've tried to stonewall me and lead me astray over the years, the more determined I get. VANOC has proven time and again that its priority is to protect information, rather than share it. It doesn't have to be this way and it's not too late to be informative.

So, I have 20 more questions after the Dec. 17, 2010 news conference at the BC Hydro Customer Centre (right). Please answer to the best of your ability (and I know you are able):

1 - Why did it take so long to publish this 28-page financial report? Salt Lake 2002 organizers did their first report two months after their Games ($40 million profit). Expo 86 finances were released just over a month after the Fair ended ($349 million deficit).

2 - Why were no quarterly reports issued between Dec. 21, 2009 and Dec 17, 2010, after the organization dutifully adhered to the pledge of quarterly disclosures in the 2002 Multiparty Agreement and the May 2007 promise to citizens that the organization would be transparent?

3 - Why all the shoddy editing? Sponsor Millennium Development is referred to as "Millenium." B.C. Lottery Corporation is called "B.C. Lotteries Corporation." Jet Set Sports is called “JetSet Sports.” Certainly the correct spellings of those companies would have been boldly printed on the cheques they sent you for their sponsorship fees and ticket purchases. Assuming, of course, Millennium sent cheques and they were honoured.

4 - Why are the names of directors and senior managers missing from the report? It’s standard for an annual report to include at least the names of the board chairman and chief executive. The VANOC report doesn’t even mention Rusty Goepel or John Furlong.

Your sponsors make sure their shareholders know who is making the decisions. For example: Teck, who provided the metal for the Olympic and Paralympic medals, has a group photo of its directors on page 26 of its 2009 report, followed by brief bios.

Bombardier, who made the Olympic and Paralympic torches, lists directors, committee rosters and senior management on page 207 of its 2009-2010 annual report. The directors’ photos and short bios are on pages 20 and 21. Vancouver International Airport Authority’s board roster is on page 66 of its 2009 report, but it also does a Governance Report. Hey, there’s a certain director-at-large named Ruston Goepel whose term expires in 2010.

Those are just three examples. By not listing your names, you only breed suspicion. But if the Olympics were as successful as you’d like us to believe, they’d have certainly been there, right?



5 - Before noon on April 4, 2010, there was a paper-shredding truck number 533 from Shred-It in your parking lot, next to the low-rise building's entrance. Click the photo to the right to enlarge. What records were being picked up for shredding? VANOC, we know, was not subject to Freedom of Information or Document Retention statutes.

6 - After the B.C. Place Stadium opening and closing ceremonies, the attendance provided reporters who asked was 55,000 to 60,000. Why then only 87,769 total tickets sold for the shows?

7 - You sold 642,223 hockey tickets for $111.9 million. You scored! How many of those were in luxury suites? Because of the recession, you had a hard time selling what you thought would be an easy sell and there were bargains. A box that holds 20 people was going for $2,800 and up. You even published the price list.

8 - Salt Lake 2002 organizers disclosed the full attendance sport-by-sport. The grand total was 1,525,118 tickets sold. Will you kindly tell us how many tickets were sold for each sport or at each venue? We know hockey, but you haven’t told us about figure skating, short-track speedskating, long-track speedskating, curling, snowboarding, freestyle skiing, alpine skiing, ski jumping, cross-country skiing, nordic combined, bobsled, skeleton and luge.

9 - The British Columbia and federal governments gave $187.8 million to VANOC operations. When the business plan was published May 8, 2007, John Furlong said clearly: "The $1.63 billion Games operating budget is funded entirely by the private sector, it is not funded by the taxpayers... and although we're projecting a balanced budget I think we all hope that we will leave a positive financial legacy." Relive the moments Furlong said that in the video below.

There is no "positive financial legacy" - aka "profit - but do tell us when the government bailout began. You really did need it because the May 2007 business plan incorrectly assumed "the Canadian economy will remain relatively strong, with no recession, through Games time."

What is the full and complete tally for all payments made by all government partners, including tickets, advertising, etc.? There were five municipal, nine provincial and three territorial partners.

10 - The $50 million increase in the transportation budget to $173.5 million was poorly blamed on changes in accounting. Yet I see the same language in the May 2007 business plan that I see now in the final report. Bus systems cost $92.6 million after a lengthy dispute with Gameday Management Group was finally resolved in mediation in early November. Was the cost of transportation underestimated in 2007?

11 - The Sustainability Report tells us that the posting of the ethics commissioner's final report to the VANOC website didn't happen because the website is no longer being updated. Could you send a news release via Canada Newswire, post one on 2010 Legacies Now or inform the media on your list about this report?

12 - The Sustainability Report says on page 33: “VANOC required that all directors file, at least annually, a Declaration of Interest by Directors. Senior managers were also required to file such documentation, only once, in 2008, though with a requirement that they proactively update their original filing if their circumstances changed.”

On page 35 it says: “Survey of senior management regarding compliance completed in Q4 2009 for report to audit committee on December 14, 2009. On May 31, 2010, final survey completed with remaining senior managers for report to audit committee at its meeting in early June 2010.

"Declarations of Interest by Directors completed in 2009; exceptions included two directors, whose declarations were received in 2010. VANOC’s procurement team was provided with updates about entities in which directors declared an interest.”

Could you please tell us about the directors, management and the entities in which they have interest? The London 2012 Olympic Delivery Authority, which fulfills a function similar to VANOC, posts what's called a "register of interests" on its website below the biography of each director.

13 - The Sustainability Report stops at April 30, 2010, yet major environmental works were continuing at venues into the summer. The Paralympics, you must remember, ended on March 21. Remediation at Hillcrest, UBC, Cypress, Creekside and the Callaghan Valley was still active. Giant piles of straw existed at Cypress in late May. Biologists you hired to trap mice seen escaping from delivery trucks in February were applying to the provincial government for permits in June. Why, if work was not finished, is this Sustainability Report the last? The previous sustainability report spanned Aug. 1, 2008 to July 31, 2009.

14 - Previous Sustainability Reports included information (though never enough to be satisfactory) from Intertek Group regarding the offshore manufacture of souvenir goods. Page 93 of the previous report even shows 79 factories -- including 57 in China -- were used to make Vancouver 2010 items. You even mentioned on a few occasions that factories had not been in compliance, but were given a second chance. Why, then, is the final report missing this information?

15 - The Sustainability Report is 138 pages. The Games final financial report -- which covers Sept. 30, 2003 to July 31, 2010 -- is just 28 pages. Why is one so fat and the other so thin? By comparison, the report for the fiscal year that ended July 31, 2009 was 31 pages.

16 - There was a $2 million loss because criminals used stolen credit card numbers to buy thousands of tickets on the Fan-to-Fan Marketplace. VANOC was the first organizing committee-to sanction a ticket scalping website. Each transaction was subject to a 20 percent fee (10 percent charged the buyer and 10 percent charged the seller). What was the total net revenue for this site and how many tickets were sold via this channel?

17 - These Games were supposed to be a step forward for Canadian aboriginals. The Four Host First Nations were instrumental in the success. You paid $3.5 million for their pavilion, yet the number of aboriginals on staff seems rather low. The report says only 1 percent of people on staff "self-identified" as being aboriginal. Could you convert that percentage to a number? We already know there was no full-blooded aboriginal athlete competing for Team Canada.

18 - The Olympic Truce was a delicate issue for VANOC, because the Canadian government is spending billions to put our men and women in harm's way in Afghanistan. There have been 154 deaths, including 24-year-old Cpl. Joshua Caleb Baker of Edmonton, who died at a weapons training range near Kandahar on Feb. 12, 2010, opening day of the Games. When VANOC did its part for the Olympic truce, it decided to send sports equipment in so-called spirit boxes to communities in the Canadian Arctic. What became of that program? That information is not reflected in the report.

19 - Certain expensive works were undertaken at B.C. Place Stadium that were never contemplated in the bid stage. The Sustainability Report laughingly claims there were “limited modifications to an existing facility.” In fact, the bid book said no extra money would be spent on capital upgrades there. Things changed when the roof ripped and collapsed on Jan. 5, 2007.

A new roof-heating system by Genivar was installed and in the weeks before the Games, technicians from Riggit were situated on top of the roof around the clock. Oh, there was that time less than a month before the Games when they went for a coffee break and the roof nearly collapsed under rain because the lighting and sound equipment pulled the roof. Then, after the Games, the roof was taken off for replacement. The material isn't biodegradable. Another roof replacement took place at Canada Place. Same material.

Certainly those weren't VANOC construction projects, but VANOC was the most important tenant in both buildings since 1986. Why do those not warrant mention in the Sustainability Report?

20 - Two words: Executive compensation. Four words: Who made how much? I also wonder how many people were working for each executive and how many were given extended leaves for illness or pregnancy.

I kindly look forward to a reply with complete answers to the above questions at the earliest convenience. Do take some time and enjoy the egg nog and yule logs while you ponder the answers. Of course, I do gladly accept plain, brown envelopes without return addresses (Mine is 554 E. 15th Ave., Vancouver, B.C. V5T 2R5).

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

--Bob Mackin

Another chapter in VANOC history about to close

One step closer to the end of the secretive, government-funded agency that organized the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Here's the official media invitation:

Media Advisory – VANOC Board to review final financial and sustainability reports on Friday, Dec. 17

VANCOUVER, Dec 13 /CNW/ - The Board of Directors for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) will meet in downtown Vancouver on Friday, Dec. 17th. The meeting will include a review of the final financial report for the Games and receipt of the final sustainability report. Following the meeting, and assuming their approval, VANOC will hold a media briefing to release the two reports, provide comment and answer questions.
Media are welcome to participate in the media briefing in person or by teleconference. If attending in person, please advise VANOC by Wednesday, Dec. 15th at vanoc.media@gmail.com to help organizers ensure adequate space and technical preparations are in place.

When: Friday, December 17, 2010
Approximately 11:30 am (Pacific Time)

Timing note: (Please note that the media briefing might start at this time or possibly later based on the duration of the meeting.)

Where: BC Hydro offices
333 Dunsmuir Street
Vancouver, BC
Media registration will be in the lobby at street level

By phone: 866-226-1792 or 416-340-2216

Who: Rusty Goepel, VANOC Board Chair
John Furlong, VANOC CEO
John McLaughlin, VANOC Chief Financial Officer
Terry Wright, VANOC Executive VP Services and Games Operations
Ann Duffy, VANOC Corporate Sustainability Officer


VANOC would like to thank BC Hydro for providing office space for the Board meeting and news conference as part of its sponsorship for the 2010 Winter Games.

Previous reports:
Past reports that include a comparable level of details to the reports expected to be issued on Friday are available at the following links: Financial (January 2009): http://www.vancouver2010.com/more-2010-information/about-vanoc/business-plan-and-games-budget/ Sustainability (2008-09): http://www.vancouver2010.com/more-2010-information/sustainability/reports-and-resources/sustainability-report/

BC Hydro and VANOC share an interesting relationship. VANOC's executive vice-president of construction, Dan Doyle, became the Crown corporation's chairman last year. In May 2010, VANOC deputy CEO Dave Cobb became the BC Hydro CEO. One of his first hires was Renee Smith-Valade, the VANOC vice-president of communications. Smith-Valade, in turn, hired ex-VANOC communications staffers Chris Brumwell, Greg Alexis and Jennifer Young.

VANOC has made Canadians wait until the last Friday before Christmas -- when shopping and holidays are top-of-mind -- to make its first financial disclosure since Dec. 21, 2009. The Games operating budget is expected to break-even, but with a great deal of unforeseen help from taxpayers.

By comparison, the B.C. government released the post-Expo 86 financial report just over a month after the world's fair ended. On Nov. 17, 1986, Finance minister Mel Couvelier said the fair’s deficit was $349 million. On Oct. 9, 1987, the final deficit was reported as $336.7 million.

Other arms of the government were carrying the debt load. In March 1987, the Social Credit government disclosed that B.C. Place Corp. had a $194 million debt while B.C. Development Corp. owed $190 million. B.C. Place Corp. built B.C. Place Stadium and the Expo 86 site and was in charge of the legacy buildings the Roundhouse, Expo Centre and Plaza of Nations. BCDC backed the Whistler ski resort development.

More recently, the organizers of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics issued their post-Games financial report on April 24, 2002 -- only two months after the Olympic flame was extinguished.

They showed a $40 million profit on a $1.39 billion operating budget.

The Vancouver Winter Games festival ended when the Paralympics closed March 21 in Whistler. The decision to withhold financial reports for so long must be rooted in VANOC's notorious fear of embarrassment. No corporation, no government, nobody waits so long to convey good news.

Except when it comes to the Bailout Games.

With Glowing Hearts, they'll take out the trash

In the news business, we call Friday "Take Out the Trash Day".

Governments have a nasty habit of releasing information that's destined to be unpopular or controversial on a Friday.

Government propaganda departments think that a Friday news release or news conference means unflattering information has little time to be digested and debated before the diversion of the weekend when news demand goes down.

Dubious and dastardly? Absolutely.

It's a common tactic that was explored by National Public Radio in 2005. It's employed by the British Columbia government under Liberal Premier Gordon Campbell.

B.C. Place Stadium's $365 million renovations were announced Jan. 9, 2009 in a news release. That was a Friday. So was Oct. 23, 2009 when the price was hiked to $458 million.

March 26, 2010 was when the government announced the province's biggest casino would be built west of B.C. Place Stadium. If you guessed that was a Friday, then jackpot!

Premier Gordon Campbell and finance minister Colin Hansen announced the Harmonized Sales Tax on Friday, July 23, 2009. The public uproar over the lack of public consultation was slow to begin, but did it ever snowball!

In Ottawa on Friday, Nov. 5, 2010, the federal Conservative minority government unleashed hundreds of documents showing the $860 million cost of the G8 and G20 summits in Ontario.

The latest to employ the "Take Out the Trash" strategy is VANOC.

The Vancouver Olympic committee held a post-board meeting media teleconference Nov. 17, 2010 (which was a Wednesday). Chairman Rusty Goepel, CEO John Furlong and CFO John McLaughlin (see above photo) refused to answer any substantial questions about dollars or numbers. That's because they delayed the release of the post-Games financial report yet again. Remember, this is an agent of the government whose fiscal year ended July 31.

So mark Dec. 17 on your calendar. Guess which day of the week that is?

Yep, it's a Friday.

VANOC was battered by a recession after pretending a recession of any magnitude would not happen. Now it's going way beyond overtime to clean up the books and trying to claim that they're just double-checking numbers and letting auditors audit. Truth be told, it's a bigger job than they anticipated and the costs much greater. By comparison, Salt Lake 2002 issued a financial report in June 2002.

Not only is Dec. 17 a Friday, but it's the last important business Friday of 2010.

They could have decided to "Take Out the Trash" on Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve, but that would have entailed one of the few remaining VANOC staffers to actual work.

Five-ring disappearing act continues

There are even more signs of Vancouver's fading Olympic glow after the mid-October removal of the Omega Countdown Clock from the Vancouver Art Gallery's north plaza.

VANOC, or what's left of it, is packing up and moving out of Campus 2010 (above). Graham Construction is already on-site to convert the two civic-owned office buildings into the new home of the Vancouver Police Department. The city paid $24 million in 2005 to buy the complex after VANOC begged city hall for help.

VANOC, I was surprised to learn, got a five-month rent holiday. It secretly sold the City of Vancouver its head office furniture and various pieces of IT equipment for $2.3 million in a Jan. 31, 2010 contract that came after a Jan. 8, 2010 in-camera report to city council.

The whole package, VANOC claimed, was originally worth $9 million. Not a bad deal to get such a discount, but what about announcing the transaction to the taxpayers? I scoured council agendas and minutes and saw no reference to what's essentially another bailout for cash-strapped VANOC. City manager Penny Ballem (who doubles as a VANOC director) didn't respond with any comment.

The future consideration in this trade was a five-month lease extension for free. VANOC was originally supposed to hit the road May 31, but instead doesn't have to disappear until Hallow'een.

Abracadabra, VANOC will magically reappear somewhere in downtown Vancouver on Nov. 1. The notoriously secretive organization won't tell me where it's going.

"In fact, there are very few people now communicating with VANOC as almost all of the accounts have been closed," said vice-president of communications Renee Smith-Valade. "John (McLaughlin, chief financial officer) and his team are ensuring that those who need to know how to reach VANOC are aware."


My guess? Somewhere paid for with your tax dollars. I'll report it when I know it because you have a right to know.

Meanwhile on Cypress Mountain. Yes, the troublesome snowboarding and freestyle skiing venue thanks to El Nino.

The snow cannons are poised for freezing temperatures to make snow and get the 2010-2011 season underway. But it'll be without a snowboarding halfpipe. The site of American Shaun White's gold medal performance for the ages is gone. So is the daredevil jump at the climax of the snowboardcross and skicross course. That's where North Shore boarder Maelle Ricker was the first Canadian woman to win gold on home snow. She did so in the shadow of a set of green Olympic rings perched on Black Mountain.

Guess what? They're not there anymore. But you won't have to look far. They're now across from the Cypress lodge's front door, closer to Mount Strachan where no Olympic events took place (below). Sure, it'll be more accessible for tourists with cameras, but the rings would have been better left on the former field of play.

In case you're wondering, the piles of straw are not left over from the Olympics. They are part of a Hollywood North film shoot called Final Destination 5. There are, however, small quantities of straw still visible around Cypress that are remnants of the 1,000 bales imported from Oregon and Washington before the Games. Before the Games, VANOC staff at Cypress witnessed mice scurry out of the delivery trucks!

Bend over B.C.!

The July 15 edition of the Whistler Question includes a fine column by one of British Columbia's best journalists, Sean Holman. But Mr. Public Eye, the answers to the Sudoku puzzle and everything else on page 15 are second fiddle to the photo.

I mean The Photo.

An opponent of the unpopular harmonized sales tax affixed a larger than life appendage to the larger than life replica of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics' logo that reads "Bend Over B.C."

The opponent did so on the very day HST collection began. Many have called Premier Gordon Campbell and finance/Olympics minister Colin Hansen liars deserving Pinocchio noses after they said "no HST" during the 2009 election and then introduced it two months later.

At least one person did the math and understands that Olympic host province B.C. is now paying for the $6.5 billion party with the HST. Why? Because of that nasty word that begins with O.

Owe!

Click the photo to enlarge. If you can't read the cutline, here it is:

Phallic protest: Someone who was obviously no fan of the harmonized sales tax (HST) decided to make a statement by altering the inukshuk outside the Pemberton Visitor Centre on July 1, the day the new tax took effect. The message on the other side of the… um, thing said, "Here comes the HST." The alteration was erected and prematurely removed early in the morning.

Hey, where's the thank-you note?

The British Columbia government finally told taxpayers who used the tickets they bought for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

The 216-page Report on Integrated Hosting and Ticketing, published May 6, said more than $942,000 was spent on 3,750 tickets to the Games. Of those, 164 were for the Feb. 12 opening ceremony at B.C. Place Stadium where the top ticket price was $1,100 but some VIPs received $2,640 deluxe luxury suite tickets, courtesy of B.C. taxpayers.

Here is the list of those who enjoyed the biggest show in Canadian history -- for free.

Businesspeople:
CAI Private Equity managing partner Peter Restler and guest; Ex-Yahoo! chief operating officer Jeff Mallett and two guests; Mitsubishi Canada president Shinji Kowase and guest; Jim Pattison Group president Jimmy Pattison and two guests; BHP Billiton president Graham Kerr and guest; Cummins vice-president Dave Crompton and guest; Listel Group president Hiro Suzuki and vice-president Kaz Kadano; Mitsui and Co. manager Shogo Yoshida and senior-vice president Takuji Senda; Mitsubishi Motors CEO Koji Soga and president Osamu Masuko; Okabe Group (Coast Hotels) past chairman Kaname Ohno and guest and Noriyuki Matsumoto and guest; Marubeni general manager Tomomi Yamamoto; VanEdge Capital partner Glenn Entis and guest, John Lasseter and guest, Paul Lee and guest, advisor Robin Louis and guest.

Politicians, new and old:
Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter, Nunavut Premier Eva Aariak, Northwest Territories Premier Floyd Roland; Former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien and two guests; Ex-B.C. Premiers Dan Miller and guest, Glen Clark and guest, Ujjal Dosanjh and guest; Ex-B.C. MLA Ian Waddell; Gov. Dan Little and guest (note: Idaho has a Lt. Gov. Brad Little); B.C. Speaker of the House Bill Barisoff and guest, Alberta speaker Ken Kowalski, Yukon speaker Ted Staffen and guest, Ex-Vancouver mayors Larry Campbell and guest, Sam Sullivan and guest; Ex-Whistler Mayor Hugh O'Reilly and Patricia O'Reilly.

Canadian Forces personnel:
Capt. Holland, Capt. Soley, Cpl. Boyes, Cpl. Fleury, Cpl. Frouws, Cpl. Gagne, Cpl. Trouchon, Gen. Walt Natynczyk and guest, L.S. Castromayer, L.S. LePage, L.S. Sully, M. Cpl. Hanson, M. Cpl. Jorgenson, M. Cpl. Pennel, M. Cpl. Royes, M. Cpl. Yeo, M.W.O. Quesnel, Pte. Labbe, S/Lt. McNeill, Sgt. Desmarais, Sgt. Letkeman, Maj. Susan Van Duinen and guest.

RCMP personnel:
Dep. Comm. Gary Bass and guest.

First Nations:
Chief Sophie Pierre, Chief Edward John and guest, Chief Jody Wilson, National Chief Shawn Atleo and guest, Chief William Charlie and guest, Dan Smith, Doug Kelly and guest, Greg Horn, Cindy Sutherland, Tim Raybould.

Holders of $2,640 VIP luxury suite tickets:
Oregon secretary of state Kate Brown, B.C. Transportation Minister Shirley Bond, Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach and guest, Quebec Premier Jean Charest and guest, Prince Edward Island Premier Robert Ghiz and guest, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and four guests (note: 2 were in $1,100 seats), Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire and guest.

Olympians and Paralympians:
Daniel Wesley, Greg Westlake, Gordon Robertson, Kathy Kreiner-Phillips, Sen. Nancy Greene and guest, Dominic Barton, Christoper Daw, Gary Cormack.

Special Olympics:
Andrea Zonneveld, Patty Wheeldon, Rene Girard, Rick Lucy.

Celebrities and entertainers:
Allison Lawton (wife of tycoon Frank Giustra), Eric McCormack and two guests, Janet Holden, Michael J. Fox and two guests, Joan Woffenden-Lawton, Jonathan Abrams, Kate Alexander Daniels, Kerry Fitzpatrick, Robin Balick, Steve Nash and guest, Tamara Lee Reynolds, Athena Bax, Brett Wilson, Fraser Walter and guest, Katrina Kum, Clifton Murray and guest, Remigio Pereira, Kathleen Micallef, Victor Micallef, Dal Richards and guest.

Act Now contest winner: Garth Buhr and guest; 2003 contest winner: Maria Uhrynchuk and guest.

They should've said "merci" to you for the tickets

It was the last event of the 2010 Winter Olympics and the 129 tickets bought by the British Columbia government weren't cheap. The province spent $775 for each taxpayer-funded ticket to the closing, except for those lucky to be inside the host province's luxury suite at B.C. Place Stadium. Their tickets, also taxpayer-bought, were $1,560 each.

So who used those free tickets? See the list below, from the Integrated Hosting and Ticketing report, published May 6.

Olympians:
Darcy Marquardt, Mike Lewis, Richard Hortness, Bruce Deacon, Jay Morrison, Scott Patterson, Veronica Brenner, Brian Price, Pamela Rai.

Relatives of 2010 athletes:
Carol Morrison, Char Agosta, Charlie Loo, Dennis Morrison, Jerry Rush and guest, Joel Parrott, Julie Morrison, Nino Agosta, Toni Loo, Clifton Brown and guest, Brent McIvor and guest, Oakley Semple and guest, Rod White and guest, Glenn Parrott, Roc Spence and guest.

Potential Olympians and Paralympians:
Aleisha Cline, Bob Ursel, Dan Raymond, Diane Gushulak, Grace Machines, Jacalyn Brown, Jessica Hewitt, Jim Cotter, Katie Tsuyuki, Marla Mallett, Rick Sawatsky, Sylvia Kerfoot, Tom Velisek, Tyler Mosher, Warren Tanner, Christa Guloien, Kevin Folk, Nick Brush, Andrea Dziewior, Brent Pierce, Chris Wong, Dominique Vallee, Ellie Terwiel, Jacquie Armstrong, Karolina Wisniewska, Kelly VanderBeek and guest, Kevin Recksiedler, Mark Olson, Matthew Hallat, Mira Leung, Morgan Perrin, Sean Geall, Annamay Pierse, Danielle Wotherspoon, Darryl Neighbour, Gina Grain, Jacqueline Roy, Josh Dueck, Kat Gillis, Katie Baker, Thea Culley, Tyla Flexman, Alex Orlando.

Contest winners:
ActNow BC: Lee Shanks and guest; Right To Play winner (name not given) and guest.

B.C. Sports Hall of Fame inductees Gerry Sorensen Lenihan, Silken Laumann and two family members.

B.C. Olympic curling medalists:
Diane Dezura, Georgina Wheatcroft, Julie Skinner, Sandra Jenkins.

Businesspeople:
China Eastern Airlines vice-president Jiang Bo Liu and guest; VanEdge Capital partner Glenn Entis and guest, Paul Lee and guest, Robin Louis and guest; Vancouver Art Gallery director Kathleen Bartels and guest, assistant director Paul Larocque and guest.

Consul Generals:
Italy, Francesco De Conno and guest; France, Marie De Lattre and guest; China, Ma Shu Liang and Shugen Liang; India, S.K. Makhijani and guest; South Korea, Tong Mo Suh and guest; Germany, Klaus Achenbach and guest; United States Phillip Chicola and Victoria Chicola; Britain, Alex Budden and Dianne Budden.

Holders of $1,560 apiece luxury suite tickets:
Ambassador of France, Francois-Marie Delattre and guest; Consul Gen. of Mexico Angel Villalobos-Rodriguez and guest; B.C. Speaker of the House Bill Barisoff and guest; Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty and guest; Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger; RCMP Dep. Comm. Gary Bass and guest, and seat reserved for security (no name).

"We paid, they scored!"

The Province of British Columbia paid VANOC $264,000 for luxury suite number 213 in General Motors Place (aka Canada Hockey Place) for the 2010 Winter Olympic hockey tournament. According to the Report on Integrated Hosing and Ticketing, the exclusive tickets were valued at $400 each.

The report said the government spent $127,684.67 on catering at sporting venues, but did not break down the cost of food and beverage at suite 213. The cost had to have been around $46,600 -- that's how much Crown corporation BC Hydro paid for burgers and beer at its GM Place Olympic suite.

So who enjoyed the Olympic hockey tournament in-style and on your dime? Here are the names of the invited guests for every game. (Note: some names were not disclosed. At some games, tickets were not fully allocated. The government said space was paid for but reserved for security and people in wheelchairs.)

Feb. 13
Canada 18 Slovakia 0 (women)
ARI Canada director of operations Karen Mongelli, Digi BC x 2, Fedex Sherry Ahorn, Focus Partners venture partner Allan Kwan, Group National Provincial executive director Marcelo Hernandez, GSR Ventures managing director Sonny Wu, International Ship Owners of Canada Stein guest x 2, Minister Iain Black, Minister Harry Bloy, Mobile Monday Foundation chairman Jari Tammisto, Near Field Communications chairman Koichi Tagawa, Nokia executive vice-presidents Anssi Vanjoki and Niklas Savander, Qualcomm CEO Dr. Paul Jacobs, Shanghai Investment Co. president Gao Tia Guo, Sierra Wireless vice-president of engineering Riley Hoyt, Wavefront director of engineering operations Allan Swain, Wireless West chief medical officer Dr. Eric Topol.

Feb. 16
United States 3 Switzerland 1
Breakwater Resources CEO Fred Hermann and guest, Enecsys Ltd. executive chair Mossadiq Umedaly and 4 guests, Khosla Ventures founder Vinod Khosla and guest, Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers John Dennison and guest, Clean Edge, LaFarge Ron Bruhaug and guest, MLA Randy Hawes, suite reserve, Sage Group founder Doug Allen, SNC Lavalin senior advisor Henry Wakabayashi, VanEdge Capital partner Paul Lee, Vantage Point Ventures managing director Stephen Dolezalek.

Canada 8 Norway 0
CN Rail Kelley Swendsen and guest, Electrabel head of portfolio management Charles Hertoghe and 2 guests, McElhanney Consulting vice-president John Blair and 2 guests, Minister Barry Penner, MLA Don McRae, Pacific Bio Energy Corp. CFO Brad Bardua, vice-president Brad Bennett, CEO Don Steele and 3 guests, Riverbank Power Corp. CEO John Douglas and guest, Vij’s Restaurant Vikram Vij.

Russia 8 Latvia 2
Air Liquide director Pierre Gauthier, Canadian Hydrogen Fuel Cell Association board member Andreas Truckenbrodt and guest, CEO John Tak and guest, CEO David McKenzie, Confederation Centre for the Arts McKenzie and guest, Edmonton Chamber of Commerce chair Carmon McNary and guest, Garage Technology Ventures managing director Guy Kawasaki and guest, MLA John van Dongen and Minister Naomi Yamamoto, Ottawa Chamber of Commerce chair Tim Redpath and guest, Rubicon Pharmacies guest of COO Robert Gore and guest, Vancouver Board of Trade Mike Cochrane and 2 guests.

Feb. 17
Finland 5 Belarus 1
Air China general manager Zhi Gang He and guest, BHP Billiton president diamond and specialty products Ben Armstrong and guest, Burnet, Duckworth and Palmer partner Jay Reid, CanEra Resources CEO J. Paul Charron, Crew Energy CEO Dale Shwed, Dundee Solar Income CEO Clarke Herring and guest, First Energy CEO Jim Davidson, Macquant Capital vice-president George Gosbee, Maersk Logistics manager Brian Hetherington and guest, Minister Colin Hansen, MLA Marc Dalton, P. Kiewit Sons vice-president Frank Margitan and guest, Sure Energy CEO Jeff Boyce, Westport Innovations CEO David Demers, Whitecap Resources CEO Grant Fagerheim.

Sweden 2 Germany 0
B.C. Cancer Agency president Douglas Nelson, vice-president Dr. Sam Abraham, B.C. leadership chair Francois Bernard, Biomark Technologies CEO Rashid Ahmed, president China Yan Li and guest, Christie Consulting president David Christie, KPCB partner Bing Gordon, Khosla Ventures Khosla guest, MDInfo co-founder Jeremy Bloom, Minister Kevin Falcon, MLA Dave Hayer, Pacific Bio Energy Corp. director Erik Dysthe and guest, PricewaterhouseCoopers partner Rick Griffiths, Romich Medical principal Dr. Roy Jackson, Soprema Inc. vice-president Renauld Leclerc and two guests, VanEdge Capital partner Paul Lee.

Czech Republic 3 Slovakia 1
Air G senior business development manager Kyle Shackley, business development Diego Noguez, Crick director Eric Burger and guest, Italian Chamber of Commerce Adolfo Rossi, Antonio Lagamba, Celso Boscariol, Giovanni Boscariol, Giovanni Cunsolo, Liberata Soriano, Renata Soriano, Rocco Cunsolo, Minister Iain Black, MLA Pat Pimm, Northern Freegold GIS data manager Graeme Hopkins and guest, geologist Samantha Dyck and guest, Strongbow Exploration CEO Kenneth Armstrong, vice-president Dave Gale.

Feb. 18
U.S. 6 Norway 1
Alliance of Motion Picture and TV Producers vice-president Tracey Wood, Bridge Studios general manager Ron Hrynuik, Directors’ Guild of Canada B.C. executive director Crawford Hawkins, Dundee Solar Income CEO Clarke Herring and guest, Entertainment Partners Canada president Cheryl Nex, Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer and guest, Minister Colin Hansen, Kevin Krueger, North Shore Studios and Mammoth Studios president Peter Leitch, Rainmaker Animation CEO Warren Franklin, Teamsters Local 155 secretary treasurer Ken Marsden, Union of B.C. Performers president Howard Story, Vancouver Film Studios COO Peter Mitchell, Walt Disney president of motion picture production Bruce Hendricks and guest, vice-president of Disney Interactive Howard Donaldson, Westport Innovations CEO David Demers.

Canada 3 Switzerland 2
Bishop’s Restaurant owner John Bishop and guest, Garage Technology Ventures managing director Guy Kawasaki and 3 guests, House of Q Brian Misko and guest, Minister George Abbott and MLA Gordon Hogg, Nu Restaurant and Lounge Maureen Seay and guest, Osoyoos Indian Band Development Corp. Chief Clarence Louie and guest, conversation technician Ron Hall and guest, Tojo’s owner Hidekazu Tojo and guest, Walt Disney production president Bruce Hendricks, B.C. line producer Justis Greene.

Slovakia 2 Russia 1
B.C. Trucking Association CEO Paul Landry and guest, vice-president of communications Louise Yako and guest, Dokie Wind president Greg Cook, Endurance Wind Power vice-president David Rankin, Government of Slovakia ambassador Stanislav Opiela and guest, Halifax Chamber of Commerce chair Bruce Russell and 3 guests, Lignol Innovations CEO Ross MacLaughlin, Minister Naomi Yamamoto, MLA Richard Lee, Pristine Power CEO Jeff Myers, Pulse Energy software operations lead Chuck Clark, Sempa Power director of sales and marketing Chris Whitney, Vancouver Board of Trade Derek Somerville and Mike Osborne.

Feb. 19
Sweden 4 Belarus 2
3M sales representative Mike Parsons, Avaya director Gordon Jackson, g.m. Greg Best, Cisco Canada president Nitin Kawale, regional manager for western Canada public sector Steve Kinsey, major account manager Terry Pettigrew, HP Advanced Solutions James Hamilton, client sales executives Peter Baran, Trevor Murphy, IBM managing partner Allan Hart, heatlhcare industry director Barry Burk, public sector g.m. Greg Brophy, delivery executive Peter Sandall, Minister Ben Stewart, MLA Rob Howard, Star Solutions International Pais guest x2, Telus vice-president Jason Macdonnell, acting manager of business solutions Michael McCarthy, vice president of sales and marketing Tim Draper.

Czech Republic 5 Latvia 2
Aboriginal Tourism B.C. CEO Keith Henry and guest, associate vice-chair Linnea Battel, Arts Club Theatre executive director Howard Jang, Burnaby Village Museum services supervisor Deborah Tuyttens and guest, Council of Tourism Associations chair Jim Storrie and guest, Go2 director Rob Fussey, Grouse Mountain Resorts vice-president Scott Ellis, CEO Stuart McLaughlin, Link BC projects and events Terry Bubb, Minister Ida Chong, Kevin Krueger, Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association CEO Glenn Mandziuk, Tourism Association Northern B.C. CEO Anthony Everett, Tourism Burnaby executive director Matthew Coyne, Vancouver Coast and Mountains CEO Kevan Ridgeway, Vancouver Community College dean school of hospitality and business Jonathan Rouse.

Finland 5 Germany 0
Automotive Fuel Cell Corporation CEO Andreas Truckenbrodt, B.C. Technology Council chair Cheryl Slusarchuk, Chrysalix Energy Venture Capital CEO Wal Van Lierop, Dpoint Technologies CEO James Dean, Energy Aware Technology president Janice O’Hearn, IBM general manager Greg Brophy and 3 guests, Sabrina Gill, Zubin Nazir, Light-Based Technologies vice-president Ed Sadowski, Minister Colin Hansen and MLA Dave Hayer, Nexterra Systems CEO Jonathan Rhone, Offsetters president James Tansey, Switch Materials CEO Doug Wiggin and guest, Tantalus Systems Corp CFO John Haylock, Westport Innovations executive vice-president Elaine Wong.

Feb. 20
Switzerland 5 Norway 4
Francophone delegation: artist Amougou Jean Faustin, Connie Smith and guest, Place de la Francophonie executive producer Daniel Simoncic, 2 guests, musician Elgin Vine, International Francophonie Organization Gabriel Cote, marketing director Isabelle Valois, director, guest John Wiggins, ArtsGames 2009 gold medalist Julie Picard, artist Lilliana Rusu, Magali Forte, ArtsGames 2009 silver medalist Marielsa Niels, photographer Natasa Laurentiu, artist Philippe Dalois, Scott Pollard, Minister Naomi Yamamoto, MLA Norm Letnick.

Slovakia 6 Latvia 0
Latvia ambassador Margers Krams and guest, South Africa consul general Christopher Meyer and Rebecca Meyer, Consul of Chile Maria Eliena Cuevas and guest, Colombia Rosa Marshall and guest, El Salvador Rosa Elena Moreno and guest, Peru Carlos Roman, Leonardo Chavez and guest, Slovakia Ivano Chomo and 2 guests, Netherlands Jacob Koedood and guest, Minister Naomi Yamamoto, MLA John van Dongen.

Belarus 5 Germany 3
Centre for African Integration Mohamed Salde, Karen Initiative Domenica Pistrin, Lindseigh Lochhead, Lisa Sadler, Luciano Pistrin, Shirley Gemmell, Minister Ben Stewart, MLA Jane Thornthwaite, MOSAIC executive director Eyob Naizgh and guest, Multicultural Advisory Council Andree St. Martin, Ashli Komaryk, chair Edmond Luke, Michelle Rokotonaivo, Mo Dhaliwal, Myrt Turner, Raj Pagely, Randy Sandhu, Provincial Nesika Award Elsa Folgale, Paul Mulangu.

Feb. 21
Russia 4 Czech Republic 2
Bioteq Environmental Technologies manager of engineering Michael Bratty, Britco strategic planning director Chris Gardner, Cannon Design principal Robert Johnston, Kryton International CEO Kari Yuers, Minister Moira Stilwell, MLA Douglas Horne, Russia honorary consul Alexander Bardin, minister to IMF Alexey Mojin, chief of staff to deputy PM Zhukov Alexey Morozov, Boris Nikolskiy, guest Ekaterina Zhukova, guest of Vladimir Kojin, Russian Olympic Committee president Leonid Tyagachov, minister of sport Vitaly Mutko, CEO office of the President Vladimir Kojin, Sandwell Engineering president Charlie Brit, Stantec principal Michael Kennedy, Structurlam president Bill Downing, Temple Scott Associates senior vice-president David Moors, partner Jennifer Rideout.

U.S. 5 Canada 3
ARCH Venture Partners managing directors Bob Nelson, Clint Bybee, CFO Mark McDonnell, partner Paul Thurk, B.C. Advantage Funds Amos Michelson, Cooledge Lighting CEO Art Aylesworth, Dow Venture Capital Monty Bayer, Frazier Healthcare Ventures Petrick Heron, Growthworks Rolf Kekleer, Intellectual Ventures Alex Marquez, Edward Jung, Patrick Ennis, Minister Colin Hansen, Reserve suite, Ostara Myles Degenstein, Premier’s Technology Council Greg Peet, UTIMCO Mark Shoberg, Venrock parnter Matt Trevithick, Vulcan Capital managing director Stephen Hall, Yaletown Venture Fund general partner Mike Satterfield.

Sweden 3 Finland 0
Allon Therapeutics CEO Gordon McCauley, Bauerfeind AG (no name), Dynamics GmbH (no name), K’nigsee Implantate CEO Frank Orschler, Life Sciences BC senior director Barry Gee, Minister Naomi Yamamoto, MLA Ralph Sultan, Thuringia, Germany Prime Minister Christine Lieberknecht, Dr. Peter Miethe, Dr. Ing Peter Traut, interpreter Echbauer, security Jan-Peter Mock, protokoll TSK Karl-Michael Danzer, Knut Korschewsky, Manfred Grob, German Canadian Chamber of Commerce Sascha Gurka, 2 guests, Wolfgang Lemb, Zymerworks CFO Neil Klompas.

Feb. 22
women’s hockey semifinal: U.S. 9 Sweden 1
Capacent Glacier managing partner Magnus Bjarnason, Glacier Partners sustainable energy director Charles Arrigo, managing director Ignacio Kleiman, Iceland secretary general Liney Halldorsdottir, Magma Energy vice-president Alison Thompson, chef de mission Andre Stefansson, vice-president Andrea Zaradic, vice-president Cathie Hickson, CEO Ross Beaty and 4 guests, Minister Margaret McDiarmid, MLA Douglas Horne, 3x suite reserve.

women’s semifinal: Canada 5 Finland 0
Canfor general manager Bill Caverly, Emirates Airlines Andrew Parker and guest, Haida Forest Products president Jim Gillis, Hanwa Co. executive vice-president Tim Inoue, Interex general manager Bruce Pollock, Interfor g.m. Steven Hofer, LJ Resources president Jim Jia, Minister Pat Bell, MLA Randy Hawes, Mitsui Homes g.m. Jun Mori, executive vice-president Yoshi Saito, Nice International president Shojiro Kodama, Quadra Wood Products president Dave Sweeny, suite reserve, Sumitomo Forestry managing executive director Yasuyuki Abe, Tolko export manager Dennis Yano, West Fraser export manager Mike Nomura, Western Forest Products senior vice-president Don Demens, Wing Co. president Shuji Horimoto.

Feb. 23
men’s qualification: Switzerland 3 Belarus 2
Alberta Minister of Culture Lindsay Blackett, Canadian Olympic Committee board member Therese Brisson, Canadian Sport Centre Pacific treasurer Peter Jackson, CEO Wendy Pattenden, Ernst and Young senior vice president Catherine Peacock, senior vice-president Tim Philpotts, KPMG partner Archie Johnston, Gary Webster, Kwantlen Polytechnic University chancellor Arvinder Bubber and guest, Mainroad secretary treasurer Doug Bjornson, vice-president operations Noel Mankey, Minister Ida Chong, suite reserve, Singapore Airlines vice-president HaoYu Dai, Sport Langley special events director Carla Robin, Langley 2010 B.C. Summer Games vice-president Jamey Paterson, vice-chair Michael Jackstein, U.S. Olympic Committee chief of sport performance Mike English, YVR aviation marketing director John Korenic.

Men’s qualification: Canada 8 Germany 2
ARCH Venture Partners Clint Bybee, partner Kristina Burow, B.C. Cancer Agency, v-p Sam Abraham, B.C. Technology Industry Association CEO Pascal Spotherfer, Boreal Genomics principal David Broemeling, CDRD CEO Natalle Dakers, Copperleaf Technology CEO Judi Hess, Dow Venture Capital global director Monty Bayer, Minister Iain Black, suite reserve, Peter Kiewit Sons v-p Frank Margitan and guest, Premier’s Technology Council co-chair Greg Peet, suite reserve x 2, Ventures West Brent York x 2, Teraspan Networks Inc. CEO Neil McDonnell, UBC university-industry liaison Angus Livingstone, Xenon CEO Simon Pimstone.

Men’s qualification: Slovakia 4 Norway 3
Blue Energy Canada CEO Martin Burger and guest, Endurance Wind Power vice-president Kevin Heany, Fraser Basin Council executive director David Marshall, director external relations Bob Purdy, Minister Iain Black, Mitsubishi Canada CEO Shinji Kowase and guest, Norsat International CEO Aimee Chan and guest, Warner Bros. executive v-p digital production Chris Defaria, B.C. line producer Jim Rowe, Vontobel Private Banking president Thomas Amgwerd and guest (x2 both), B.C. Technology Industry Association executive director David Marshall and guest (x2 both),

Feb. 24
Men’s quarter final: U.S. 2 Switzerland 0
ARCH Venture Partners partner Paul Thurk, B.C. Innovation Council founder Greg Aasen, Centre for Digital Media executive director Dr. Gerri Sinclair, Mingleverse Labs co-founder Ron Steven, Minister Naomi Yamamoto, OpenText v-p Dennis Croft, SNC Lavalin project manager Tom Tasaka and guest, suite reserve due to capacity x3, VanEdge Capital Glenn Entis and guest, Rick Mischel and guest, Vulcan Capital managing director Stephen Hall, Warner Bros. executive v-p Chris Defaria and 3 guests.

Men’s quarter final: Canada 7 Russia 3
Aldeasa Duty Free Yada guest, Britco president Rick McClymont, Eclipse Computing executive g.m. Ben Campbell-Barry, CEO Bradley Stoop, Fast and Epp managing partner Paul Epp, Krasnodar Krai vice-governor Alexey Agafonov, first deputy head of admin Dzhambulat Khatuov, vice-governor Galina Zolina, vice-governor Nikolay Doluda, chairman of legislature Vladimir Beketov, Minister Colin Hansen, Praxair USA president Jim Fuchs and 3 guests, SNC-Lavalin project manager Tom Tasaka, suite reserve, Today Show Josh Rhodes (x2), host Natalie Morales.

Men’s quarterfinal: Slovakia 4 Sweden 3
AirG (Wavefront) Raj Bhangu, Business Development Bank of Canada Frank Pho (VanEdge Capital), Minister Steve Thomson, O2 UK business manager James Hampton Finn and guest, China Shipping 5 allocated but not used, VanEdge Capital partner Paul Lee, advisor Robin Louis, Vistra Capital Management advisor Jeff Dowle, Volvo Powertrain Anders Kellstrom, Warner Bros. EVP Chris Defaria and guest, Wavefront Jim Maynard, Westport Innovations Lance Follet and guest, EVP Nicholas Sonntag.

Feb. 25
Women’s bronze medal: Finland 3 Sweden 2
Forum for Women Entrepreneurs program analyst Ashley Todd, Heather Kelly, Hapag Lloyd managing director Holger Oetjen and guest, Minister Colin Hansen, MLA Gordon Hogg, Port Metro Vancouver vice-president Peter Xotta, Air China 7 allotted but not used, Time Warner Inc. senior vice-president international relations Hugh Stephens and guest, Volvo Powertrain vice-chairman Anders Kellstrom, Westport Innovations vice-president Lance Follet, EVP Nicholas Sonntag and guest.

Women’s gold medal: Canada 2 U.S. 0
Olympians: Kristina Groves and guest, Clara Hughes and guest, Silken Laumann and guest, Marianne St. Gelais and guest, Michele Stilwell and 2 guests, Christine Nesbitt and guest, Maelle Ricker and guest, Ashleigh McIvor, Jenn Heill and guest, Minister Naomi Yamamoto.

Feb. 26
Men’s semifinal: U.S. 6 Finland 1
Association for Mineral Exploration of B.C. chair Lena Brommeland, director Mike McPhie, Gavin Dirom, Digital Domain CEO Cliff Plumer and 3 guests, Imperial Metals chairman Pierre Liebel, Kiska Metals Corp. CEO Jason Weber, Krome Studios CEO Robert Walsh, Lignol Innovations COO Michael Rushton, Mining Association of B.C. CEO Pierre Gratton, Minister Hawes, MLA Terry Lake, Rio Tinto Alcan general manager Allan Moss, CEO Jacynthe Cote, gov’t relations director Richard Propanko, Roca Mines CEO Scott Broughton, B.C. Business Council Virginia Greene, Terrane Metals CEO Rob Pease.

Men’s semifinal: Canada 3 Slovakia 2
Amazon vice-president worldwide corporate development Peter Krawlec, Blast Radius EVP Bill Schonbrun, CEO Gurval Caer, Dorsey and Whitney partner Jeffrey Peterson, Google Canada site director Steve Woods, KPC&B partner Bing Gordon, Minister Iain Black, MLA John Yap, Speaker Bill Barisoff, OpenText vice-president Dennis Croft, Prime Focus vice-president Amit Gupta, Research in Motion strategic alliance manager Chris Wormald, Sony EVP Debbie Denise and guest, suite reserve, VanEdge Capital Owen Matthews, Tandem Exploration Fund partner David Bookbinder and guest, VanEdge Capital partner Glenn Entis, Paul Lee.

Feb. 27
Men’s bronze medal: Finland 5 Slovakia 3
Olympians Catherine O’Brien and guest, Sandy Hartley and guest, Paralympian Patrick Anderson and guest, coach Adam Frost and guest, athlete Say Luangdem and guest, achievement award Hudson Stewart and guest, Minister Iain Black, MLA Ralph Sultan, 6 unallocated to provide room for wheelchair guests.

Feb. 28
Gold medal game: Canada 3 U.S. 2
David Foster and guest, Jim Richards, Vicki Gabereau and guest; Rio Tinto Alcan CEO Jacynthe Cote and vice-president Eric Ryan; Dr. Peter AIDS Foundation chairman John deC. Evans (CEO Trilogy Properties Corp.) and guest, executive director Maxine Davis and guest; Coaches Association of B.C. 2008 coach of the year: Chantel Spicer and guest; B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell and guest; Olympians Ashleigh McIvor, Chris Del Bosco, Denny Morrison, Francois-Olivier Roberge, Jay Morrison, Lucas Makowsky, Mathieu Giroux, Tessa Virtue, Scott Moir, Adam Enright, Kevin Martin, John Morris, Marc Kennedy, Ben Herbert and two guests of men’s gold medal curling team; VANOC directors: Ken Dobell, Peter Brown and guest, Rick Turner and guest, Rusty Goepel and guest, Darlene Poole and guest.