Who do you think should light the torch at the Olympic Opening Ceremony?

[Risus]

"As far as gretzky being the torch bearer, I was a little surprised, but
enjoyed him, and he seemed to enjoy himself as well, it was good."

Yeah, I would rather it had been Rick Hanson.

Thats what I thought, too.
I was pleasantly surprised to see Bobby Orr help bring in the flag.

 

[#juan]

I thought the group that brought the Olympic flag in were very well chosen. Terry Fox's mom, Bobby Orr, Gretsky........I would not have changed anyone. I had mixed feelings about Arnie carrying the torch but I guess it was a stab at good neighborship(new word;-))

 

[Machjo]

the risk of death and injury is always lingering around
during dangerous activities like luge, skiing, etc. etc.,
it didn't turn the day bad, it is very sad indeed, but
once they recognize the tragedy, deal with it, the games
go on, that is just the way it is, and always will be.
It might just make many realize how dangerous many of
these sports are, these people who take part in them,
love it, and love the 'danger', and 'speed', they take
the risks, and sometimes it doesn't work out.

As far as gretzky being the torch bearer, I was a little surprised, but
enjoyed him, and he seemed to enjoy himself as well, it was good.

I was watching in the news last night that apparently a number of athletes had complained about the excessive speed of that particular track days prior to the fatal accident. In fact, one man (I can't remember who it was) went public in defending the track and saying that risk is just part of the game. A few athletes had commented prior to the accident that that was the most dangerous track they'd ever gone on.

Yes, accidents, even lethal ones, do happen. And yes, danger is part of the sport. But when we have something so dangerous as to cause even professional athletes, and not just one or two, to voice their concerns about it, that makes it a case of negligence, and makes it very embarrassing for Canada.

 

[Risus]

I thought the group that brought the Olympic flag in were very well chosen. Terry Fox's mom, Bobby Orr, Gretsky........I would not have changed anyone. I had mixed feelings about Arnie carrying the torch but I guess it was a stab at good neighborship(new word;-))

I thought that arnie carrying the flame was BS.

 

[coldstream]

It's too bad one pillar (of the 4) of the Olympic Torch inside BC Place didn't work. It had to work once, probably had been tested dozens of times, cost 10's of thousands for 20 seconds of operation.. and didn't.

But.. no big deal.. everything else went flawlessly. It was really a stunning visual feast, comparable to that of Beijing, which cost 10 times as much, and i think captured a lot of the spirit of the country.. especially the West Coast.

I wouldn't have given kd lang the prominence they did, but that's personal taste, and i thought a lot of music was a little too syrupy (along with the dialogue).. but the fiddle and classical music were great.

All told, a great job.. well done!!

 

[talloola]

"As far as gretzky being the torch bearer, I was a little surprised, but
enjoyed him, and he seemed to enjoy himself as well, it was good."

Yeah, I would rather it had been Rick Hanson.

I liked how they did it, actually rick hansen had a very
special role as he brought the flame into b.c. place,
then as it went around from nancy green, to doan, and
nash and gretzky, it seems they all had a turn in the final
part, and it was fitting that gretzky rode in the back
of the truck.

 

[talloola]

It's too bad one pillar (of the 4) of the Olympic Torch inside BC Place didn't work. It had to work once, probably had been tested dozens of times, cost 10's of thousands for 20 seconds of operation.. and didn't.

But.. no big deal.. everything else went flawlessly. It was really a stunning visual feast, comparable to that of Beijing, which cost 10 times as much, and i think captured a lot of the spirit of the country.. especially the West Coast.

I wouldn't have given kd lang the prominence they did, but that's personal taste, and i thought a lot of music was a little too syrupy (along with the dialogue).. but the fiddle and classical music were great.

All told, a great job.. well done!!

yeah, a great job, I agree

 

[#juan]

I liked how they did it, actually rick hansen had a very
special role as he brought the flame into b.c. place,
then as it went around from nancy green, to doan, and
nash and gretzky, it seems they all had a turn in the final
part, and it was fitting that gretzky rode in the back
of the truck.

Gretsky probably lost the toss and had to ride in the back of a pickup truck
in the rain...........I'm kidding of course.;-)

 

[YukonJack]

MODERATORS:

Now that the Olympic torch has been lit and the Games are on, isn't it time to delete this thread?

 

[talloola]

MODERATORS:

Now that the Olympic torch has been lit and the Games are on, isn't it time to delete this thread?

yeah, let's all blow out this flame, 1 , 2, 3 blow

 

[JLM]

yeah, let's all blow out this flame, 1 , 2, 3 blow

It will die of it's own accord in a day or two, Talloola, as other more pressing issues immerge.

 

[talloola]

I was watching in the news last night that apparently a number of athletes had complained about the excessive speed of that particular track days prior to the fatal accident. In fact, one man (I can't remember who it was) went public in defending the track and saying that risk is just part of the game. A few athletes had commented prior to the accident that that was the most dangerous track they'd ever gone on.

Yes, accidents, even lethal ones, do happen. And yes, danger is part of the sport. But when we have something so dangerous as to cause even professional athletes, and not just one or two, to voice their concerns about it, that makes it a case of negligence, and makes it very embarrassing for Canada.

the course has been run more than a thousand times, with
no incident, and no official complaints, but I'm sure
they will address that particular curve, and maybe they
can put up a larger barrier. no embarrassment to canada
at all, these tracks are tested and used long before the
olympics arrive, lots of chances to find problems, and
they weren't found, the athletes are human, do make mistakes, and it looks like he made a big one.

 

[JLM]

the course has been run more than a thousand times, with
no incident, and no official complaints, but I'm sure
they will address that particular curve, and maybe they
can put up a larger barrier. no embarrassment to canada
at all, these tracks are tested and used long before the
olympics arrive, lots of chances to find problems, and
they weren't found, the athletes are human, do make mistakes, and it looks like he made a big one.

I'm guessing perhaps they should have had a couple of old tires strapped to that pole he hit his head on.

 

[Risus]

I was watching in the news last night that apparently a number of athletes had complained about the excessive speed of that particular track days prior to the fatal accident. In fact, one man (I can't remember who it was) went public in defending the track and saying that risk is just part of the game. A few athletes had commented prior to the accident that that was the most dangerous track they'd ever gone on.

Yes, accidents, even lethal ones, do happen. And yes, danger is part of the sport. But when we have something so dangerous as to cause even professional athletes, and not just one or two, to voice their concerns about it, that makes it a case of negligence, and makes it very embarrassing for Canada.

I'm not exactly sure why Canada would be embarrassed. True it is a fast track, but as the old saying goes, 'if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen'.

Watching the luge coverage today, a number of athletes were complaining that the revised track was too slow...