John Furlong still sees the signature of the 2010 Olympic Games scrawled across Vancouver as he walks through the cityB次元官网网址檚 downtown.
ItB次元官网网址檚 not just the cauldron where tourists gather for selfies or the one-time athletesB次元官网网址� village thatB次元官网网址檚 transformed into a bustling urban neighbourhood.
The former president and CEO of the Vancouver Olympics organizing committee still feels the energy of the Games when people come up to him on the street, wanting to share their memories.
B次元官网网址淲hen you walk around the city today B次元官网网址� you can feel the fingerprints of the Olympics on everything,B次元官网网址� he told The Canadian Press.
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Furlong is reflecting on the legacy of the Games this week as Wednesday marks a decade since the Olympic flame landed in Canada, kicking off a lengthy torch relay ahead of the two-week-long competition.
Memories around the beginning of the relay are bittersweet for Furlong. His best friend Jack Poole, chair of the Olympic organizing committee, died of pancreatic cancer just a week before Furlong landed in Victoria on a Canadian Air Force jet with lanterns containing the prestigious fire.
B次元官网网址淚 remember on the first day having this incredible sadness but also great exhilaration,B次元官网网址� Furlong said. B次元官网网址滻n a way, I feel that Jack died on a day where he felt it was OK to go. The project was now up and running.B次元官网网址�
Starting on Oct. 30, 2009, the Olympic flame traversed Canada for 106 days straight. It passed through every province and territory, and through the hands of more than 12,000 people before the cauldron was lit on VancouverB次元官网网址檚 waterfront.
From the very beginning the organizing committee wanted the 2010 Olympics to be B次元官网网址淐anadaB次元官网网址檚 Games,B次元官网网址� Furlong said, and the relay was an opportunity to see whether the country had bought into their vision.
B次元官网网址淲e wanted to touch every life, every child, every family, every business. We wanted this to matter to everybody. We wanted to be part of their conversation,B次元官网网址� he said.
Furlong still has a vivid memory of the day the relay landed in Old Crow, a remote community of about 220 people in northwest Yukon.
B次元官网网址淭he town had pretty much doubled in size. Then we knew it was game on,B次元官网网址� he said.
Despite support along the relay route, the Games got off to a wobbly start once the flame returned to Vancouver.
Masked protesters smashed store windows, turned over newspaper boxes and spray painted buildings and cars in the cityB次元官网网址檚 downtown core. Unusually mild weather left organizers scrambling to find snow for events on Cypress Mountain just days before competition was set to begin. Tragedy struck in Whistler, B.C., when Georgian bobsledder Nodar Kumaritashvili suffered a fatal crash during a training run.
Furlong fondly remembers how Vancouverites continued to support organizers and volunteers, encouraging them to keep going.
B次元官网网址淲e just sort of felt like they had our backs,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淲hen we were struggling, when the young man from Georgia died and we were facing all kinds of challenges and adversity and bad weather and the tough start we had, the people of the city were all cheering us on and doing what they could and adding a layer of enthusiasm and spirit to the project.B次元官网网址�
Throughout the Games, Canadian history was made again and again.
Alexandre Bilodeau became the first athlete to ever capture Olympic gold on Canadian soil, taking first in menB次元官网网址檚 moguls on the second day of competition. The countryB次元官网网址檚 athletes also set a new record for medals at a Winter Games, winning 26 (14 gold, 7 silver and five bronze).
Seeing an abundance of strong performances was crucial for Canadians watching at home, Furlong said, noting that people didnB次元官网网址檛 care about the logistics of the events, like busses getting to venues on time.
B次元官网网址淭hey cared about turning on the TV and being excited,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址漈hey expected us to do our jobs.B次元官网网址�
Vancouver provided many a bonding moment for Canadian sports fans, from Sidney CrosbyB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址済olden goalB次元官网网址� in the menB次元官网网址檚 hockey finals to figure skater Joannie RochetteB次元官网网址檚 gut-wrenching, bronze medal-winning performance just days after her motherB次元官网网址檚 sudden death.
B次元官网网址淚t was almost a unique Canadian story in that (the Games) started out with great adversity and ended with a profound victory,B次元官网网址� Furlong said. B次元官网网址滻tB次元官网网址檚 kind of a hero story. ItB次元官网网址檚 very special.B次元官网网址�
Those moments of success created a lasting legacy, he added.
With athletes winning medals in new disciplines at an unprecedented rate, high-performance sports grew into a larger priority for the country, Furlong said.
B次元官网网址淣ow we have this obligation to not let it go away, to not let it die and to make sure we play our part in laying the table for the future and using this as an example of the success you can have when you pour it on, put the right resources in place, prepare the team properly,B次元官网网址� he said.
CanadaB次元官网网址檚 success continued at the 2018 Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, where athletes set a new national winter record by bringing home 29 Olympic and 28 Paralympic medals.
While several of the stars from the 2010 Games have moved on from their athletic careers, a fresh set of skiers, skaters and sliders are taking their place.
Many of those athletes first fell in love with sport watching the Vancouver Olympics, Furlong said. Others, he noted, have grown up training at facilities like the Whistler sliding centre or the Richmond Oval, both venues that were built for 2010.
The Vancouver Olympics did not, however, leave the entire country with a burning enthusiasm to once again host the Games.
Calgary held a plebiscite last November, asking citizens if they wanted to host the 2026 Winter Games. Nearly 305,000 people voted, with 56.4 per cent saying B次元官网网址榥o.B次元官网网址�
The decision was a disappointing one for Furlong, who believes hosting the Olympics could have given Alberta something to unite around B次元官网网址渓ike a spiritual lift.B次元官网网址�
Still, he doesnB次元官网网址檛 think Canada is permanently out of the running for bringing the Games back.
B次元官网网址淚 think the next time (Canada) goes to look for an Olympic Games, weB次元官网网址檒l be better at it,B次元官网网址� Furlong said. B次元官网网址漌eB次元官网网址檒l have evolved more. The kinds of things that happened to (the Calgary) bid perhaps wonB次元官网网址檛 happen again.B次元官网网址�
In the meantime, the former head of the 2010 Games is using the 10-year anniversary as an opportunity to B次元官网网址渞ekindle the spirit of the GamesB次元官网网址� with a gala, organized by the Canadian Olympic Committee and Canadian Paralympic Committee, in Vancouver on Feb. 22.
Current and former athletes, and many of the people who helped put together the Vancouver Olympics will use the occasion to remind each other of what it takes to develop champions, Furlong said.
Funds raised by the event will go towards supporting Canadian athletes.
B次元官网网址淭en years on, people are still excited. Many of these young athletes are now champions for the next generation,B次元官网网址� Furlong said.
B次元官网网址淲e have this new kind of class, this graduating class of leaders who are going to be ready to take the next step and lead Canada into the next Olympic bid, whenever it is.B次元官网网址�
Gemma Karstens-Smith, The Canadian Press
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