As the cameras pull up and pan across Whistler you may be forced to take a breath. It’s stiflingly beautiful – grandiose and looming, with a sweet covering of soft white and gentle candy-floss clouds.
© VANOC/COVAN
It’s a dream place to feel the mountain ache under your feet – the perfect place to feel crisp winter air on your cheeks. And now it becomes the perfect place to contain the hopes, trials and tribulations of the 21st Winter Olympics. Where spirits will be smashed, crashed, bashed, melted, bruised, burned and, ultimately, made.
This natural theatre is about to become a place where childhood dreams of thousands are broken and made. Where the blood, sweat and tears of years and years of work come to fruition and where guts triumph over pretty much everything else.
There are 52 British competitors in this years games and every one. With the collapse of SnowSportsGB a couple of weeks ago our guys need all the support they can get and we are certainly 100% behind them every step of the way. There’s no telling what kind of affect that it’s had on their mental preparations but without these individuals the future of these sports (at this level) may be in even more danger than it already is.
The opening ceremony saw a few technical issues leading to a number of problems with the Olympic torches. In some ways representing the overwhelming sadness that has overshadowed the beginning of the games following the tragic death of 21-year old Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili. As Georgian team entered the opening ceremony – heads high, clear eyes, full hearts – they were given a standing ovation and looked to the sky as their black arm bands and scarves represented the team-mate and friend that they had all lost.
After an official investigation and a few minor adjustments including the walls at curve 16 of the track being built up it has been deemed that the track is not unsafe and so the men competition will still take place.
The Whistler Sliding Centre © VANOC/COVAN
Adam Rosen of Team GB speaking on the BBC said, “I’m sure he would have liked for us to race. This is a dangerous sport – we chose to do it. It happens, unfortunately.”
The outdoor flame was finally lit by ‘The Great One’ Wayne Gretzky. A man from the sport that Canada hope might finally bring them a precious home soil gold medal.
Today’s weather was grey, damp and overcast – according to the BBC. Which has lead to the Men’s Downhill being postponed until Monday. This is actually due to the conditions being too warm, rather than a lack of snow as is presumed. If the snow on the run is too soft this leads to it being cut up too easily and becoming bumpy, which makes things dangerous. If it snows the new snow forms a thermal layer and stops the snow underneath from freezing and that is what leads to these kinds of “bad” conditions. (Thank you to Graham Bell for teaching us all about this on the BBC coverage today.) This has also meant that the Women’s Super Combined has also been delays – with the women not even managed to fit in a training run yet.
Tonight sees the first opportunity for a medal at the games as the Ski Jumping (normal hill) takes place. As these men hang in the air and kick off the games, the questions of what might be do also.
Whistler Ski Jump © VANOC/COVAN
So let’s all go have a quick power nap and get ready to find out.
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