2010 Vancouver Olympic & Paralympic Super-Thread

[jlousa]

Haven't received my money yet either, neither have any of my colleagues. Vanoc must be sitting on at least several millions in trust, hope they are earning a good rate and it's not just sitting.

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by whatnext

YMMV:

His, not Pierre de Coubertin’s, was the true face of the modern Olympic Games, an old, unrepentant Spanish fascist who understood the art of consolidating power behind closed doors, who didn’t see what he didn’t want to see, and who had a remarkable gift for making a buck.

By the time Juan Antonio Samaranch completed his two decades as the unchallenged strongman of the Olympic “movement” in 2001, de Coubertin’s quaint 19th-century ideals of pure amateurism, the transcendent value of competitive effort and the improvement of the whole person through sport had long been swamped by millionaire professional “dream teams,” performance-enhancing drug and bribery scandals, and vast television and sponsorship riches, transforming the five rings into one of the most powerful brands on Earth....
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/worl...for-better-and-for-worse/article1542668/

You left out this part:

Samaranch had inherited a faltering, nearly broke sports entertainment business when he succeeded Lord Killanin as IOC president in 1980. It had been riven by a series of geopolitically motivated boycotts – first the African nations walking out of Montreal in 1976, then the Western boycott of the Moscow Games of 1980, followed by the Soviet bloc’s refusal to participate in the Los Angeles Olympics of 1984, and Cuba’s absence from the Seoul Olympics in 1988 – and crippled by the skyrocketing costs of staging the Games. The 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal were a sinkhole of historic proportions, and the 1976 Winter Games, after first being awarded to Denver, were rejected by the voters in that city, and had to be hastily relocated to a previous host, Innsbruck. If countries became leery of the costs of staging the Games, if the political/propaganda gains were outweighed by the financial risks, the entire enterprise might collapse.

The successful and profitable 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles (despite the boycott) did much to alter the belief that the Games, as constituted, were unsustainable. In fact, under Samaranch, the number of events and the number of participating nations grew dramatically, along with the perceived value of staging the Olympics. By the time of his retirement (he was given the title of “honorary life president” by the IOC), cities were spending millions upon millions of dollars simply to compete for the chance to hold the Games – hence the opportunities for corruption – and television networks and sponsors were lining up for the chance to get a piece of the action.



Commercialism saved the Olympics. Few cities attempted to bid for the Games 30-years ago...for the 1984 Summer Games, there was just one bid city - Los Angeles won by default.

[Yume-sama]

Originally Posted by mr.x

Commercialism saved the Olympics. Few cities attempted to bid for the Games 30-years ago...for the 1984 Summer Games, there was just one bid city - Los Angeles won by default.

Yep, and for once you can BLAME CANADA for that one Well, Montreal, anyways.

[touraccuracy]

Originally Posted by whatnext

de Coubertin’s quaint 19th-century ideals of pure amateurism, the transcendent value of competitive effort and the improvement of the whole person through sport had long been swamped by millionaire professional “dream teams,” performance-enhancing drug and bribery scandals, and vast television and sponsorship riches, transforming the five rings into one of the most powerful brands on Earth....

shouldn't the world's largest sports competition be to see who is the BEST in the WORLD, rather than who is the BEST in the WORLD WITHOUT MAKING MONEY OFF THEIR REMARKABLE TALENTS? especially considering soviet athletes that were considered amateurs but happened to be well supported by the government. that in itself was a huge scandal.

and i do believe they do extensive testing for performance-enhancing drugs. more now than ever. not sure what you're trying to get at with that.

yes, vast television riches, oh the humanity, everyone in the world can watch the olympics and be brought together over sport, oh the humanity.

sponsorship? most powerful brand on earth? sounds like he was a huge failure.

good try though.

[Yume-sama]

You speak like it's just idealism that top athletes in the World should take a vow of poverty and live off the land! Sheesh. Commie!



I bet whatnext is not being paid anything at all for whatever degree or talents he has, nor would he expect to be .

[trofirhen]

Originally Posted by Yume-sama

I bet whatnext is not being paid anything at all for whatever degree or talents he has, nor would he expect to be .

Now, now, let's all be nice to WHATNEXT. He is what he is, as we all are. He can't help it if he's a ..............

[SpongeG]

Dubai's ruler continues to evaluate bidding for the 2020 Olympics

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
April 25, 2010 12:09 p.m.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Dubai's ruler says the Arab emirate is still considering a bid to host the Olympics in 2020.

In comments released by the ruler's media office Sunday, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum praised Dubai's sports infrastructure as leaders and executives from the sports industry gathered in the city for an international convention.

...

http://www.metronews.ca/vancouver/sports...o-evaluate-bidding-for-the-2020-olympics

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by touraccuracy

shouldn't the world's largest sports competition be to see who is the BEST in the WORLD, rather than who is the BEST in the WORLD WITHOUT MAKING MONEY OFF THEIR REMARKABLE TALENTS? especially considering soviet athletes that were considered amateurs but happened to be well supported by the government. that in itself was a huge scandal.

I hadn't realized you lived in a remote area of Canada where all broadcasts of professional sports are blocked. It must be terrible not having the opportunity to see the best in the world compete.

Originally Posted by touraccuracy

and i do believe they do extensive testing for performance-enhancing drugs. more now than ever. not sure what you're trying to get at with that.

yes, vast television riches, oh the humanity, everyone in the world can watch the olympics and be brought together over sport, oh the humanity.

sponsorship? most powerful brand on earth? sounds like he was a huge failure.

good try though.

That may be, but it is far from de Coubertin’s vision. As to "celebrating" the competition to be the host city, I'm sure Tokyo is celebrating the $110 million they flushed down the crapper to lose the 2016 games bid. Money well spent!

Anyway, continue enjoying your Olympic afterglow and Samaranch hagiography...you've got a few more months until the scope of the final bill comes in (assuming VANOC can be prodded into releasing it), and buyers' remorse takes hold.

[Yume-sama]

And here I thought we would all be beyond clinging on to the false hope that the 2010 Olympic Winter Games (which have been over for a couple of months now) would be a complete failure.

I mean, it's not like it was the most watched, most successful Winter Games of all time, or anything.

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Anyway, continue enjoying your Olympic afterglow and Samaranch hagiography...you've got a few more months until the scope of the final bill comes in (assuming VANOC can be prodded into releasing it), and buyers' remorse takes hold.

You never fail to amuse...

[Waders]

Olympic schmooze paid off big, says mayor

Lower Mainland mayors claim that wining and dining business leaders during an Olympic schmooze campaign has paid off big.

Sixty days in the $1.5 million Metro Vancouver Commerce program, Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson told media they have already exceeding their two-year goal of attracting $50 million into the local economy.

In fact, Robertson announced five deals – which he says were created or helped along by MVC – worth $62 million have already been signed and teased bigger announcements are on the horizon.

“We’re way ahead of schedule,” said Robertson. “We’re seeing the results early out of the gate here.”

Three of the deals involve European companies (Greenlight PM, Pro-Special and EPCM) opening up North American headquarters in Vancouver, while web start-up Monetime has agreed to establish their head office in the city.

The fifth deal will see Vancouver energy management company Pulse Energy license their technology in the United Kingdom.

Source: http://vancouver.24hrs.ca/News/local/2010/04/28/13754401.html

This seems to be a positive news but I don't know how much the Winter Games reception by the City influenced those 4 companies to decide setting up headquarters in Vancouver. They may do that even without all the media exposure Vancouver got from the Winter Games.

[Prometheus]

Relive the Golden Moment one more time: http://www.youtube.com/user/AlyonkaLarionov#p/u/1/rTDhRnPiTWM

[LeftCoaster]

I posted this in the business in vancouver thread, but since no one seems to go there I'll post it here too...

2010 Olympics sealed $60 million worth of deals for Vancouver-area business
By Stephanie Levitz, The Canadian Press

VANCOUVER, B.C. - The 2010 Olympics sealed the deal on over $60 million worth of investment in the Vancouver-region, area mayors and business leaders said Wednesday.

While some of the eight deals announced had been in the works long before the Olympic flame was lit, Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said the Games were the catalyst that turned handshakes into formal contracts.

"The Games were an excellent crucible for bringing business people together from around the world and introducing them to the local business community, building partnerships and relationships," he told a news conference.

"We're seeing significant results in only weeks following the Games."

The deals are being attributed directly to a $1.5 million program run by nine Metro Vancouver municipalities during the Games to attract investment.

Seventy-one companies were invited to the region for four days and introduced to local companies, politicians and other agencies.

Business leaders also received tickets to Olympics events, which upset some critics who had suggested the public shouldn't be funding elite access to the Games.

The chief executive officer of a U.S. technology start-up said he attended the gold medal women's hockey game and the energy there and in the rest of the city was part of why he decided to spend the $1 million to open his office in Vancouver and not San Franscisco.

"It's just so great to be welcomed to a city," said Anuj Singhal of Monetime Inc.

"So when we came during the Olympics, to just be welcomed like that and be introduced to so many people and just see the vitality of the city and see how many talented people and creative people there are, just to be part of the Games and the energy, that tipped it."

The other agreements announced include four additional international firms who will be setting up offices in Vancouver and a planned $15 million plant in the district of North Vancouver focused on hydrogen energy that is also expected to generate $10 million in spin-offs.

Executives from North Vancouver's H-Tec said they'd been working on the plant project with the French firm Air Liquide for the last two years.

"One of the things that the Olympic events did for us was first put a firm date in front of them where they needed to meet with us or allow this deal to waft for a long time," said H-Tec's Christopher Sacre.

While the company executives could have come for a meeting any time, Sacre said, a chance to attend the Games was major motivator.

"It was a lure, for sure," he said.

The largest agreement announced was a $27 million investment to keep 250 jobs at Cascade Aerospace in Abbotsford, B.C.

That Fraser valley city wasn't actually part of the Metro Vancouver program, though officials from there said they helped arrange meetings between the company and aerospace giant Lockheed Martin.

The program had initially set a target of securing $50 million worth of investment within two years and was funded in part by $800,000 by the federal government.

The federal government had its own program to leverage investment in Canada by using the Games, promoting the country abroad in a "2010 Reasons To Do Business With Canada" campaign and hosting a two-week global business leaders program during the Olympics.

Richmond, B.C. Mayor Malcolm Brodie said Wednesday's announcement was the first of others.

"The final results are far from in," he said.

"The real benefit is the relationships and the networks that have been created."

In the years immediately before and after Vancouver won the Games, reports estimated the economic spin-off could be as high as $10 billion, taking into account benefits like the new Vancouver Convention Centre and upgraded Sea-to-Sky highway and the money spent during the Olympics themselves.

One report by credit card company VISA said international visitors spent $115 million US on their credit cards in the 17 days of the Olympics.

A number of audits and studies of the economic impact of the Olympics are underway both by university researchers and auditing firms.

Results are expected this fall when the Olympic organizing committee releases its final financial statements.

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/markets/headline_news/article.jsp?content=b282791223

[raggedy13]

Originally Posted by Waders

This seems to be a positive news but I don't know how much the Winter Games reception by the City influenced those 4 companies to decide setting up headquarters in Vancouver. They may do that even without all the media exposure Vancouver got from the Winter Games.

It seems to have been a factor according to the article posted by LeftCoaster:

The chief executive officer of a U.S. technology start-up said he attended the gold medal women's hockey game and the energy there and in the rest of the city was part of why he decided to spend the $1 million to open his office in Vancouver and not San Franscisco.

"It's just so great to be welcomed to a city," said Anuj Singhal of Monetime Inc.

"So when we came during the Olympics, to just be welcomed like that and be introduced to so many people and just see the vitality of the city and see how many talented people and creative people there are, just to be part of the Games and the energy, that tipped it."

[Yume-sama]

There was a lot of meetings and gatherings of the higher up types in Vancouver during the Olympics.

They all gathered together in one place with their caviar and champagne, to network and co-mingle, with private concerts by Buble, etc.

It's not surprising that it created a good impression.

[mr.x]

DAE to produce Outdoor Opening Ceremony of Shanghai 2010 World Expo
Agencies
Posted: Friday, Apr 30, 2010 at 1559 hrs IST
Updated: Friday, Apr 30, 2010 at 1559 hrs IST



Shanghai: As the countdown to Shanghai 2010 World Expo nears its end, David Atkins Enterprises (DAE) unveils its longstanding involvement as Executive Producer and Artistic Director for the Outdoor Opening Ceremony, taking place Friday, April 30, 2010.

“This is the first time a World Expo is hosting an Opening Ceremony of this scale,” said David Atkins, CEO, DAE. “We are honored to have worked so closely with Chinese cultural authorities to create and produce a ceremony worthy of showcasing China—and the great city of Shanghai—to the world.”

Slated to be the largest outdoor multimedia display, the show will make non-stop use of fireworks, sound and light, and will feature numerous record-breaking firsts such as the biggest LED screen ever made, the largest searchlight installation in the world and the greatest number of pyrotechnics ever fired over water, land, bridges and buildings. The 30-minute Outdoor Ceremony will take place on a 3.4 km stretch of the Huangpu River in central Shanghai.

An estimated global audience of 3 billion watched DAE’s most recent success—the Opening, Closing and Victory Ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. As DAE prepares to deliver yet another groundbreaking show, Ignatius Jones, Artistic Director, simply says “We look forward to stunning the world.”

This announcement comes on the heels of DAE’s recent expansion into Asia, Europe and North America. Regional offices in London, Vancouver and Hong Kong join the Sydney office in supporting increased demand for the company’s elite creative services.

DAE created and produced the Ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, the Doha 2006 Asian Games and the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, as well as the Handover Ceremony of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.


http://www.financialexpress.com/news/DAE...mony-of-Shanghai-2010-World-Expo/613496/





I never thought DAE would keep their office in Vancouver after the Olympics....which btw is right smack in the middle of the DTES.

[Waders]

Where is my money? It seems a lot of people are asking the question.

The following article shows up in CTV's website.

We want to know: Have you received your Olympic cash?

By: ctvbc.ca
Date: Friday Apr. 30, 2010 7:26 PM PT

With the Olympics long over, ticket-holders are taking account of the money owed to them for re-sold tickets and cancelled events.

Some people say they still haven't seen the cheques that were promised to them for re-selling tickets through the VANOC. Are you still waiting for your money from the fan-to-fan website?

And what about the thousands of people whose tickets to Cypress Mountain events were cancelled? Have you received your refund? Have you gotten your money back for the mandatory bus ticket?

Source: http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local...aser_100430/20100430?hub=BritishColumbia

I hope Vanoc didn't auction off the computer systems that hold the record by mistake.

[BCPhil]

Originally Posted by Waders

Where is my money? It seems a lot of people are asking the question.

The following article shows up in CTV's website.
Source: http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local...aser_100430/20100430?hub=BritishColumbia

I hope Vanoc didn't auction off the computer systems that hold the record by mistake.

I got my money back in full for my cancelled Womens Ski Cross tickets. Bus tickets too. I made sure my address on the website was current and bingo.

[sacrifice333]

Still waiting for funds that were due in "April".

[Waders]

I just saw Vanoc's explanation on CTV news on TV.
Vanoc's representative explained that due to the popularity of the Fan-to-Fan site, there was a delay to mail out 10,000 cheques. It is expected that by mid. May people should receive the cheque.
Source: http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local...kets_100501/20100501?hub=BritishColumbia