I am proud to be Canadian. I have made this statement over the years, both at home and abroad. However, these Olympics seemed to allow us to stand on our soap box and yell from the top of our lungs about how proud we are of our athletes, our uniqueness and our country. From the opening to the closing ceremonies everyone involved embraced these games and used the experience to tell the world about our great region, province and country.
The Canadian pride started with the torch relay, it was as if the torch painted a red and white streak of pride over our country. In Port Coquitlam, there were over 10,000 people who lined the streets at Leigh Square for a glimpse of the torch; here is a brief video. What a moment, I was proud to be a Canadian in Port Coquitlam. The next day was the opening ceremonies; it was filled with Canadiana – there are too many wonderful moments to mention. However, the poet Shane Koyczan’s poem ‘We Are More’ was inspirational; it helped me define why I am proud to be Canadian – view Shane reciting the poem here.
As a family we took full advantage of the games. Although we did not have any tickets to medal events, we went to medal ceremonies, hung out downtown, gathered with friends to watch the Games on TV. As a family we embraced the experience, it will live in our memories forever. We had a wonderful time watching the semi-final men’s hockey game at the Swiss House; watching Clara Hughes win bronze at the Yaletown Live site; and walking the streets with thousands of other proud Canadians.
There is much talk about how the hosting of the Olympics can plant an Olympic seed in our young athletes. Clara Hughes commented, “The Olympic… began in 1988 when she caught her first glimpse of the Winter Games on Television. Watching speed skaters glide around the oval inspired her to believe that one day she, too, could represent Canada in that same sport.” Madison was able to go to Whistler with her Ski Club to watch the Women’s GS. When she came home she was on top of the world, the team was able to stretch with the skiers before their race. For her this was an unforgettable Olympic moment, maybe it will be the moment that changes her life.
In Port Coquitlam, our Spirit Committee did an amazing job to create experiences and legacies for our community. As I mentioned before, the torch run was an overwhelming success, all the community events were at capacity and many people came to PoCo Zone 2010 at the Rec Centre to watch the games on the large screen. The Port Coquitlam Spirit Community did such a wonderful job that VANOC named Port Coquitlam a Live Site.
The atmosphere in Port Coquitlam, Vancouver, and across our country was electric. Thank you John Furlong and the VANCOC team (BTW, John’s closing speech captured what most of us are thinking, here is a link . Thank You to the over 25,000 volunteers, Thank You athletes and coaches who performed so well and demonstrated sportsmanship, Thank You to Canada who came together for a 17 day celebration of our country and demonstrated to the world, we live in the best place on earth.
My words can not do justice to the experience; here is a photo collage of our Olympic experience.
