Morgan:News:2010:Bronze Edition: March 2005

Thursday, March 31, 2005

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Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #912
VANOC 'IMAGINE' TICKETS SNAPPED UP; NBC PLANNING HALF-HOUR OLYMPIC SERIES; GRANT TO UPGRADE OSOYOOS SKATING RINK TO AID 2010 TRAINING POSSIBILTIES

Here are three more moguls we ran into today:

Free tickets for the April 23 broadcast of Imagine 2010, a live-entertainment show from GM Place in Vancouver to introduce the Games's new logo and kick off 2010 Game marketing, went on sale at TicketMaster at 10 this morning, and were all gone 15 minutes later. GM Place has a seating capacity of 21,000, but it's not immediately known how many tickets were initially offered. The Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC)'s Marketing department sent out a broadcast e-mail message yesterday to the e-mail addresses it collected for its volunteers about the program and tickets, offering a two tickets for the first 25 who responded. They went within a few minutes as well. IMAGINE 2010 will be broadcast across Canada on CTV and TQS.
NBC, which is the American TV broadcaster for the 2010 Winter Olympics, will test the waters with its affiliates on a two-week series of half-hour programs to run at 7:30 p.m., local times, and be devoted to primetime coverage of the Olympics, beginning with the 2006 Winter Games in Torino, Italy a year from now. If it's successful, the program will be rolled out for the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2010 Winter Games. The program, "The Olympics Zone," was discussed in a joint conference call with reporters after NBC's annual affiliates meeting Wednesday in New York. Based in Turino, "Zone" would integrate the on-air talent of local stations with segments produced by the network. Post-production would also occur at the affiliate level. The program would run on 15 of the Torino Olympics's 17 nights, excluding Sundays. NBC's owned-and-operated stations have committed to airing "Zone," as have the Belo, Hearst and Gannett station groups.
The B.C. government has given a C$98,000 grant to help furbish the Sun Bowl Arena in Osoyoos, in B.C.'s Okanagan region. The idea is to turn it into a 'centre of excellence' for ice-skating so that top-level athletes can be invited to train by 2008 for the 2010 Olympics in the Lower Mainland. It would be the nearest such facility to Vancouver, other than the suburb of Burnaby. Renovations on Sun Bowl Arena will include a 2,300-square-foot mezzanine area which will become an off-ice fitness training facility, a 1,200-square-foot dressing room, 440 new seats to replace the wooden bench seats currently installed in the rink and four new storage carts to hold arena glass. The exterior of the building will also be painted and the grounds will be landscaped.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 31, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #911
RAILWAYS GROUP CONSIDERS 2010 PACKAGES FOR TOURISTS; COFI CONVENTION NEXT MONTH TO HEAR ABOUT 2010 OPPORTUNITIES; WILLIAMS LAKE FORUM IN MAY ABOUT 2010 OPPORTUNITIES

Here are three more moguls we ran into today:

The B.C. Council of Heritage and Recreational Railways will see if the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) is interested in it packaging railway tourism tours in an effort to promote railway heritage, rail travel, tourism and the preservation of rail artifacts. The council represents 19 B.C. railway groups that, combined, had a ridership last year of about 600,000. Debbie Kinvig, co-chair of the Council and general manager of Summerland's Kettle Valley Steam Railway, says that one concept is for the groups to work together on efforts involving the 2010 Winter Olympics that will be held in Vancouver and Whistler. The council will meet twice a year, with the next meeting set for Summerland, in B.C.'s Okanagan, this September.
B.C.'s Council Forest Industries hosts its first convention in four years at the Civic Centre in Prince George, in north-central B.C., on April 14 and 15. Entitled "Securing the Future - 2010 and Beyond," it will mostly be about the forest industry. But a panel session on the opening day, at 10:50 a.m., will discuss market opportunities, including those with the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. One of the three panel members with a responsibility to talk about the 2010 Games is Kelly McCloskey, the president and CEO of the Wood Promotion Network.
The City of Williams Lake, in B.C.'s central region, and the Cariboo Regional District is to host a sport and recreation forum in May so that sports, recreation and cultural groups can get information on 2010 LegaciesNow and government programs related to the 2010 Games.

RESOURCES

Some of the organizations on the Railways council (scroll down on the page):
http://www.canadabyrail.ca/maps/BC.html

The CEO council of the Wood Promotion Network:
http://www.woodpromotion.net/leadership/ceo.asp

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 31, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #910
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TRANSFERS CANADIAN TOURISM COMMISSION TO VANCOUVER TO AID 2010 OLYMPIC MARKETING

Prime Minister Paul Martin cited the advent and ramp-up in marketing of the 2010 Winter Olympics over the next five years as a major reason for announcing in Whistler this afternoon the decision -- anticipated for weeks -- that the Ottawa headquarters of the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) will move to Vancouver.

"The Canadian Tourism Commission is a national marketing organization that will continue to serve the interests of all Canadians," said Prime Minister Martin who is on a tour of the 2010 Olympic venues in Whistler as part of a western Canada visit with David Emerson, minister of Industry and the minister responsible for the CTC. "The vibrant tourist market in British Columbia is a natural fit for the Commission, and it is expected that this endeavour will bring about economic benefits for both British Columbia and the country as a whole," Martin said.

Martin also said that an expected increase in Asia-Pacific tourism and the 2010 Winter Games in Whistler and Vancouver "provide excellent opportunities for the Commission to build momentum to benefit all of Canada."

Michele McKenzie, president and chief executive officer of the CTC said, "The 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games will raise the awareness of Canada as a destination of choice for visitors from around the world. We will take full advantage of this awareness to boost tourism revenues across the country."

RESOURCES

Canadian Tourism Commission business web site:
http://www.canadatourisme.com

CTC's website for tourists
http://www.travelcanada.ca

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 31, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #909
POUND BACK IN IOC MARKETING; BEIJING FINALLY OFFERS SPONSORSHIPS; TELESAT AND BARRETT SET UP RURAL BROADBAND NETWORK TO AID 2010 GAME DISTRIBUTION

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

Dick Pound, the man who runs the World Anti-Doping Agency out of Montreal and who is a board member of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC), is back in the fold of the International Olympic Committee's 21-member Marketing Commission, chaired by Norway's Gerhard Heiberg. Pound, when he was deeply involved in IOC's marketing, was also the man who was largely responsible for the mid-80s design of the US$600-million-per-year Olympic Partner program, nicknamed TOP, in which the IOC negotiates international sponsorship deals with about a dozen companies, such as McDonald's, Coca-Cola and Atos Origin, all of whom will be represented at the 2010 Winter Games. Pound'll be at the table when the Commission next meets, in June, and he will continue for at least three more years as head of WADA.
VANOC is five years out from its Games, and has already landed two major national sponsors -- Bell Canada's telecommunications deal and HBC's department store and clothing supplier contracts, plus, with the International Olympic Committee's negotiations, has Bell's CTV/Rogers consortium looking after the national broadcast aspects. China, which is just over three years from its Summer Olympics, today officially opened up its national sponsorship and official supplier categories, by publishing a Rights & Benefits Package for potential Beijing 2008 Sponsors. This is the second phase of its marketing program; the first phase involved "partners": Bank of China, China Network Corporation, Sinopec, China Mobile, Volkswagen China, Adidas and Air China. The national package released today offers use of the logos for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games and the Chinese Olympic Committee, plus use of designations for the Games and Paralympic Games and the designation of Chinese Olympic teams taking part in the Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games and Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Sponsors are also offered monopolies on product, technology and services categories. Sponsors also get packaged services and honorary treatment for the torch relay, tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies, accreditation, hospitality, transportation and accommodation. The larger categories available for potential sponsors: white goods, office supply, dairy products, logistics, courier services, fast food, food oil, tires, paper, Internet-content services, nutrition supplements, wine, telecommunications, networks, travel, hospitality and beer.
Telesat, Bell Canada's satellite operator, and Barrett Xplore Inc., a Canadian company that provides wireless broadband service, have signed a distribution contract to deliver that type of communications to Canadians in rural and remote communities, and the technology will be used during the 2010 Winter Games. Barrett will provide the service via Telesat's new Anik F2 satellite. Bell spokesman Karen Passmore says, "Telesat is a partner in assisting Bell to deliver telecommunications and broadcasting services to make the Vancouver games exceptional. Satellite will play a role in two-way broadband delivery, off-net access, diversity, and ultimately through the International Broadcast Centre delivery [of the 2010 Games] to the world. Telesat will use its facilities at the Vancouver Teleport, as well as the resources of Infosat of Burnaby to support the efforts of Bell in this endeavour." Barrett recently completed a C$30-million financing to help pay for the technology. It will begin its regional Ka-band rollout in April, with the service available throughout Canada in July. Bell is the telecommunications sponsor for the 2010 Games.

BACKGROUND

A quote from Dick Pound on marketing: "One of the things you have to learn about marketing is that signing the contracts is the easiest part. It's the servicing that's important. Marketing starts with the contract and you have to deliver."

RESOURCES

Beijing Olympics marketing plan overview:
http://en.beijing-2008.org/02/40/article211614002.shtml

Members of the IOC's Marketing Commission:
http://www.olympic.org/uk/organisation/commissions/marketing/members_uk.asp

Dick Pound's picture and bio:
http://www.olympic.org/uk/organisation/ioc/members/bio_uk.asp?id=17

Telesat:
http://www.telesat.ca/

Barrett Xplore:
http://www.barrettxplore.com/home.asp?lang=E&block=1

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 31, 2005

Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #908
MICHIGAN FIRM TO DO SEAT-REPLACEMENT WORK ON COLISEUM VENUE

A Michigan company has won the contract issued by the Venues department of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) for replacing the seating in the Vancouver Coliseum this year by December, when the World Junior Hockey tournament is scheduled to take place.

The value of the contract, awarded yesterday to Track Corporation of Spring Lake, on the east shore of Lake Michigan north of Chicago, was not released. Track is a 12-year-old company that began producing automotive seat adjusters and now has a 100,000 square foot manufacturing plant in Spring Lake, and owns more than half a dozen seating-related companies.

The replacement of the Coliseum's aging 16,000 seats is one project that part of a C$23-million renovation of one of VANOC's main venues, the Coliseum in east Vancouver's Pacific National Exhibition grounds, which will be host to the 2010 Olympic figure skating and short-track speed-skating competitions.

The design-build contact sought was for proposals to provide the labour, materials, equipment and services to design, engineer, fabricate, supply and install fixed arena seating, in-fill seating and telescopic-platform seating.

When the original seating was installed in 1967, 1,940 seats were mounted on telescopic units, there were 288 in-fill seats and the balance of 13,635 fixed Hussey/Irwin-style seats were split between lower and upper bowls. The idea is to replace the 38-year-old seating with essentially the same configuration.

The work also involves removing, recycling and reusing the existing seating so there is minimum landfill disposal, as environmental considerations are part of VANOC's promises to the International Olympic Committee in holding the Games.

RESOURCES

Track Corporation
17024 Taft Rd.
Spring Lake, MI 49456
Toll free:1.877.479.7005
Phone: 616-844-2471
Fax: 616-844-2476
http://www.trackcorp.com/index.shtml
< mailto:sales@TrackCorp.com >

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 30, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #907
PM TO VISIT WHISTLER VENUES THURSDAY; REMPEL HOPES TO BE VETERAN SPEED-SKATER BY 2010 GAMES; CROSS-COUNTRY SKI CAMPS SET FOR THUNDER BAY, CANMORE

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

Prime Minister Paul Martin will start a two-day visit to British Columbia tomorrow by touring Whistler's venues for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Martin will be accompanied by federal Industry Minister David Emerson and Stephen Owen, the minister for amateur sport and western regional development. Owen's office is responsible for the federal aspects of the 2010 Games. The Whistler visit is part of a western Canadian tour; the prime minister has been visiting Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon and Regina this week.
Speed skater Shannon Rempel of Winnipeg, who did much better than she expected this season, thought she would be hitting her peak at the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver and, possibly the 2014 Winter Games, and that was her aim in training going into this past season. She's changed her mind now, thinking that she might be able to add next winter's Olympics in Torino to that list. She was named Junior Female Athlete of the Year for Canada this week.
Canada's National Cross-Country Ski Team coaches Dave Wood and Alain Parent will be hosting a National Team Development Camp in Thunder Bay, Ontario, this summer. Athlete representatives of the National Ski Teams of 2005, 2006, 2010 and 2014 will be in Thunder Bay during the week from June 7th to the 13th for the camp. Many of Canada’s top skiing talents have been invited to join for a week of focused training aimed at improving the country's 2010 medal performance. This is one of two National Team Development Camps being offered this coming dry-land season, with the second one slated for Canmore, Alberta, in September.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 30, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #906
MARKETING CAMPAIGN KICKS OFF WITH NATIONAL TV BROADCAST APRIL 23

The Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) says that people across Canada "are invited to start the journey towards the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver with a nationally televised celebration of Canada" on Saturday, April 23rd.

The broadcast marks the starting of VANOC's major marketing campaign now that it has full possession of the national marketplace, and will culminate in presentation of the new 2010 Olympic Winter Games emblem. VANOC will have full possession of the international marketplace for Winter Games following the close of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino.

The live broadcast from General Motors Place -- for which free tickets become available to the public tomorrow -- marks Canada's first major 2010 Winter Games event since Vancouver was named Host City on July 2, 2003. A wide range of people and companies have been involved in the broadcast, under cover a non-disclosure agreements.

The program -- entitled "Imagine 2010 -- Canada's Olympic journey begins" -- will air from coast to coast on the network of VANOC's Canadian TV sponsor, CTV on April 23, starting at 7 p.m. Pacific time.

VANOC spokesman Sam Corea says the entertainment, "will feature hundreds of performers and surprise special guests as the stage is set for the dramatic unveiling of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic emblem." Complimentary tickets, with a limit of four per person, will be available through Ticketmaster as of 10 o'clock tomorrow morning Pacific.

The emblem will be the centrepiece of the 2010 Winter Games look and feel, and it's estimated it will be seen by more than three billion people by the time the 2010 Games finish. Corea says it "Will become one of the most highly recognized logos in Canada and around the world for the next five years." The logo was selected by an international judging panel following a nation-wide Olympic emblem design competition that drew more than 1,600 submissions from throughout Canada, and a great deal of controversy from within the mainstream graphic-design industry, which opposes competitions.

The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Emblem Design Competition began with a two-day Olympic Design Conference attended by more than 400 delegates in June 2004. As with previous Olympic Games competitions to replace bid logos, the delegates were briefed on the history of Olympic design and the Look of the Games programs from previous Summer and Winter Games. The Vancouver 2010 winning emblem design earns a prize of C$25,000 and two tickets to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games Opening Ceremony.

RESOURCES

TicketMaster:
http://www.ticketmaster.ca
604.280.4400

VANOC
http://www.vancouver2010.com

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 30, 2005

Tuesday, March 29, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #905
RICHMOND EXPECTED TO LOOSEN OVAL TENDERING PROCESS; WADA NAMES BECKI SCOTT TO ATHLETE COMMITTEE; RENO CONSIDERS 2014 OLYMPICS BID

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

Richmond city council is expected to ratify today a slight change in policy that effectively allows its general manager of engineering and public works, Jeff Day, and the firm MHPM Project Managers Inc., which is contracted to the municipality in connection with the C$135-million speed-skating oval complex, to award construction contracts when an "unforeseeable situation of urgency exists" without going to tender. Richmond's normal process, like many other municipalities in B.C., requires purchases of goods and services over C$250,000 to be made through public tender. Richmond director of engineering Robert Gonzalez is quoted in a report as saying the "exception to the rule" might be necessary "once or twice" to keep the project, due to be completed now by April, 2008, on schedule. The project has to meet International Skating Union standards for the 400-metre speed skating track. About 30 trades are likely to be involved, and at least seven major contracts are expected to be let. Documents also suggest that the foundation may give Richmond trouble and meeting Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification, a requirement of the International Olympic Committee may also prove difficult.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)'s president, Dick Pound, said today at WADA's headquarters in Montreal that he has appointed 13 members to the organization's new Athlete Committee, including Canada's Olympic champion in cross-country skiing, Beckie Scott. The aim of this working committee is to allow WADA closer contact with athletes and to give the Agency better insight into their questions and concerns regarding doping. The full list is under BACKGROUND, below. WADA will have a major presence at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. The Athlete's Committee is to meet later this year. The committee was selected from 35 nominations by the Chair of the committee, Viacheslav Fetisov, and Pound. They were selected based on a number of factors, said Pound, and they aimed for equal distribution, where possible, of representation between regions, sport and gender. “We are pleased to have such a high-quality group of athletes in place”, said Pound in a prepared statement. “Clean athletes are the most powerful force against doping in sport. This Committee, through their experience and expertise, will assist us greatly in our fight against doping, and I am confident that it will help us further develop our important task of educating athletes worldwide about the consequences of doping.”
A bill has been introduced in the Nevada state Senate that would provide -- if it's approved -- US$200,000 over the next two years to pay for the state's effort to host the Olympic Winter Games in 2014. The money would underwrite the costs of setting up an organizing committee to submit an application to the International Olympic Committee for the Games. Nevada is proposing to host the Games in the Reno and nearby Lake Tahoe. Reno originally tried to get the U.S. nod to bid for the 2002 Games, but it went to Salt Lake City. A number of European cities and Pyeonyang in South Korea are preparing to bid for the 2014 Winter Games, the winner of which would have an influence on the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver.

BACKGROUND

Besides Becki Scott, here are the new members of WADA's Athlete's Committee:

Mr Viacheslav Fetisov (chair of the Committee), chairman of the Russian State Committee for Physical Culture and Sport; Olympic and world champion in ice hockey;
Mr Marcus De Freire; Technical Director of the Brazilian Olympic Committee; Member of the Athletes Commission of the Sports Ministry of Brazil; Olympic medalist in volleyball
Mr Stéphane Diagana of France, member of the Athletes Commission of the International Association of Athletics Federations; world champion in athletics;

* Ms Jacqui Cooper; deputy chair of the Athletes Commission of the Australian Olympic Committee; world champion in freestyle skiing
Ms Janet Evans of the United States; chair of the Athletes Commission of the International Swimming Federation; Olympic and world champion in swimming
Ms Tanja Kari of Finland, member of the Athletes Committee of the International Paralympic Committee; Paralympic and world champion in cross-country skiing
Mr Anis Lounif of Tunisiai, world champion in judo;
Ms Rosa Mota, member of the Superior Council of Sports of Portugal; Portuguese ambassador for Fair Play at the Council of Europe; Olympic and world champion in marathon
Ms Yoko Tanabe, director of the Japan Anti-Doping Agency; Olympic and world medallist in judo;
Ms Sarah Ulmer, New Zealand Sports Drug Agency role model; Olympic and world champion in cycling
Ms Yang Yang of China, member of the Athletes Committee of the International Skating Union; member of the Chinese Olympic Committee; Olympic and World champion in short-track speed-skating

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 29, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #904
GOVERNMENT-BUSINESS DEAL AIMED AT CREATING JOBS FOR ABORIGINALS ON 2010-OLYMPIC PROJECTS

Just as the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) and B.C. governments begin implementing a system of direct awards for a portion of all VANOC-controlled venue construction, a new funding deal is announced to help pay for aboriginal apprentices.

The federal and BC governments, the B.C. Construction Association and several Vancouver-area construction firms have launched the Vancouver part of a federal-commercial partnership program to help aboriginals in B.C. find jobs on major projects, such as the 2010 Winter Olympics and related projects such as Sea-to-Sky highway reconstruction and the Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre project.

The launch of the VanAsep Training Society -- which will have a budget that will average about C$7 million per year for at least the next three years -- involved the federal government's Claudette Bradshaw, the Minister of State for Human Resources Development: Manley McLachlan, the president and chief executive officer for the British Columbia Construction Association; Leonard George, the president of the First Nations Employment Society. The VanAsep Training Society project is one of six ASEP projects now under way in Canada.

The project is being set up to train at least 600 aboriginals and guarantee at least 200 apprenticeships. The goal is to have about 300 aboriginals working in long-term sustainable careers in the construction industry by the spring of 2008.

As part of this project, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada will be working with a 12-member partnership consortium. Partners include the Tsawwassen, Squamish and Lil'wat aboriginal bands – the latter two are both have interests in the construction lands of the 2010 Winter Olympics -- the First Nations Employment Society, the Aboriginal Community Career Employment Services Society, the Métis Provincial Council of British Columbia, the BC Construction Association, the Vancouver Regional Construction Association, PCL Construction, the B.C. Road Builders Association, Peter Kiewit Sons Construction and Houle Electric Contractors.

Bradshaw says, "This project is a great example of how industry can meet its skill shortages by tapping into the potential and talent of B.C.'s Aboriginal work force. It's a winning situation and a point of pride for all of us on our way to hosting the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games."

The Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre project will become the Vancouver Olympic's main media centre in 2009, shortly after it's due to finish construction in 2008, while the Sea-to-Sky Highway project is designed to improve access between Vancouver and Whistler in time for the 2010 Games, although the work is being undertaken by the BC government.

The three-year budget is estimated at C$21.6 million. The business operations involved are contributing C$10 million, C$7.8 million will come from HRSDC, while C$3.8 million will come from the aboriginal communities. The BC government is contributing C$60,000.

BACKGROUND

ASEP is a five-year program launched by the federal government in late 2003 with total funding of C$85 million. Its overall objective is to create sustainable employment for aboriginals with branch programs across Canada that use what Ottawa calls "collaborative partnerships."

ASEP funding proposals are submitted by partnerships of firms or industry organizations, which must include firms from the private sector, aboriginal groups and the province where the large economic or resource-based project is located. Others who can get involved in the application can include schools, sector councils, labour unions, and other Government of Canada departments or agencies. Each partnership consortium must set out a training-to-employment plan for aboriginal people that link skills development to specific job opportunities.

A significant amount of funding for a project is expected from the partnership; the Government of Canada's normal contribution to a proposal doesn't go over 75%. The private sector must also demonstrate, at minimum, 50 long-term sustainable jobs for Aboriginal people once Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) has completed its funding.

A recent labour-market analysis by the federal government suggests that the construction sector is growing rapidly with over C$10 billion in opportunities in the corridor between the Vancouver suburb of Richmond and Whistler, both of which are municipalities that will host 2010 Games venues. The analysis claims this will create more 75,000 jobs, with industry demand to peak in 2006.

A federal spokesman says, "The potential impact on the aboriginal community is significant with the potential for sustainable employment beyond 2010."

RESOURCES

Operational Information on the Aboriginal Skills And Employment Partnership:
http://www17.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/AROInternet/general/public/asep/OperationalInformation_e.asp

British Columbia Construction Association
http://www.bccassn.com/

Vancouver Regional Construction Association
http://www.vrca.bc.ca

B.C. Road Builders and Heavy Construction Association
http://www.roadbuilders.bc.ca

PCL Construction
http://www.pcl.com

Peter Kiewit Sons Construction
http://www.kiewit.com/

Houle Electric Contractors
http://www.houle.ca

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 29, 2005

Friday, March 25, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #903
ORGANIZERS MULLING OVER C$269 MILLION SUPPORT PAYMENT TO SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

Vancouver Sun newspaper reporter Jeff Lee says he's learned through a Freedom of Information application to Simon Fraser University that its Board of Governors has requested the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) reimburse it for the $269,490 SFU spent on a failed bid for a C$68 million Olympic speed-skating oval that VANOC awarded to Richmond last year.

Lee reports that SFU president Michael Stevenson wrote a letter to VANOC CEO John Furlong in September claiming the Vancouver 2010 Bid Corporation, VANOC's predecessor, "understated the cost of the original oval", according to Lee. Lee then quotes a portion of Stevenson's letter that this showed, "a problem in the planning and management of the Vancouver 2010 bid."

Lee also quoted Stevenson's letter as saying, "While I understand VANOC's interest in off-loading costs which exceed the mis-estimate approved in the bid, there are serious issues of public accountability involved."

Lee said Furlong told him Thursday that VANOC is considering the reimbursement request. If that's the case, it's a change of position from last August 17, when Furlong confirmed that when VANOC served notice on Simon Fraser that it was terminating its venue agreement, that he didn't think the decision, under that agreement, incurred either a financial or a legal liability for VANOC.

Lee said that Furlong apparently wrote a letter last November in response to Stevenson, in which, Furlong said to Lee, that he told the SFU president he "tried hard to keep the proposed oval at SFU."

RESOURCES

You'll find our story that gives VANOC's full rationale for changing the venue of the speed skating oval from SFU to Richmond, and the process it followed to do it, here:
http://www.morgan-news.com/2010/archives/2004_10_01_Bronze.htm
Once at the web page, use your browser's Find feature to locate story number 469.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 25, 2005

Thursday, March 24, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #902
VANOC HUNTS FOR CONSTRUCTION AMBULANCE; TORINO STAMP CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED; TORINO VOLUNTEERS GET TASTE OF WORKLOAD

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

The Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) is looking for a heavy-duty, four-wheel-drive vehicle that can be used as an ambulance should a worker on one of its Whistler-area construction sites be injured on the job over the next three years. The Emergency Transportation Vehicle, or ETV, as they call it, will have to negotiate the rough construction terrain of the Callaghan Valley, where the Whistler Nordic Centre is being constructed, or the site of the Whistler Sliding Centre, so it needs to have a heavy-duty automatic transmission, be capable of carrying at least one worker on a stretcher, along with a first-aid attendant and a driver, and be able to communicate with hospitals and other emergency services. it will also need to be padded and have restraints that will keep the worker and the stretcher from jouncing about too much on the construction roads, and it has to have a good heating system for the injured worker. The nearest hospital, in Whistler, is about 15 kilometres from the Valley. VANOC says it has no brand preference, and, as long as the vehicle can do the job, it can be either new or used.
Over in Torino, the second phase of a money-making scheme for separating Italians from more of their Lira to help recoup the cost of holding the 2006 Winter Olympics has been launched: A series of stamps featuring more of the towns where the Torino Games will be held, plus one that features the Torino mascots Neve and Gliz. Each stamp will be produced in quantities of 3.5 million, and will be available in post offices all over Italy. The stamps range in price from 0.23 Euro to 0.62 Euro. The first phase, in March 2004, featured Torino and some of the other towns involved. A single, temporary stamp counter was opened in one of the towns so that letters could be stamped and postmarked on their date of issue, for collectors, and there was a little ceremony accompanying the release of the stamps with various Italian Olympic and government officials to help the public-relations side of the stamps' marketing campaign.
Speaking of Italy, the man who is choreographing the Opening and Closing ceremonies for next winter's Torino games is Doug Jack, a resident of California. The reason they have him doing this work is that it's his 11th set of ceremonies -- Summer and Winter -- for such Games; he's done each one since Barcelona, Spain, in 1992. Today, he met with Torino University students to talk to them about what it means to volunteer for the Ceremonies. There are specific conditions, such as being between the ages of 18 and 35, and being available at precise times, outside normal working hours, to take part in the 25 training meetings -- which last a maximum of four hours each – as well as the full five days preceding the ceremonies, and the two days of the ceremonies themselves. A huge number of positions are to be filled, and these are divided into two main groups: the volunteers who will be "on show", that is those who will be working with the public, and those who will be responsible for the production and management of the ceremonies backstage. VANOC is expected to begin recruiting a total of 25,000 volunteers for the 2010 Games in late 2007 or early 2008.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 24, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #901
"OPTIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES" THE FOCUS OF NEW MOU BETWEEN BC AND ALBERTA OVER OLYMPICS

There are more details now available about the Memorandum of Understanding we told you about yesterday between the BC and Alberta provincial governments in which they agree to work on sharing Olympic facilities and opportunities in the run-up to the 2010 Olympics.

The agreement runs from now until March 31, 2011, and both governments are to name co-chairs of a committee to develop a specific work plan, within four months of being named, to implement a series of objectives detailed in the MOU. The plan is to identify "options and opportunities" in two areas: athletic development and sport tourism.

In athletic development, they are to plan "joint initiatives" that would promote and develop athletes, coaches and officials by providing access to world class facilities for training and competition, provide support to high performance athletes in BC and Alberta emphasizing the use of Olympic and Paralympic winter sports and venues, figure out how to develop joint-use agreements with facility owners and operators, which include the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC), the Calgary Olympic Development Association, Orca Bay and Intrawest plus the cities of Vancouver and Whistler. They are also to figure out joint research projects, information sharing and "agreements related to the construction and operation of sport and recreation facilities."

Under the topic of sport tourism, they are to set out a sport and tourism strategy that combines BC and Alberta resources for "enhancing planned competitions and attracting major competitions to both jurisdictions to take advantage of sport infrastructure", and to set up sport-tourism marketing partnerships to attract visitors to the two jurisdictions. They would also set up "media familiarization tours" to Alberta and BC. That's similar to the kind of thing now being done by various provincial and city tourism agencies.

There is no word yet on the timeline of the appointees from either government, nor who they might be.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 24, 2005

Wednesday, March 23, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |General| #900
WADA LOOKS AT THE IDEA OF CATCHING GENE-DOPERS AT THE 2010 GAMES

Reporter J. Todd of the Montreal Gazette quotes the head of the World Anti-Doping Agency as saying that WADA has begun initial investigations into ways it might set up a portion of its lab at the 2010 Winter Olympics to catch those using gene-transfer therapy to enhance their performance at the Olympic Games.

Gene-transfer therapy, says Todd, "could be used to cure an array of diseases from Parkinson's to cystic fibrosis to cancer - or, theoretically, converted to create a kind of robo-jock." Todd says that "Gene doping can work by inserting into a patient's cells or directly into her genome a normal gene to replace or repair a gene that doesn't work properly. Scientists use a gene transport method, known as a vector, to deliver the gene to the genome, most commonly by using a disabled virus that has been altered so as not to be harmful while it delivers DNA to a cell. It's a difficult process and there have been hundreds of attempts with no real evidence of therapeutic attempts."

Todd quotes WADA's chairman Richard Pound, who is also one of the IOC's directors on the Board of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC), as saying, "One of the areas we're looking at is the whole question of gene doping. We've actually initiated contacts with the leading scientists on genetic transfers and found out what they're doing, then explained to them our problem. We're trying to be there ahead of the curve as the regulatory framework is being set and the research is being done. We're asking how you can detect this and what the side effects are. " Todd also quotes Pound as saying that one of the researchers told me that half his research comes from colleagues interested in his work and the other half comes from people saying, 'Can I try this?' It's mind- boggling. And it's not just athletes, it's coaches."

Todd also reports on an interview he did with Dr. Olivier Rabin, the science director for WADA, who explains: "The technical goal is relatively simple. It's to create a multiplication in your body that would enhance your performance. You can look at muscle strength, for example, or it could be the transfer of oxygen. The idea is to transfer the copy of a gene into your cell or into your DNA in order to auto-produce the substance. If you take the example of EPO, the idea of EPO is to stimulate the production of red-blood cells. Today, what some athletes are doing is to take shots of recombinant EPO to boost their production of red-blood cells. The idea for gene doping would be to take the portion of the DNA which is responsible for the synthesis of EPO, to put it into a virus and inject it into the body. And this fraction of the extract of the gene will be inserted in your cells and will be recognized by all the cell machinery and will produce extra EPO. This is valid for EPO, this is valid for Human Growth Hormone, this is valid for IGF-1 (a muscle-building hormone) - this is valid for a lot of substances."

Todd also interviewed Christiane Ayotte, director of the Doping Control Laboratory. He reports here as being pragmatically assessing the fact that much of this is still in the realm of imagination, but, he reports she told him, "That being said, I will have no choice for Vancouver 2010, and it's believed that in 2010, we may be there with gene-transfer doping. Whether I like it or not, they may go there."

How does one go about detecting gene-transfer use in athletes. Todd talked to Dr Rabin about that, who told him, "Of course you can transfer a gene into the body to increase the natural production of HGH [for example]. But what is interesting is that your auto- production of a given protein such as HGH will create a cascade of reactions on other genes, so that we can not only detect a different copy of a gene but also measure or identify the specific signature of a modification in your body that can be linked to the intake of a doping substance or an extract of an EPO gene, for example. In biology, you've got a natural phenomenon, which is the homeostasis of your body - your body is balanced. When you create an imbalance by inserting an extract copy of a gene, there will be a cascade of effects, a down-regulation or an up-regulation of a gene. You get a visual signature of the effect of a product. We're trying to make a link between those specific signatures and the use of prohibited substances. For anabolic steroids, we may have a very specific signature. The same for EPO-related substances, the same for Human Growth Hormone. At the end, instead of looking for the substance in the body, we're looking at the effect of the substance. This is very interesting to us because in biology, the effect remains long after the molecule has cleared your body. This is what we're looking for in the future: We can look at the genomic level and the protein levels, the modification of the markers in your urine that are affected when your metabolism is modified."

Todd says Dr. Rabin told him that, "All these leads are today under investigation in our anti-doping program. In the future it might still be useful to look for the substance. We've already got very sophisticated mechanisms to look for anabolic steroids, for instance. What we're looking at now are methods that would identify the impact of a substance so that, scientifically, it reflects doping."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 23, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #899
PEMBERTON AWAITS AIRPORT REPORT; VANOC BEEFS UP PROCUREMENT; PYEONGCHANG TAPPED FOR 2014 BID

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

The village of Pemberton, a little farther north along the highway from Whistler, is expected to hear in the next few days from Mel Feddersen, a senior director of operations with Vancouver Airport Services who is acting as a consultant for Pemberton, about his recommendations on expanding the municipality's airport, using 2010 Olympics traffic as a springboard for the work that would be necessary to support a growing tourism interest in the region. Intrawest's Whistler-Blackcomb division, WestJet Airlines Ltd. and Alaska Air Group Inc. have all supported the concept of making it possible for small jets, about the size of Boeing 737, to land there. Whistler doesn't have an airport; the nearest one is Vancouver International, about three hours away by truck. However, Pemberton's airport is in a narrow valley with tall mountains on either side, and because of the approach, a jet would need to make a 60-degree turn -- that's sharp for a passenger jet -- to make the approach.
The procurement department of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) is being beefed up a bit, now that the organization has switched from planning to implementation and is in the marketplace more often now. VANOC is will be adding another senior buyer position next month, with an eye to the upcoming workload of preparing requests for proposals; invitations to quote; negotiating pricing, terms and conditions of sale and for the warranties of goods and products with key suppliers, help chief procurement officer Jim Bornholdt plan procurement requirements; do the necessary gruntwork of researching, identifying, and qualifying potential new suppliers and prepare purchase documentation.
Pyeongchang is now officially South Korea's city in contention for the 2014 Winter Olympics. Vancouver narrowly defeated the bid for the city, 160 kilometres east of Seoul, to host the 2010 Games, which meant that Pyeongchang had to start the process from the beginning again, beating out competing South Korean provinces for a second time, to get the national nod. The decision on which city will host the Games, and thus play a small part in the closing ceremonies of Vancouver's 2010 Games, will not be made by the International Olympic Committee until 2007. The former president of the UN General Assembly, Han Seung-soo will head the committee for the 2014 bid.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 23, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #898
BC AND ALBERTA SIGN MEMO ON OLYMPIC FACILITIES SHARING; PRIESTNER ON ADAPABILITY AND SIMILARITY; A GAMBLE AND A CURL

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

The governments of Alberta and British Columbia have signed an agreement that allows Alberta's existing Olympic facilities to train athletes for the 2010 Winter Games. Gary Mar, minister of Community Development for Alberta, says the agreement will ensure facilities built for Calgary's Olympics in 1988 "get well used over the next few years, and reduces the need for Vancouver to rush to build permanent facilities for training." From the B.C. Government's point of view, the MOU "will assist the provinces in sharing Olympic and Paralympic training and competition facilities to develop high-performance athletes and sport tourism initiatives."
George Johnson, reporting for the Sports department of the Calgary Herald newspaper on a brief conversation that he had with Cathy Priestner, the senior vice-president of Sport for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC), quotes her on two topics. One, there's a single trait that stands out in her experience as essential for an organization like VANOC, no matter how much planning is done, and that's adaptability. Priestner, who was onboard for both the Calgary Olympics in 1988 and the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics in 2002, put it this way, "Who could've foreseen 9/11 and how everything would change just four months before Salt Lake? The whole world was turned upside down after 9/11 and here we are hosting that world, new rules, an increased sense of uneasiness, in 120 days. We had to re-design. Re-think. With an Olympics, you need to be well-prepared, ahead of schedule, but also light on your feet. You just never know, do you?" The other topic: You can compare Vancouver's winter Olympics with those that proceed it, but only just so far. "The Olympics are just so much bigger, in scope, in money, the whole business end, than in 1988. So much more professional. If you compare the number of organizational people between then and now . . . well, there's no comparison. In Calgary, there were so many volunteers. Structurally, it's far different now. That doesn't mean they're necessarily going to be better or worse. Just different."
Last October, we told you about Slotland, an Internet-based casino that had just become the first firm of this type to sponsor high-performance curling by taking under their wing a team that was aiming at being in the 2010 Winter Olympics. The company, through the idea of a British-based public-relations firm which specializes in on-line gaming promotion, tagged the London, Ontario, curling team led by skip Gerry Geurts, 25, that played on the Ontario Curling Tour. The 2005 tour season is complete and the gamble, at least for the first tour, didn't pay off too well for the casino. Team Slotland.com, as it is called, played 23 of 32 games, and won 47.8% of them, which put them 35th out of a field of 48 teams and which isn't exactly what you might call house odds. Still, the PR firm made the best of it. Though the chips were down, it couldn't help doing a little curling of its own by adding a little spin to the situation. It said that the performance puts Guertz and his teammates, "one step closer to their Olympic dream after their performance in the Ontario Curling Tour." The PR firm added that "Slotland.com is thrilled with the team's progress and is proud to have been instrumental in the development of the team's competition experience. This season the team competed in more events than they had ever before."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 23, 2005

Friday, March 18, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |IOC| #897
SINGLES CURLING PONDERED FOR 2010

The International Olympic Committee is expected to decide in the next two to three months on a format for singles curling that, if approved, would first appear at the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver.

The World Curling Federation is asking the IOC to consider the sharpshooter event in the 2010 Games. If approved, a test world championship will be held sometime next year, followed by world championships in 2007 to 2009. The main curling complex to be built by the City of Vancouver for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) is not scheduled to be completed until the winter of 2009/2010.

The singles competition is a skills competition in which participants compete individually to make a series of difficult shot. Ford, the car company, sponsors a similar competition, called "Hot Shots", that comes before the Canadian men's and women's championship and which is also part of the Continental Cup format.

WCF vice-president Les Harrison says his organization's proposal to the IOC involves having the top-15 ranked curlers after the three world championships plus host Canada to qualify for the competition at the 2010 Games.

The 2010 Olympics curling, which became a full medal event in 1998, is the usual four-person men's and women's curling.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 22, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #896
CAR-RENTAL AGENCIES ASKED TO SUPPLY VANOC WITH WIDE RANGE OF VEHILCLES

The Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) is now in the market for a company to supply it with rental vehicles ranging in size from small gas/electric hybrids to small busses, and they might be used anywhere from one day to "several months."

The information is contained in a Request for Proposals issued by VANOC to car-rental agencies Friday. The vehicles, according to the documentation, have to be no more than two years old and in good shape. The documentation doesn't mention it, but there are currently about 70 full-time employees of VANOC, although that's expected to grow slowly this year, and then rise dramatically over the next few years.

VANOC does have a couple of special requests, including having a person assigned by the rental agency and a back-up person, to look after VANOC's needs with no more than a 30-minute response time during the week, and emergency access to personnel during weekends. And, VANOC staff won't need to go to the rental agency branches to pick vehicles, part of the service requested in the RFP is for rental-agency staff to deliver a vehicle to VANOC personnel. No, staff won't have to pay for the vehicles; VANOC is to be billed by the agency. And, yes, spouses of VANOC personnel will be allowed to drive the rented vehicle and be covered by the deal.

VANOC policy requires employees to use the most economical mode of transportation suitable, so they are restricted to using compact vehicles unless use of larger vehicles is pre-authorized by management.

VANOC's procurement department chief, Jim Bornholdt, wants to hear from the car rental agencies no later than April 6. He notes that "As part of our commitment to sustainability, where possible VANOC will give preference to the rental of hybrid, fuel efficient and low-emission vehicles." Therefore, he says, consideration will be given towards proponents who have them when VANOC staff need them. The kind of vehicles at this level: Toyota Prius (hybrid), Honda Civic (hybrid), Cavalier, Focus, Neon SX 2.0, Sentra, Protégé and Sunfire.

On the other hand, VANOC staff will be able to request 4-wheel drive SUVs if that's the kind of vehicle they need. Such vehicles include Blazer, Tracker, Sidekick, Jeep (all models), RAV 4, CR-V, Jimmy, Explorer (hybrid), Pathfinder, 4Navigator, Outback, Legacy and the Impreza.

In case you're wondering, the RFP has no mention any requirement for a Hummer.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 18, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |IOC, VANOC| #895
OLYMPIANS CANADA DIRECTORS ESTABLISH STRUCTURE TO CONNECT 3,400 OLYMPIC ATHLETES

The president of Olympians Canada, Charmaine Crooks, says that a recent meeting of her fledging organization's Board of Directors in Vancouver heard a presentation by the senior vice-president of Sport for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC), and has decided to treat Canada as six separate regions in order to deliver OC's services to the country.

Olympians Canada is a non-profit organization created to help Canada's 3,400 Canadian Olympians who are still alive to contact or reunite with fellow Olympians, to remember and celebrate their achievements, and to promote the Olympic movement for the benefit of future Olympians. It's supporter is the Canadian Olympic Committee and one of OC's aims is and to promote the Canadian Olympic Committee and its Athlete Services section. Crooks is also a member of the VANOC Board of Directors.

"Due to the size of Canada, we decided that we would need to divide the country into six regions to ensure that events would be accessible to Olympians in every region. We will also employ the database resources of the COC to facilitate communication across the country," she reports. Crooks notes that the OC Board also discussed "event planning criteria, bylaws, governance structure, how to promote Olympism in Canada, regional division of chapters, and strategies to engage the Olympian community in our activities. Regarding the planning of events, we decided that the purpose of all events we supported or coordinated would need to complement the purpose of the International Olympic movement."

In addition to involving itself with a number of organizations already holding specific events [see BACKGROUND, below], the OC intends to integrate itself with VANOC's environmental-event planning and to hold meetings with VANOC's marketing executives about cross promotional activities.

Priestner's presentation focused on the COC's "Own the Podium" program, which she co-authored.

BACKGROUND

The OC's Board of Directors:

Chris Farstad, the COC's Director of Athlete Relations;
Charmaine Crooks
Kirstin Normand, who was captain of Canada's bronze-medal winning synchronized-swimming team at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney and who is also vice-president of Athletes Can;
Curt Harnett, winner of three Olympic medals in cycling;
Doug Martin, chair of Olympians BC and manager of Member Sales for Intrawest, whose Whistler/Blackcomb ski area is one of the host venues of the 2010 Games;
Leah Allinger is Cathy Priestner's daughter, was with 2010 LegaciesNow and now with the Canadian Olympic Committee;
Annie Pelletier, a springboard diving Olympic medallist and member of the Canadian Olympic Committee;
Guillaume Leblanc, president of Olympians Canada's Quebec chapter;
Atila Ozkaplan, is the OC's co-ordinator of Athlete Relations;
Claire Carver-Dias is program manager of Athlete Relations for the Canadian Olympic Committee and a member of the 2000 synchro-swimming team;
Tricia Smith, a 1984 silver medallist in rowing and is now a partner in the Vancouver law firm Barnes Craig & Associates specializing in risk management and liability claims.

The national organization's structure, which will be reviewed after four years:

National board of directors with regional representatives;
Appointed seats: President of COC (non-voting), World Olympic Association representative (voting), IOC reps (non-voting), Regional reps (voting);
National board would elect executive-officer positions: President, Vice-President, Treasurer/Secretary;
Chapter regions: BC (including the Yukon), Alberta (including the Northwest Territories), Quebec, Atlantic, Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan Including Nunavut);
Chapters regionally run with satellite groups;
Membership: Olympic competitors are members; Coaches, officials and others are recognized as OC family, but non-voting.

--

The Board decided that it would run programs funded nationally, with potential to connect with existing events. These include:

June 23 – McDonald’s Olympic Day Run (McDonald's is an international sponsor of the International Olympic Committee and is expected to be a major sponsor of the 2010 Winter Games though that relationship)
World Children’s Day: $12M athletes serving at McDonald’s
Year of Youth Education and Sport
Special Olympics (March 1-6), fundraising festivals – supported by WOA and IOC; The Special Olympics are for athletes with mental disabilities as opposed to the 2010 Paralympics, which are for athletes with physical disabilities
Project to get every Olympian to speak at the school they went to, with targeted weeks

Other National/Provincial Programs they'll be considering for involvement:

The Act Now school program
Run, Jump, Throw
Active Kids Foundation
Boys and Girls club
Action Schools

RESOURCES

Olympians Canada webpage:
<http://www.olympic.ca/EN/athletes/tc/olympians/index.shtm l>

COC's Athlete Services:
http://www.olympic.ca/EN/athletes/tc/athleteservices/index.shtml

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 18, 2005

Thursday, March 17, 2005

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #894
ALBERTA OFFERS C$150,000 TO KEEP SKI JUMPING AND NORDIC COMBINED ALIVE A WHILE LONGER

The Sports Network tonight is reporting that the Alberta government will issue a C$150,000 grant on Friday to help pay for coaching ski jumping and Nordic combined for the rest of the 2005 season. The province's money, reports TSN, plus C$150,000 promised earlier by the Calgary Olympic Development Association (CODA), restores the funding the two groups lost last fall.

The breath of life given by the matching funding buys a bit more time for various sports officials to make a business case for the Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) to change its requirements and make the 2010 Winter Olympics ski jumps slated for construction in the Callaghan Valley permanent, instead of temporary and remove them after the Olympics, as it now plans to do.

Last November, TSN notes, CODA announced it was withdrawing its support for the two sports because, among other things, Canada hasn't had a ski jumper compete at the last three Olympics and the one that last did finished last at the 1992 Games in Albertville.

CODA budgeted about C$700,000 a year to support the two sports; TSN says that about C$400,000 of that "was used to operate the ski jump at Canada Olympic Park. The fate of the ski jump, which is outdated and needs about C$6.5 million in upgrades, has yet to be decided. "TSN says two ski jumpers, Greg Baxter, 15, and Stefan Read, 17, both of Calgary, have met the international qualifying standards for next winter's Olympic Games in Torino, Italy. Jason Myslicki, 27, of Thunder Bay, Ont., has qualified in Nordic combined, the network added. It also quotes Brent Morrice, chairman of Ski Jumping Canada, as saying, that he's been promised some base funding through the "Own The Podium" program that focuses funds on specific sports, but not ski jumping. The OTP program is to be half-funded by VANOC.

VANOC's concerns about the ski jumps near Whistler don't so much have to do with the quality of candidates, although that's tied into it. It's concern is ensuring the jumps will not be white elephants after the Games have ended, because the Whistler Nordic Centre will have an operating budget that comes out of a trust fund to be set up by revenues from the Games and that fund will also provide operational money for other legacy operations from the Games. If a business case -- that is, if a group doesn't take responsibility for ensuring there will be revenue for the jumps in the years following 2010 -- VANOC will keep them temporary and remove them.