Morgan:News:2010:Bronze Edition: November 2006

Wednesday, November 29, 2006

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Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2017

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

TORINO GAMES "SET NEW RECORDS" IN WINTER OLYMPIC SUSTAINABILITY

VANOC has a new environmental benchmark to beat. The 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Torino, Italy, set new records in the quest for environmental sustainability in mass sports. About 70% of greenhouse gases generated by the Games were offset by investing in forestry, energy efficiency and renewable energy schemes both at home and abroad, according to a report released at the Global Forum Sport and Environment in the home city of the Olympics, Lausanne, Switzerland. United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) Executive Director Achim Steiner says, "Torino 2006, in which UNEP has been a partner, set targets and timetables across a wide range of environmental and sustainability criteria... I sincerely hope that the next Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada, in 2010, along with operators of winter sports globally, pick up the Torino torch en route to the ultimate goal of realizing sustainable sporting events and leisure activities across the world." The main part of TOROC's green effort was the Heritage Climate Torino project, an effort to make the Games carbon-neutral. The organizers calculated that the 16-day event would generate the equivalent of just over 100,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide, with the main sources coming from transport and the operation of the venues. Much of these emissions were offset by 'credits' in line with the international climate change treaty, such as financing renewable energy and sustainable energy projects. About e5 million (C$7.5 million) was invested in Italian projects for district heating. Internationally, according to the report, "verifiable emissions reductions" were purchased from certified green and cleaner energy projects in Eritrea, Mexico and Sri Lanka. A tree planting project in Kenya, under UNEP's Plant for the Planet initiative, also contributed.

VANOC GIFT STORE TO INCREASE STAFF

The 250-square-foot souvenir store in the lobby of VANOC's headquarters, which opened in September, intends to increase its staffing a bit during its first holiday gift season. It'll be taking on a regular part-time clerk for 16 hours a week. The store primarily sells merchandise sporting 2010 brands to staff and the steady flow of people coming to meet them. The store is open weekdays 9 am to 5 pm, except on Fridays when it closes at 4 pm.

WHISTLER GROOMING VOLUNTEERS WEASEL THEIR WAY ONTO VAIL RUNS

The Daily News in Vail, Colorado, reports there are a batch of volunteers from Whistler, BC, working on the ski hills there this week. Owen Carney, reports the newspaper, is leading the crew, called the Whistler Weasel Workers, which expect to help groom the Olympic race courses when Vancouver and Whistler host the Winter Olympics in 2010. At the moment, Carney told the newspaper's reporter, they're picking up tips and ideas from Beaver Creek workers. "We're here to learn and look at what they're doing and how it's different from what we do," he's quoted as saying. Carney is working with the race chief this week, while other members of his group have separate jobs on the course. Volunteers, which include people from London, England, and Scotland, get a ski pass and a jacket and the only have to work for four days, however, that includes skiing down an icy, steep face at high speeds to help prepare the race course. As one volunteer told the newspaper, "There's no such thing as a free ski jacket."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 30, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC
Government| #2016

CANADIAN GOVERNMENT TO ISSUE $1 AND TEN 25-CENT COINS FOR THE 2010 WINTER GAMES

The Canadian government has authorized the Canadian Mint to manufacture a C$1 coin and 10 versions of a Canadian 25-cent piece commemorating the 2010 Winter Olympics. The coins are to be issued between 2007 and 2009.

The Mint is a Tier-2 sponsor of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC).

According to government documents, on the obverse side of the C$1 coin, which will be issued next year, will be a picture of Queen Elizabeth sketched by artist Susanna Blunt and the inscription '2010' will be inscribed below the neckline and "beading around the circumference of the coin," according to the Order-in-Council. The reverse side will show the official Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games emblem with the inscriptions "CANADA" above it and and "DOLLAR" below it.

As for the 25-cent coins, they'll all have the Blunt design of the Queen's portrait on one side, with the 2010 emblem to the left of the sketch. The other side of the coins will feature a partial outline of a maple leaf on all of them partially obscuring a specific design that varies with the coin, plus the inscriptions "25 cents" and "Vancouver 2010", with the trademark symbols in English and French, to the top left and bottom left of the design.

The designs on the coin are expected to be:

Issued in 2007:

A hockey player getting ready to hit a puck;

A male biathlon athlete aiming his rifle, with two trees to the left of the athlete and one tree to the right;

A female curler getting ready to release a curling stone with her right hand while holding a broom in her left hand;

An alpine skier going downhill, with two trees to the left of the athlete;

A female wheelchair athlete getting ready to push a curling stone;

In 2008:

A snowboarder in mid air, with two trees at the top of the athlete;

A freestyle skier in mid air, with two trees to the left of the athlete;

A pair of figure skaters;

A trio of bobsled athletes getting into their vehicle;

In 2009:

A speed skater in a racing stance;

A cross-country skier, with two trees to the left of the athlete; and

A sledge hockey athlete getting ready to hit the puck.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 29, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Torino| #2015

BUSINESS NUMBERS UNDERYING THE TORINO WINTER OLYMPICS RELEASED

Here are a batch of statistics and summary information from the Torino Winter Olympics, many of them provided to VANOC this summer, that you may find useful. The information was released by Valentino Castellani, the president of TOROC, the Torino Olympic Organizing Committee, during his trip to BC this month.

Note that some of numbers, because of the differences of the way the infrastructure of the Torino Games was set up, may not be strictly comparable to what might happen with Vancouver and Whistler, but the numbers even then can give you a good sense of the order of magnitude involved:

IN THE OLYMPICS (17 days of competitions): There were 15 disciplines (specific sports and variations); 84 medal events; 1,026 medals awarded; 80 national Olympic committees involved; 2,573 athletes attended; 2,704 officials attended; 331 judges and referees took part; 6,000 guests of the IOC, sponsors and other parts of the "Olympic Family'; 94 rights-holding broadcasting operations brought their crews; and, there were a total of about one million spectators who saw the Games first hand.

Of the 9,408 media that covered the Olympics: 29% were newspapers, newswires, news agencies and news or sports photographers. The balance, 71% were radio and TV broadcasters. RAI, the host broadcaster, had 10.7 million viewers for the Opening Ceremonies (a 37.25% share), 7.9 million for the Closing Ceremonies (29.03% share) and 10 million for the awards ceremonies (a 39% share).

IN THE PARALYMPICS (10 days of competitions): There were five disciplines; four competition venues; 58 medals awarded; 1,200 athletes, guides, technicians; 39 national Paralympic committees; about 1,000 IPC members, and representatives of national Paralympic committees and sports federations; 1,100 media representatives covered the Games; there were 3,000 volunteers used; and 200,000 spectators.

According to a study by the Torino Chamber of Commerce: The value of tenders to big contractors to manage maintenace work and technical assistance, not including the cost of permanent infrastructure, e570 million (C$854 million). Forty-four percent of it was spent in the region that includes Torino, 40% in other Italian regions (a total of 84% in Italy), and 16% was spent outside of the country.

Here are the main things that money was spent on within the region that included Torino: venue design and construction of temporary venues; refurbishing TOROC's headquarters; catering services; services from travel agencies and cleaners; information technology services; entertainment services during the Games; logistics and car rental services; and uniforms production.

The main reasons money wasn't spent in the Torino region: the purchase of supplies and goods by sponsors that were located outside of the region and purchased in their area; the services or goods weren't available there, and statistical anomalies caused by the fact the services or goods were provided by a company whose headquarters were outside of the region.

The main commercial industries involved in supplying the Torino Games: the local food industry (wine, chocolate, cheese and other agricultural products); events; communication; logistics; tourism.

Food and Beverages: about 500,000 meals were served within the seven Torino villages, 400,000 of them to the Olympic workforce and 100,000 to athletes. There were 2,000 workers who served food and beverages at 160 eating facilities available at venues and villages for spectators, athletes, workforce, Olympic Family, sponsors and journalists. Thirty thousand bottles of wine and 1.2 million litres of soft drinks were consumed.

THE LOOK OF THE GAMES: The total cost spent was e10 million (about C$15 million) on the Look of the Games, while e8 million (about C$12 million) was spent on the look of the Games in Torino. 8,000 square metres (86,000 square feet) of PVC plastic were applied to buildings and 44,000 sqm (474,000 square feet) to cover the stands; 150 kilometres (93 miles) of fabric was used to cover barriers, railing and fences; 7,000 banners covered a surface of 22,000 sqm (237,000 square feet). There were 3,000 flags created and used, along with 28,000 posters.

VOLUNTEERS: There were 41,000 volunteers who applied to the Torino Games; 24,000 were interviewed by TOROC; 18,000 were trained for use at the Games. Of those 18,000: 33% were 55 years and older, 20% were between 36 and 54 years old; 47% were between 18 and 35. Also, of those 18,000: 56% were used in the mountain areas (Torino had more mountain venues that were more spread out than VANOC), and 44% were used in the urban venue areas. There were 207 job titles and 302,700 shifts applied to those job titles. The volunteers were mostly used in the following operating areas: venue management, technology (such as information technology, telecommunication, timing and scoring), transport services, security, logistics, services to the national Olympic and Paralympic committees, media relations, ticketing, accreditation, protocol, spectator services, medical services (such as doping control and health care), arts and culture, events and ceremonies, sponsor services, environment, education and management of the volunteers. Of the 18,000 volunteers: 77% were from the region that includes Torino, 18% from other parts of Italy and 5% from other countries (mostly Europe and North America, but they represented 64 countries in total).

According to a study completed 11 months ago and done by Torino Unione Industriale and Rome La Sapienza University, the following economics were expected to be generated by, or attributed to, the Torino Games from 2005 to 2009:

-- The increase of value-added production attributed to the Games was e17.4 billion (about C$26 billion) at the national level, e13 billion (about $19 billion) at the regional level. Sixty percent of this was likely generated in the two years from the start of 2005 to the end of 2006.

-- The increase of Italy's Gross Domestic Product per year for each of the four years from 2005 to 2009 was expected to be 0.2% per year nationally and 2.9% regionally.

-- The increase in the employment rate attributed to the Games during the four years was expected to be per year 0.2% per year nationally, 2.8% regionally.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 29, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2014

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

SKI-RACING SUPPLIERS "MOST CONCERNED" ABOUT YOUTH MARKET

Jean-Pierre Morand, the Secretary General of the Ski Racing Suppliers Association, says his group of companies, over the long term, are "most concerned" about keeping up the interest of the youth market in some skiing sports, especially in alpine skiing. The International Olympic Committee, in recent years, has been aiming at a number of levels, particularly in marketing and encouraging its franchises, such as VANOC and the 2010 Games, to do things to focus on the youth market as well. "In Freestyle Skiing and Snowboard," he told the latest issue of FIS Flash, the sport's weekly newsletter, "the new events, such as ski cross, have served to create a younger image. Within nordic skiing, the outlook is relatively positive as cross-country skiing lies right in the trend as a so-called 'health sport' and its popularity in the emerging markets in the east has given it a real boost. In the future, we see the greatest opportunities for all ski sports to be in the eastern Europe and Asia [markets] since the central European and North American markets are relatively mature. There, the challenge will be to maintain skiing as a mainstream sport. There are so many other leisure opportunities these days. We would rather see the kids on the slopes than playing skiing games on the computer." Morand adds that, "The most critical thing is to make sure that the top level skiing -- the main product -- remains attractive to the general public. We, as an industry, serve everyone, from the grassroots to the top athletes. We welcome the interest of other industries to invest in skiing as event or series sponsors, and especially salute the long-time commitment of certain companies to support ski sport. At the same time, we would like to see some new names to enter the row as well." Morand says he welcomes FIS's decision to "move in the direction of a more concentrated professional product." Morand says, "We are convinced that, in the end, ski sport will be sustainable as a globally successful phenomenon. We do appreciate the difficulties of establishing the product at the intersection of international and national interests. However, we believe that everyone's long-term interests will be best served by modernization, even if this might involve national compromises at times."

FASEL BRIEFS IOC ON 2010 PROGRESS

The chairman of the Coordination Commission of the 2010 Winter Games, Rene Fasel, told the IOC's Executive Board, during its final day of meetings in Kuwait City today, about "the successful completion of the first venue for the Vancouver 2010 Games -- the freestyle skiing venue on Cypress Mountain -- and praised the quality of the work undertaken by the Organizing Committee over the year." according to an IOC spokesman after the meetings. The meetings are taking place in private.

TORINO OVERSIGHT COMMISSION FOCUSES ON OLYMPICS PRODUCT

The chairman of the Torino 2006 Coordination Commission, Jean-Claude Killy, reportedly told the IOC's Executive Board that he and his committee that supervised the development of the Torino Winter Games about some of the lessons learned by it. Killy says the Commission's final report to the IOC -- in part based on feedback gathered from corporate, government and sports organizations involved in the Games -- will have some detailed comments about the Games product. Specifically, he says it will deal with "the gains that can be made by better leveraging, in an integrated way, the five elements of the Games: sport, torch relay, ceremonies, culture and education and city activities." That theme was also provided to VANOC during its Torino debriefing meeting earlier this year. Killy also stressed to the Executive Board the importance of a host city having a strong vision for its Games, not just in terms of what the Games can bring to them, but in terms of what they can bring to the Olympic Movement. The final report is expected to be delivered to the IOC's Executive Board at its next meeting early next year, and tabled at the full IOC Session meeting in Guatemala City in July 2007, where the Session's members will chose the city that wins the 2014 Winter Games franchise.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 29, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |General| #2013

TOP CHINESE OLYMPIAN TO HELP TRAIN PRINCE GEORGE SPEEDSKATERS AS PART OF 2010-RELATED PROGRAM

Events Prince George, an organization that's been working with the city's Spirit of BC Committee to support teams and officials who want to train and compete in BC prior to the 2010 Winter Games, has scored an early victory under its Train In BC program.

China's top speedskater, Li Jiajun (pronounced Lee gee-ah JUNE), is expected to come to the north-central BC city for six months to coach and train the Prince George Blizzards Speed Skating club. At the same time, he'll be gaining his Canadian Coaching credentials and attending school to learn English. His costs of tuition, accommodation and insurance are covered by the Chinese Skating Association.

Prince George is competing with other BC communities to encourage national Olympic teams and their support organizations to locate nearby to train for 2010.

The manager of Sports for Events Prince George, Virginia Sprangers, says the organization has been working to convince international-calibre teams and athletes to train in the city. "Prince George's developing relationship with China is bridging cultural opportunities through sport," she says. "Prince George is positioned to market itself to international athletes and teams, and the whole community -- including local business, cultural, and sport organizations -- are working together to make it happen."

Earlier this year, Lan Li, of the Chinese Skating Association and the Government Branch for Winter Sports in China, toured Prince George and, she said, he was impressed by what he saw. "This will be a good beginning for our further cooperation, I hope there will be more exchange activities between your community and our association," Spranger says Lan told her afterward, and that he added, "I believe these activities will be helpful to our friendship and development in winter sports."

Li Jiajun has won five Olympic medals and is a 16-time world championship medalist and nine-time world champion. In 1999, he became the first Chinese man to win the overall short-track world title. He won it again in 2001.

Jean R. Dupre, Director General, Speed Skating Canada, says that "As we move towards 2010, this is the kind of initiative that is key to help us develop an even greater pool of talented skaters ready to own the podium."

The "Train in PG" campaign is geared to international athletes, teams, coaches and officials in promoting Prince George as a place to acclimatize prior to national or international competition. The campaign focuses on five major winter sports; hockey, curling, speedskating, cross country skiing and biathlon.

RESOURCES

Train in Prince George's web site:

www.traininpg.com/sport/

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 29, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2012

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

WIDE-SPREAD INTEREST IN IOC DECISIONS ABOUT 2010

Every major news agency -- and many minor ones -- picked up the story yesterday that the IOC had added ski cross and not women's ski jumping to the 2010 Winter Games. The major news agencies included Canadian Press, Associated Press, Reuters, United Press International, MSNBC, Yahoo, USA Today, all of the senior European, American and Canadian TV, radio networks and newspapers, including the New York Times and The Guardian of London, Englad. Just a handful of the hundreds of secondary outlets: Turkish Press, the San Diego Union Tribune, the San Jose Mercury News, the Austin-American Statesman of Texas, the Whitehorse Star in the Yukon and even SooToday.com, an independent web-based news outlet in Sault St. Marie, Ontario.

CANADIAN SKI-JUMP TEAM DISAPPOINTED; US CHALLENGED

Canadian Press reports that Canadian team coach Gregor Linsig as saying his team took the decision to postpone the women's ski-jump decision pretty hard. "I could see about 30% of the [35-member] field quitting, which would make it even worse," he explained to reporters as he discussed age-related issues with them. "Then we'd put ourselves in a deeper hole and then it might be even harder to get in in 2014," the date of the next Olympic Winter Games. Morrice also said that because women's ski jumping is still not an Olympic sport, the Canadian team, currently training in Colorado, would not qualify for money from Own The Podium, the financial initiative funded by the VANOC through its corporate sponsors and the governments of BC and Canada. Bill Marolt, president and CEO of the US Skiing Association, which is the national American governing body for Olympic skiing and snowboarding, says the addition of ski cross is a challenge for the organization. There is no skiercross team within the US ski team, but the event was part of the 2005 International Ski Federation Freestyle World Championships and US athletes competed. "Skicross is a relatively new sport with a developing athlete base in America and around the world. Our challenge now is to start identifying that athlete base as we head towards 2010." Marolt --- a vice president of the International Ski Federation and member of its governing FIS Council -- told Ski Racing magazien today, "It's really hard to understand the decision on women's ski jumping. This is a sport in which women have participated at the highest levels for many years. It has an established international competition circuit with a strong pool of athletes. We're disappointed in the decision of the IOC as we have felt that the athletes had progressed over the past decade to a position where the sport was ready for Olympic participation." The US ski team has women in its ski-jumping section, and it will continue to train them in hopes the discipline will be approved for the 2014 Games. Cathy Priestner-Allinger, vice president of sport for VANOC, says the organziation knew the IOC was considering adding the sport when VANOC planned its facilities for 2010, and will use the course being set up for the snowboard cross competition on Cypress for the ski cross."It should only require minor tweaks," she said.

VANOC TRANSPORTATION PLAN STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTION

VANOC's first detailed transportation plan, a complex document, is expected to be ready about this time next year. "Our team is working closely with our transportation partners to plan for all significant weather events during the 2010 Winter Games, including heavy snowfall," said vice-president of transportation and logistics Wayne Keiser told the Vancouver tabloid newspaper "24", which had asked him about VANOC planning should a storm series similar to the ones that have plagued southern BC for the past three weeks occurs in 2010. "The process is evolving, and logistical planning and situational modeling, including appropriate contingency plans, will continue to develop over the next few years." The transportation plan takes in a wide range of issues, such as bus route planning, airport traffic flows and congestion, and highway use, among many others. A couple of years ago, the Vancouver media were asking VANOC a lot of questions about what it might or might not do if a mild, warm and wet winter, which was then the case, hit the coast during the Games.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 29, 2006

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2011

Here are three more moguls we ran into today:

CANADIAN MINISTER OF SPORT STEPS ASIDE

The Canadian government cabinet minister who formed Podium Canada to unite the winter and summer Olympics support funding has resigned his job to protest a government position in a debate involving Canadian unity. Michael Chong stepped out of cabinet because he did not agree with the position, and because his department should have been consulted on the issue, but wasn't. Peter Van Loan, a Conservative Member of Parliament from Ontario's York-Simcoe riding, has been appointed by Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper to replace Chong.

VANCOUVER MAYOR HOPES TO CUT "STREET DISORDER" IN HALF BY 2010

Vancouver mayor Sam Sullivan says he wants to spend C$1 million from the city's Olympic Legacy Fund to cut what he calls "street disorder" in half by the time the 2010 Winter Olympics starts. The Fund was only recently established and spending from it won't start before the City's new fiscal year. Sullivan said the long-term goal is to eliminate homelessness, bring an end to the open sale of drugs on the streets and stop aggressive panhandling within 10 years. "The issue of public disorder is on everyone's lips, and it's time to galvanize our community's interest into action," Mr. Sullivan said. "We have about 1,000 days until the world arrives, and I can't think of a more important legacy from the Games than a more civil city." Sullivan says city council, in which his party holds a slight majority, will be asked to approve the spending by next month. The mayor's proposal is to use the money to "to enhance the civic response to nuisance and annoyance complaints," which he defined as possibly hiring additional bylaw enforcement staff. The project also involves provide C$300,000 from the city's 2006 contingency reserve to hire a commissioner and establish a new office to implement what the mayor calls "Project Civil City."

Two winter competitions in Prince George funded by 2010 Legacies Now

The RBC Royal Bank Ice Hockey Cup and the Junior National Short-Track Speedskating Championships have each received C$10,000 from Hosting BC, a section of 2010 Legacies Now. Both events are being held at CN Centre in Prince George, in north-central British Columbia. About 2,000 spectators and 100 athletes are expected to attend this weekend’s short-track event for skaters aged 14 to 18. The top finishers qualify for junior worlds February in Mlada Boleslav, in the Czech Republic. “This calibre of competition will not only be beneficial to our athletes and the community of Prince George, but it will also give B.C. officials the opportunity to officiate at a high level competition, thus preparing them for the 2010 Winter Olympics,” says Lesley Hempsall, president of the host Prince George Blizzard Speed Skating Club. “The hosting grant will greatly enhance our club’s ability to deliver a high-quality national competition in Prince George." The 2007 RBC Royal Bank Cup national hockey tournament is expected to draw thousands of spectators from across Canada in May. Dan Rogers, co-chair of the RBC host committee, said the budget for those games is nearly C$1 million. 2010 Legacies Now is funding 18 communities to help them host 26 sporting events with nearly C$4 million from the Hosting BC program. The program is funded by the BC government and the City of Vancouver. It began in 2004.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 28, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #2009

2010 BOARD EXPECTED TO CONSIDER ADDING SKI CROSS TO GAMES ROSTER AT ITS JANUARY MEETING

The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) says it hopes to recommend adding ski cross at its Cypress Mountain venue to its list of competitions to its Board of Directors meeting in January.

The International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Executive Board decided today in Kuwait City that it approved adding the discipline, providing VANOC agreed. Format changes to skeleton and the speedskating team-pursuit events were also recommended, and they, too, need to be approved by VANOC's Board.

VANOC, in a statement, says today it had previously communicated to the IOC its acceptance in principle of ski cross and the format changes "subject to working co-operatively with the IOC and the international sport federations to address any resulting operational and financial impacts." The VANOC statement added that it would "work closely" with the organizations and "hopes to reach a recommendation by the end of the year to be formally presented at the January meeting of the VANOC Board of Directors."

Cathy Priestner Allinger, VANOC's executive vice-president of sport, said in the statement that "Ski cross at the 2010 Winter Games would be a great and exciting new addition to our sport program. Elite skiers would compete on the biggest stage in the world, and spectators would enjoy a fast, entertaining and dynamic competition."

The ski cross discipline is part of freestyle skiing. Four skiers race through a steep and winding course of rolling terrain. Ski cross competitions will be held on the same course as snowboard cross, and VANOC's statement says "the track will require only minor course alterations using snow." In total, 32 men and 16 women are expected to compete in ski cross.

The format change to skeleton will see athletes increase their competition runs from two to four. The format change to speed skating pursuit, described by VANOC as minor, is related to an in-Games qualifying procedure.

Other sport disciplines that were considered but not recommended by the IOC's Executive Board for the 2010 sport program included: curling mixed doubles, biathlon mixed relay, a bobsleigh and skeleton team competition, luge team competition, alpine skiing nation team event and women's ski jumping.

"We have consistently supported the inclusion of women's ski jumping in the 2010 program and these young women are understandably disappointed with today's decision," said Priestner. "Their commitment to raising their sport to Olympic calibre is commendable, and we encourage them to continue their campaign for inclusion in the 2014 Winter Games program."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 28, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |IOC| #2008

IOC EXECUTIVE OKAYS SKI CROSS, REJECTS WOMEN'S SKI JUMPING FOR 2010 GAMES

The executive board of the International Olympic Committee made a conditional decision to add ski cross to the line-up of competitions at the 2010 Winter Games, but it rejected a strong call by Canadian and US Olympic Committees for women's ski jumping to also be added.

The Board, meeting in Kuwait, said that ski cross could be added as long as the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) agreed. VANOC said it would be issuing a statement shortly. Ski cross, the IOC Board said, meets all of the IOC's criteria, and its "appeal to the youth has grown tremendously over the last year."

The Board said it would not include curling mixed doubles and women's ski jumping "as their development is still in the early stage, thus lacking the international spread of participation and technical standard required for an event to be included in the program." The Board noted, however, that it would be closely following the development of women's ski jumping "with a view of its inclusion in future Olympic Games."

IOC Executive Board member Ottavio Cinquanta said women's ski jumping had a limited appeal and too few athletes globally practiced the sport. "Therefore we said no, but we don't say it will never be," said Cinquanta. IOC Vice President Gunilla Lindberg urged the International Ski Federation to continue the discipline's development so it could reapply for the 2014 Winter Games. Ski jumping and Nordic combined are the only competitions in the Winter Olympics in which women don’t participate. Lindberg said, “In our analysis, there are not enough athletes and not enough countries. They have to work with the International Ski Federation and Nordic combined to be ready for 2014.”

The Board also rejected the idea of including biathlon mixed relay, bobsleigh and skeleton team competition, luge team competition and alpine skiing nation team event. The Board said these events would only allow the same athletes already participating in an individual event to take part in another event and win more medals. Also turned down: individual curling and team luge.

However, it also decided to continue the events that were included for the first time in Torino last February. Those included team-pursuit speedskating, mass-start biathlon, team sprint in cross-country skiing and snowboard cross.

It coming to its conclusions, the Board gave its Olympic Program Commission more specific direction for future consideration of sport diciplines that want to be included in an Olympic Games schedule. These are:

Events must have a recognized international standing both numerically and geographically, and have been included at least twice in world and continental championships;

Global public and media interest in a sport must be considered as key elements in the analysis of sports for these are fundamental elements in the success of the Games;

The social value of a sport (e.g. elements of environmental impacts, athletes’ health, education, non-discrimination, fair-play and solidarity), should be considered;

A sport must show a direct emphasis on youth and development;

The judging and adjudication system of a sport must ensure objectivity, fairness and transparency.

The executive board decisions now effectively freeze the competitions at the 2010 Games.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 28, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2007

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

PRE-SALES OF POUND'S ANTI-DOPING REPORT BEGIN

A research company based in Dublin, Ireland, Research & Markets, has begun pre-selling a report on anti-doping that deals in part with the Olympics. The report, due to be released next month, was written by VANOC director Richard Pound, the head of the Montreal-based World Anti-doping Agency. Research & Markets describes itself as a "one stop shop for market research reports and industry newsletters from specialist research firms and niche market analysts." Pound's report, a spokesman says, is entitled "Inside Dope: How Drugs Are the Biggest Threat to Sports, Why You Should Care, and What Can Be Done About Them." It deals with the genesis of doping in sports as well as in the world of doctors and trainers; drug testing and the battle to stay ahead of users; drug companies and big business; and the role of WADA as an internationally endorsed anti-doping watchdog. The report, according to the publisher, "puts the issue of doping in sports into context: why it has become such a problem; the role of drug companies, big business, doctors and trainers; testing and the battle to stay ahead of the users; WADA as the worlds watchdog; standards and the future of doping and sports." The report costs C$40, plus about C$75 for shipping and handling.

NORTH KOREA TO SUPPORT SOUTH FOR 2014 WINTER OLYMPIC BID

United Press International reports North Korea has promised its "strong support" for South Korea's bid to host the 2014 Winter Olympics, according to South Korean officials. "The North's side has expressed strong support for the South's bid to host the Winter Games in Pyeongchang, Gangwon Province, and agreed to extend full cooperation," Kim Jin-sun, governor of the province, told journalists after retuning from a four-day visit to Pyongyang. The North's agreement was made on the basis of the "mutual recognition" that the international sports event would make "a positive contribution to peace and stability" on the Korean peninsula, Kim said when he returned to Seoul. Under the three-point agreement, the North also promised to work on fielding a unified team and holding joint training for the 2014 Winter Olympics, to help Pyeongchang win the games bid, he said. Pyeongchang is one of three cities -- along with Sochi, Russia, and Salzburg, Austria -- vying for the 2014 Olympic Games, and the winner will be part of the 2010 Winter Games' Closing Ceremonies. The IOC is expected to make its decision in about eight months. South Korean narrowly lost to Vancouver for the 2010 Games. "The North's support will help us win the bid this time," Kim said.

SPIRIT OF BC SESSION MEETS IN KELOWNA

The Spirit of BC meetings -- co-sponsored by 2010 Legacies Now, the BC government and the Royal Bank -- continue to make the rounds of BC communities. A group of presenters brings communities up to date on how to get involved in aspects of supporting the 2010 Winter Games during the tour. This past weekend they were in Kelowna, where the group met with community committees in south central British Columbia, an area known as the North Thompson Valley. The communities included representatives from Spirit of BC committees in Vernon, Kamloops, Lillooet, Lumby, North Okanagan district, Oliver, Osoyoos, Penticton, Shuswap and Summerland. Presenters included Betty MacLeod, senior manager of Olympic business development and Robin Smith, the manager of Business Development of Commercial Markets in Kelowna. They're both from the Royal Bank of Canada. Presenters also included Chris Gudgeon, the project manager for the BC government's Ministry of Tourism, Sport and the Arts; Shaun Poole, one of the community relations staff of VANOC; and Ken Veldman, the Business Connections manager of the 2010 Commerce Centre.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 28, 2006

Monday, November 27, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2006

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

IOC EXPECTED TO APPROVE SKICROSS, NOT WOMEN'S SKI JUMPING

Despite powerful backing and intense lobbying from the Canadian and American Olympic Committees, the IOC's own program commission is recommending women's ski jumping not be approved for the 2010 Winter Games when the IOC's executive committee meets in Kuwait tomorrow. The commission's recommendations on the matter, and on other disciplines, have not been released publicly since it concluded its meetings a few weeks ago, but word on the recommendations has leaked out to various Olympic officials. COC vice-president Walter Sieber says, "I think we would have great results," but the Commission feels there is not enough women and not enough countries participating yet. The IOC's executive committee will make the decision, but it doesn't often go against recommendations from its program committee, Sieber said. Reports filtering out from Kuwait indicate other disciplines -- a team event in alpine skiing, individual curling, mixed doubles curling, a biathlon mixed relay and team luge -- are also unlikely to be approved. However, skicross, a freestyle event that drew good crowds when it first appeared at the Torino Winter Games last February, is likely to be confirmed for 2010 as well. It involves groups of skiers racing each other to the bottom of a course featuring jumps, rollers, banks created by natural and designed terrain features. VANOC has input on the inclusion of any discipline in 2010, but the IOC his the organization that makes the final decision on the events at any Games.

OLYMPIC COMMISSION CONSIDERING FINANCIAL SUPPORT OF 2010-BOUND GROUPS

The Olympic Solidarity Commission says intends to study the possibility to provide support and assistance to athletes preparing the Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver in 2010. So far, Olympic Solidarity has been concentrating its efforts in supporting athletes preparing the Summer Games, but it reported that it provided support grants to 80 national Olympic Committees around the world for their preparation and participation in Torino Winter Olympics, totaling (US$7 million; C$7.9 million). Today’s discussions, though, clearly indicate the Commission’s will to widen its support. The Commission approved a budget of US$60 million (C$68 million) for the 2007. IOC Executive Board member and President of the Olympic Solidarity Commission, Mario Vazquez Rana says, "This has been a very successful year, which has seen athletes from all continents benefiting from strong programs that have led them to take part in major continental competitions." So far, he says, 906 athletes have benefited from preparation scholarships for the Beijing 2008 (US$5 million; C$5.6 million) and 81 support grants were provided for team sports for Beijing 2008 (US$3 million; C$3.4 million). Olympic Solidarity is the IOC's body responsible for managing and administering the share of the television rights of the Olympic Games that is allocated to the National Olympic Committees.

ARGENTINIAN ATHLETE DETERMINED TO REPRESENT SOUTH AMERICAN SKATING IN 2010

A 21-year-old former in-line champion skater from Mar del Plata, Argentina, credits two events that have prompted him to devote his life for the next few years to being the first speedskater to represent a South American country in a winter Olympics, and he's aiming for the 2010 Games. The first event for Jose Ignacio Fazio was being an exchange student in his last year at high school in Thunder Bay, Ontario. "When I was in Canada, that's when I find out I love snow and winter," Fazio told reporter Gary D'Amato of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "I ended up doing cross-country skiing and snowboarding and I played a little hockey. It was a lot of fun. I wasn't that good with the stick but I was fast with the skates." The second event was when some Dutch speedskaters, in Patagonia for a winter sports festival on a frozen lake, noticed him working out in his hockey skates. "They arranged everything," Fazio told D'Amato. "I arrived in Amsterdam and they took me to the (Viking) factory and gave me clap skates. The following day, they put me on the ice. I was skating with the marathon skaters in the B Division. I didn't last long. I did 25 laps. Honestly, I was so tired." That got him noticed by US Olympic coach Dave Fenn, who invited him to train in Milwaukee. D'Amato reports that Fazio is living on a small budget at the Tommy Thompson Youth Center at State Fair Park, where he splits a dorm-style room with another skater and pays US$225 rent. He has an arrangement with the Pettit Center, where he trains: he receives ice time in exchange for volunteer work with its "Kids on Ice" program. He owns a laptop computer and his clap skates, and not much more. D'Amato reports that during the World Cup season open event Nov. 10-12 in Heerenveen, Holland, Fazio competed in the 500, 1,000 and 1,500 metre races and finished near the bottom of the B Division in every one. Last week, at a World Cup in Berlin, he was still near the bottom but showed improvement. And the organization behind him? Argentina's speedskating federation is four months old. Fazio's father, Jorge, is the president and his son is its only skater. Fazio, reports D'Amato, says he's realistic about getting his results up in time for 2010. But there's always the 2014 Games. And 2018...

RESOURCES

Olympic Solidarity Commission:

www.olympic.org/uk/organisation/commissions/solidarity/index_uk.asp

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 27, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Paralympic| #2005

IPC APPROVES VANOC'S UPDATED PLANS FOR 2010 PARALYMPICS

The Governing Board of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has approved an updated Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games Concept as presented by John Furlong, CEO of the Vancouver 2010 Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC).

The IPC had asked for a formal report on the update that came about as a result of the decision taken by the Municipality of Whistler in August to not build a new arena for sledge hockey and wheelchair curling because it would be too expensive. VANOC, as a fall-back proposed moving the competitions, and their athletes, to Vancouver venues. Up to that point, all of the Paralympic events and awards were to be held in Whistler, and all of the Paralympic athletes would be housed in the Whistler Olympic Village.

The IPC asked VANOC to develop an updated concept for the Games that dealt with the changes on the competition venues, as well as the overall impact on the Games experience.

The decision was made over the weekend during the Board's meeting in Kuala Lumpur.

The Board approved the new concept, which the IPC afteward refered to as “small-town spirit, big-city facilities and world-class exposure” for the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. VANOC has not released the report, but the IPC noted that it allows more opportunities for spectators to see the Paralympic Games, and that in Vancouver, the Paralympic athletes will be housed in the same Village as their Olympic counterparts.

IPC President Sir Philip Craven says “While the Paralympic Games in 2010 will no longer be compact, as originally proposed in the initial concept, we feel that this [new] concept will enable more spectators to witness Paralympic sport, and will spread the Paralympic spirit further through Canada. The IPC is very pleased with the work that VANOC has contributed to create such an sustainable concept for the Paralympic Games."

Among other items, the Board also received a briefing from Furlong on the status of the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. VANOC has not released that report, either.

The latest version of the IPC Classification Code, following work of the Classification Code Working Group over the past 12 months, was also discussed during the meeting.

Craven said the updated code, known as Version 3, would help it clearer in which category an athlete with one arm or one leg should compete. "This new version was the result of a 12-month process that included several reviews by experts and consultation with all stakeholders," he said. The new version would now be submitted for a final review by the 195 IPC members. The new Code is expected to take effect at the 2010 Winter Games.

The Board, meanwhile, told a delegation from the International Sports Federation for Persons with an Intellectual Disability (INAS-FID) that more work still has to be done before it will consider including athletes with an intellectual disability.

Paralympic Games only involve athletes with physical disabilities; the so-called "Special Olympics", in which intellectually disabled athletes compete, are not a part of the Olympic or Paralympic movements, despite the name.

Craven says that issues involving eligibility and protest procedures still don't achieve "the standards expected for IPC-sanctioned competitions, including the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games, and were not sufficiently robust to ensure fair competition for athletes with intellectual disability."

Craven said following the meeting, “The IPC Governing Board wants to emphasize that the current decision is not a case of discrimination against a disability group. The IPC supports the participation of athletes with intellectual disability, but INAS-FID has yet to prove that they have the necessary processes in place to ensure the fairness of elite competition."

He said the IPC will continue to support the research underway to form sport-specific eligibility systems for athletes with an intellectual disability. As a result, the status of athletes with an intellectual disability will be re-evaluated following the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 27, 2006

Friday, November 24, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2004

VANCOUVER CALLS FOR TONS OF GRANITE FOR OLYMPIC VILLAGE FORESHORE, SEATING

The City of Vancouver, which is rushing to complete the ground preparation of the 2010 Olympic Village, is calling for contractors to deliver about 250 tons of granite blocks of various dimensions for landscaping parts of the foreshore, and for public seating.

The granite, which is to be the colour of salt and pepper, needs to be on the site on the southeast of False Creek by next March 15. A total of 254 blocks will be used for the landscaping, 13 will be used for seating, and a performance letter of credit for C$100,000 is required.

The closing date for responding to the City's Request for Proposals is December 5, but there is to be a proponent's meeting next Monday.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 24, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2003

OTTAWA PUTS OLYMPIC PODIUM FUNDING SOLIDLY UNDER CANADIAN GOVERNMENT CONTROL

The Canadian government has moved to bring the 2010 Winter Olympic Games' "Own The Podium" program and the Summer Olympic Games equivalent, Road to Excellence, under full federal cabinet control, along with about C$40 million in combined funding -- some of which is private money.

Michael Chong -- who is the president of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada, the minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and the minister for Sport -- as well as the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC); the Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) and the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) were all involved today in creating Podium Canada.

Canada's Privy Council Office "articulates and implements" the federal government’s policy agenda; it's the interface between the federal cabinet of ministers and the public service. It also manages the cabinet’s decision-making system, such as coordinating departmental policy proposals and conducting policy analysis.

The original concept, "Own the Podium", was developed by Cathy Priestner-Allinger in a report she wrote shortly before being named the executive vice-president for sport at VANOC. The idea was to focus funds raised jointly between the federal government and from VANOC's private sponsors directly on winter sports where Canada was likely to generate medals during the 2010 Winter Olympics. VANOC and Ottawa each pledged to contribute a total of C$110 million by 2010. "Road to Excellence" was later developed for summer sports.

They have been run by the Canadian Olympic Committee since their formation, with additional funding from the COC and the Canadian Paralympic Committee. Podium Canada's role, according to Chong, is as an advisory body. It will "make funding recommendations to the national funding partners based on expert analysis and to help NSOs[national sports organizations] implement their technical programs... Podium Canada will monitor NSOs' implementation of their high-performance programs to ensure maximum performance results," he says. Podium Canada, he adds, will assume the roles and responsibilities of the Canadian Sport Review Panel, which has been doing that work.

Chris Rudge, the chief executive officer of the Canadian Olympic Committee, says that "With Own The Podium 2010 and Road to Excellence partnering under the same umbrella, we are laying the foundation for a strong high-performance sport system that will provide funding recommendations and unparalleled technical expertise to support Canada's athletes and coaches as they strive for the podium. The creation of Podium Canada also allows us to use Own The Podium 2010 and Road To Excellence resources in a mutually supportive manner to avoid redundancies and bring the best knowledge-base to all sports."

Dr. Roger Jackson, who ran "Own the Podium", is the CEO of Podium Canada, and will directly supervise the 2010 winter sport aspects of Podium Canada. Alex Baumann, who ran the Road to Excellence summer sport program will continue in that position as Dr. Jackson's second in command.

Under the new scheme, Podium Canada will be advisory committee to the Privy Council Office, and will not make binding funding decisions, just recommendations to the funding partners on close to $40 million in existing funding from government and non-government sources. Sport Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee will provide administrative support to the agency, as they have been doing.

RESOURCES

An explanation of the Privy Council Office system:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen's_Privy_Council_for_Canada

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 24, 2006

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2002

VANCOUVER CONSIDERS APPLYING FOR C$206,000 TOURISM GRANT FOR FEBRUARY 2010 COUNTDOWN AND SIGNAGE

Vancouver city staff are recommending the city apply for a C$206,000 grant from the Union of British Columbia Municipalities Community Tourism Program to pay for several 2010-related items, including a three-year countdown ceremony next February.

The city's general manager of Olympic and Paralympic Operations, Dave Rudberg, says the funds would be used for the countdown celebration on February 12, as well as for three new ‘Welcome to Vancouver’ signs, and a consultant report on how the city should construction a wayfinding system for tourists to be used leading up to, during and after the 2010 Winter Games. The city would add C$75,000 to help pay for the cost of the wayfaring report if its application for the grant is approved.

Rudberg thinks there might be some donations to the projects coming from some unidentified community organizations which have "expressed an interest in collaborating on certain events." As well, he says, "sponsorships and in-kind contributions may also be forthcoming."

Rudberg says the wayfinding system of signage developed by the consultant would serve residents and visitors "in navigating between various neighbourhoods and points of interest." He expects the wayfinding strategy will focus mainly on downtown, "but may highlight neighbourhoods of interest as well as more regional attractions." But, he adds, the maps and information panels will only be set up for pedestrians and cyclists, not for vehicles. The signage wouldn't talk about the 2010 Games at first; that would be added later, as the Games neared.

The budget for signage would be C$60,000, while C$77 thousand would be assigned to the celebrations, C$62 thousand of that celibration component would be spent at the Coliseum.

The Community Tourism Program is a C$25-million program funded by the BC government that is intended to help the province achieve a government goal of doubling tourism over the next 10 years. A year ago, the city received C$225,000, which it sued for the February 2006 Olympic countdown celebrations in Vancouver, which involved three large community events, free access to public skating rinks, five ‘Welcome to Vancouver’ signs, and a groundbreaking ceremony at Southeast False Creek at the site of the Vancouver Olympic Village. Rudberg says, "The events were successful in terms of media attention and building public awareness. The city received coverage by local, national and international media, as well as a great deal of coverage by local and national radio. The number of visits to the City of Vancouver’s website also went up dramatically during the City of Vancouver’s countdown celebration week."

BACKGROUND

Vancouver's proposed February countdown celebrations include three community events. The idea, according to Rudberg, is to "generate enthusiasm about the approaching Winter Games, engage people in the countdown to 2010, and educate citizens about the legacies provided by the 2010 Winter Games." He says they also help brand Vancouver as the host city of the 2010 Winter Games, and promote the City to visitors.

Activities for the February 2007 celebration, he suggests, "may include:"

Unveiling an official 2010 countdown clock.

A community event at the Pacific Coliseum, a venue for the Games.

A groundbreaking ceremony at Hillcrest Park to mark the start of construction of the new Hillcrest Olympic and Paralympic curling venue.

Night lighting for the Olympic and Paralympic Flags currently flying beside each other at Vancouver City Hall; and;

Displaying 2010-themed street banners leading to and adjacent the city's Olympic venues.

Some of the city's goals for the countdown celebrations are to promote recreation, arts and culture in the city as well as what he calls "active living." They idea is to target a young audience, so "youth activities would be a priority in the planning of this celebration and future celebrations." The city would work with staff from VANOC, Richmond and Whistler, all locations with VANOC venues to plan the celebrations. And, he says, it would "also work with 2010 LegaciesNow to leverage opportunities for legacies in sport and recreation, arts and culture and volunteerism."

Council is expected to discuss whether to give staff approval to apply for the grant on Tuesday.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 23, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2001

VANCOUVER STAFF RECOMMEND AGAINST SELLING NAMING RIGHTS TO CITY-OWNED OLYMPIC VENUES UNTIL AFTER 2010

Vancouver city staff have decided that they will recommend to city council next Tuesday that it not rename any of its sports facilities in east Vancouver until after the 2010 Winter Games.

The recommendation, if followed, would end the potential of the city selling naming rights for 2010 venues such as the Coliseum in Hastings Park before the Olympics.

The city's managing director of cultural services, Sue Harvey, is recommending, "In light of their upcoming use as Olympic venues, and the planning process for Hastings Park, staff recommend deferring any consideration of renaming of community sport facilities until after 2010, and then, only in the context of the Hastings Park Master Plan." Council is expected to discuss the issue on Tuesday.

Harvey reports that public opinion was strongly against renaming existing facilities -- 83% were opposed in a public opinion survey commissioned by the city, and 71% were opposed in an online survey. However, suggests Harvey, that if council still wanted to go ahead with the idea, she's recommending that the existing name be included in the overall name.

Staff have also decided it won't recommend any changes to policies about allowing exterior signage to identify a corporate sponsor of a room or area inside such a public building, since the public's opposed to that too, but if it did want to go ahead with that, only one such sign be allowed with various names on it, to prevent proliferation of commercial signage.

Public opinion was also against the use of corporate logos in such situations, although not as strongly as names -- 52% against in the public opinion survey and 65% opposed in the online survey. Apparently people felt that "logos are advertising or names that are less commercial."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 23, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2000

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

VANOC AIMING FOR MEDICAL INDEPENDENCE DURING GAMES

A report in the Vancouver Province newspaper indicates VANOC, as per previous Olympics, is aiming at being as medically independent as possible during the 2010 Games, so that it doesn't burden the existing health system. Reporter Claire Ogilvie quotes VANOC's chief medical officer, Dr. Jack Taunton, as saying, "We don't want to be bumping [patients] or jumping queues... The public is obviously concerned about that, so we want to be self-sufficient. That means we have to use our Olympic sponsors, our own budget and our own ingenuity as to how we can become as self-sufficient as possible." VANOC's total budget for this aspect, reports the paper, is C$21.8 million, with the BC government contribution C$12.8 million and VANOC's estimated spending, from its own fundraising, coming to about C$9 million of the total. In previous winter Olympics, Kodak, as an international sponsor, provided medical imaging equipment and other technology, however the company has not yet decided whether it will renew its sponsorship and repeat its Torino supplies for the Vancouver Games. VANOC's plans call for a polyclinic -- a full field-hospital type of medical operation -- at the Vancouver and Whistler Olympic Villages. Ogilvie reports VANOC has had 1,700 volunteers apply to work the medical side of the Games, although other reports indicate it has not yet begun to recruit them. She also reports that Taunton felt a main lesson for VANOC from the 2006 Torino Games, was to stay outside of the public health system as much as possible. She quotes him as saying that, "In Torino... they used an MRI in a hospital, so the quickest they could see anyone was four hours, even on a priority basis." Ogilvie quotes Torino statistics that indicate 1,198 people used a hospital there, 56% of them were part of the workforce, 13% were athletes, 12% were spectators, 10% were from those helping to put on the Games and about 8% were media.

VANCOUVER STAFF PROPOSING SEMIS ALLOWED TO SERVICE OLYMPIC VILLAGE STORE

Vancouver's Engineering Services department says it is planning to report to the city council's Transportation & Traffic Committee the staff recommendations for truck access to the proposed grocery store approved for the city's Olympic Village site. There's been a lot of discussion about how best to control commercial truck traffic in the area, both before, during and after the 2010 Games, with a lot of deference given to bicyclists. In general, semis up to 15-metres (50 feet) are proposed to enter the building from Ontario Street and the new Walter Hardwick Avenue, and exit onto 1st Avenue going westbound. Smaller trucks, which are better able to negotiate the narrower streets of site, are expected to use Manitoba Street to get to the Village's commercial areas. Staff are also expected to recommend council approve installation of a "bike-permeable median" on 2nd Avenue at Ontario Street. The purpose of the median is to prevent eastbound traffic on 2nd Avenue from turning north onto Ontario to get into the Village, and to prevent traffic by vehicles on Ontario. The intersection is planned to have signals that are only activated by cyclist and pedestrian buttons. The median will have slots for bicycles to use. Staff feel that while Ontario Street, between 2nd Avenue and Walter Hardwick Avenue, will allow large trucks destined for the grocery store, the rest of traffic by vehicles on this part of the Ontario, which is supposed to be primarily a bikeway and green path, will be reduced by the median. An open house is expected to be held on December 1st to allow the public to review and comment on the truck route and median proposal.

2014 BID CHIEF ASKING FOR NORTH KOREAN SUPPORT

Asian media today are reporting that Kim Jin-Sun, executive president of the 2014 Pyeongchang Olympic Winter Games Bid Committee, is now in North Korea to seek that country's support for bid. Pyeongchang is one of the short list of countries bidding for the Games. A decision is expected to be made by the IOC next summer on which city will win them. Salzburg, Austria and Sochi, Russia are also in the running. Members of the IOC's evaluation team are scheduled to visit Pyeongchang in February to review the technical aspects of its bid. The country chosen will be part of the 2010 Winter Olympics closing ceremonies, and officials and will be in Vancouver and Whistler on a regular basis leading up to the Games to observe VANOC's operation. Although tensions between South Korean and North Korea increased considerably last month when North Korean set off a test underground nuclear explosion, Kim continued with his scheduled meetings at the invitation of the Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation. North Korean International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Jang Ung earlier promised full support for Pyeongchang's bid during a meeting with South Korean officials when they were all in Torino last February for the Italian winter games. "It is hoped that a successful bid for the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games could help bring people together and ease tension on the Korean peninsula," a statement from the South Korean bid committee said. Pyeongchang narrowly lost to Vancouver's bid for the 2010 Games.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 23, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |International| #1999

TOROC PRESIDENT SAYS OLYMPIC EVENTS MUST BE PLANNED TO 'SWITCH ON' THE EXCITEMENT OF THE POPULATION

The president of Torino's Olympic Organizing Committee says the event that "switched on" the population of the Italian city was the Opening Ceremony of the Games last February.

Valentino Castellani, during an interview this afternoon in Vancouver, says, "We invested a lot in conceiving the Opening Ceremony, with the aim of giving to all the spectators [watching] on television, but also the people of Torino, the pride of being Italian; to give them the feeling of the excellence of our country. There were a lot of events inside the Opening Ceremony that were messages for the city of Torino and the cities of the valleys. Those were not intended to be understood by the television viewers in Asia, for instance, but the citizens of Torino got the messages. It's important to prepare, in the Opening Ceremonies, things that talk to everybody. The Opening Ceremony was the switching on of the city, of the spirit. Something magic happened."

Castellani said that, despite the years of planning for the Games and the events that surrounded them, it was decided the day after the Opening Ceremony to create two "White Nights", where the city's shops, restaurants, businesses and tourist-related institutions, such as museums, stayed open overnight on the second and third Saturdays during the Games; crowds thronged the streets. "It created security problems and organizing problems that were not so easy to be dealt with... but that was for the population. It was a celebration for the population. You have to invent something to switch on the passion that I believe is also in Canadians."

Castellani, a telecommunications engineer who was mayor of Torino for two terms, including when the city decided to bid for the 2006 Winter Olympics, noted that about one million spectators arrived for the Games, and they stayed an average of four days. He said they had, generally, tickets for "one or two" Olympic or Paralympic events, and the rest of the time was available for tourism.

He said that tourism packages have to be ready and in place when they start to arrive. "You have to prepare for them offers, convincing offers. For instance, a tour of wineries, for those that are interested in wine. People who come here and who want to go to Kelowna. You have to be prepared for them a tour of wineries, to have buses that bring them, to give them the information, and so on. Or a tour for, I don't know, food in general. We organized in Torino -- but not the Organizing Committee, this is not the task of VANOC, this is the task of institutions and the enterprises of [other communities] -- you have to prepare and offer your product in the market, like wine or nature. Many communities can be involved in the Games in this way."

Castellani, talking about business and how it should be prepared by tracking the business side of the 2010 Games even though there are still three years before the Games begin, likened the event to a train heading quickly toward a destination. "It's only going by once, it's going fast, and it's passing now."

He added that, "It's not easy to have the correct interface with the bid requirements of VANOC, which is independent and neutral. It is not outside of the Games, it is one of the actors [active participants] of the Games. VANOC cannot directly help the local business communities. VANOC has to act as a company, getting the best products and the lowest cost possible, and choosing who is best [to provide them.]"

He said that local and regional companies have a competitive advantage because of their proximity to VANOC, or to the major contractors VANOC choses as suppliers or sponsors. "The proximity allows you to be informed in time, to get direct information. The physical interaction, in my opinion, is not necessarily as good as the virtual one. You get a lot of additional information. You can have a lot of additional confidence when you interact in that way."

He also said small companies have plenty of opportunities to get involved with the Games through sub-contracting with larger firms that have deals with the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC). "Small companies usually have good quality products, almost always at affordable prices, but what they can't ensure, usually, are the quantities that VANOC might require. It's important to get in contact with a prime contractor [before bidding for a contract], not necessarily based in Vancouver, but also perhaps in another part of Canada. There's a mutual interest; a prime contractor needs to know that it has the possibility of using suppliers in the communities, so that it's costs are lower."

Castellani noted that the Torino Organizing Committee spent about C$850 million for goods and services in the marketplace, aside from construction. "Almost 45% of this amount went to prime contractors in the regional area. But if we add the sub-contractors, more than 60% of this amount remained in the region. And, on the whole, 84% remained in Italy, which was, to us, a very good result. There are a lot of possiblities, but you have to be prepared. The time is now. Three years ahead is the correct time to plan."

He also noted that communities that want to encourage national Olympic or Paralympic teams to train in their area and to take advantage of the money they'll spend while they are there need to invest in enticing them. Austria, Norway and Sweden have already made their decisions about where their national Olympic and Paralympic teams will train, and more have yet to do so.

"Nothing comes for free," he said, adding that cities and towns in Italy also invested in the test events that are scheduled, usually in the winter the year or two prior to the event. "VANOC has to test all the sports facilties before the Games. Our communities invested a lot in those events. We chose to have international events, a World Cup or continental championships. But that costs money. The additional amount of money that was needed was funded by the City of Torino, and by the regional government, because the organizing committee, TOROC, didn't have the money to do that. International teams came, all of them, at least one year before. Some of them were there even two or three years before."

The comments came during a broadcast co-sponsored by 2010 Legacies Now, the British Columbia Olympic Secretariat, the host broadcaster of the Games, CTV, and VANOC's major financial sponsor, RBC, which is heavily focused on generating new corporate business as a result of its association with the 2010 Winter Games.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 23, 2006

Wednesday, November 22, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #1997

2010 GAMES RAISED BY VARIOUS ORGANIZATIONS DURING HEARINGS ON BC BUDGET SPENDING FOR NEXT YEAR

The BC government's initial report of the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services, which covers the work of the Committee on the Budget 2007 Consultations, says it heard about the 2010 Olympics by various people and organizations during its survey that started last March.

The report, designed to help the BC government as it prepares its budget for next spring, was just made public and prepared under the supervision of committee chair Blair Lekstrom, the government member of the legislature for Peace River South in the province's north-east sector.

The report says, "Olympic cost pressures were frequently cited as an area of concern by on-line and flyer respondents. Several submissions highlighted the possibility of substantial economic benefits accruing to the province, but expressed concerns about the province’s financial indemnification of the Games."

On the other hand, the BC Tree Fruit Growers Assocation told the Committee, "Agricultural marketing programs are needed. We are coming up to the 2010 Olympics without a clear plan to promote B.C. agriculture or B.C. goods and services. The real marketing opportunity will be from now until two years after the Olympics. Since we have so far failed to launch, this opportunity is being squandered. Industries such as our own are just too small to afford purchasing the logo and the rights to be suppliers to the Olympics."

And the BC Food Processors Association added in its brief, "As you know, for the 2010 Opportunities Initiative, branding was identified as the number one priority... We absolutely must use a professional brander to lead that exercise. We know this works."

Transportation was also a theme for 2010, according to the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce, which covers the northeast section of the Greater Vancouver area, centred on Coquitlam. It told the committee hearings, "Without rapid transit accessibility to and from the northeast sector, movement will be substantially limited. This will tremendously reduce the opportunities for our businesses to benefit by the 2010 Olympics."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 22, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #1996

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

ANOTHER PART FOR 2010 WEATHER STATIONS TO BE SOURCED DIRECTLY

The Canadian government is going to direct yet another contract to a specific company without bidding as it continues to build four sophisticated weather stations to help the 2010 Winter Games. The latest contract, for up to C$100,000, is for Canadian Space Services (CSS) of Carp, Ontario, to supply a radome for the Sea-to-Sky doppler weather radar that is being built by the National Radar Program of the Meteorological Services of Canada. A radome -- the word is short for "radar dome" -- is the weatherproof enclosure that's used to protect a radar antenna. It is used mainly to prevent ice, and especially freezing rain, from accumulating directly on the metal surface of the antenna. It also protects the equipment from debris and vibration from wind. Environment Canada, the federal ministry that's buying the radome, uses CSS to supply and maintain the 28 radomes used by the national radar program across the country, and Environment Canada wants to maintain consistency, system compatibility and "to leverage the existing maintenance contract with CSS," a contract that was based on competitive bidding. The new radome is to be supplied by the end of March. The purchase is being made through the Vancouver branch of Public Works Canada. The latest contract, the fourth, brings the total spent by the Canadian Meteorological Service on the Doppler-weather stations at various companies to at least C$749,000 in new equipment, without going to tender.

CANADIAN WOMEN SKI JUMPERS ASK FOR VANOC SUPPORT IN IOC VOTE

Four Canadian women ski jumpers have sent a letter to VANOC CEO John Furlong asking for the Organizing Committee's support for including women ski jumping in the 2010 Winter Olympics. The International Olympic Committee executive is to meeting in Kuwait November 29 to vote on whether to allow the sport into the Winter Games for the first time. If they lose the vote, they must wait until a similar meeting in late 2010 to request inclusion in the 2014 Winter Games. "This is it," former Salt Lake City mayor Deedee Corradini, is quoted as saying. She is a longtime women's jumping supporter who was on the bid committee that landed the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics. "As far as we're concerned, this is make or break," she adds. The letter, from Katie Willis, Atsuko Tanaka, Nata de Leeuw and Zoya Lynch, says "This year, jumpers from 14 nations will be competing in 20 events staged by eight countries on three different continents. We sincerely believed and hoped that VANOC would embrace this opportunity to remove the final barrier to equal participation by women at the Vancouver Olympics and would encourage the IOC to approve the FIS request.... Inclusion of women at the ski jumping venue would have many positive benefits for Canada... We believe we would be strong role models to girls and women. We have already achieved excellent results in international competitions... To remain competitive, we need funding, and funding in Canada depends on the chance to stand upon the podium. If the IOC and VANOC give us a chance at the podium, our sport can continue to develop... How can the federal and provincial governments fund construction of a multi-million dollar facility that puts up a 'No Women Allowed sign?'" The IOC session is also to decide on whether to include ski-cross, a team event in Alpine skiing, individual curling and team luge.

FURLONG SAYS THREE QUEBEC FIRMS ARE TALKING SPONSORSHIP

Furlong, in Montreal this week, says at least three Quebec-based companies are in serious discussions with VANOC's marketing department about sponsorships, while another two have engaged in licensing agreements. He declined to name the firmst talking about sponsoring the Games. Two of the Games' national sponsors - Bell Canada and RONA - are based in Quebec.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 22, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #1995

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

CARLSON MARKETING SETS UP SHOP IN VANCOUVER FOR 2010 GAMES

Carlson Marketing, the international consulting firm that specializes in Olympic sponsorships and managing hospitality programs for the Olympics, is setting up its third Canadian branch office in downtown Vancouver because it is "taking steps to strengthen its Olympic presence in anticipation of the 2010 Winter Games." The Minneapolis-based firm already has offices in Toronto and Montreal. The Vancouver branch will be run by Pete Moore, who has worked with clients for eight Olympic Games, according to the company. Moore, the company's Director of Olympic Operations, has been a member of the International Olympic Committee's Hospitality Advisory Committee and its Transportation Advisory Committee. CB Wismar, the company's vice-president of Event Marketing, says. "This move to the west coast also will enable Pete to better serve our clients for the 2008 Olympic Summer Games in Beijing, both from a geographical and time-zone perspective." Wismer says the Olympic commercial climate has changed as the number of sponsors per Games shrinks. He notes there were 80 in Sydney to less than 25 in Athens. "We have strengthened our offerings to adjust to this newly competitive environment which has attracted more agencies," said Wismer. "Our primary change has been to increase our marketing strategy and activation capabilities. With this focus, we help clients maximize their sponsorship investment by integrating their marketing mix, including hospitality, consumer and employee programs. We're also focusing on providing more value to the sponsors by taking advantage of the synergies between Carlson Marketing and our sister company, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, to deliver hospitality programs."

ALPINE CANADA TO HOLD BUSINESS FORUM ON INTERNATIONAL SECURITY

Alpine Canada, the Canadian skiing federation whose athletes will comprise a large part of the Canadian Olympic Team in 2010, continues to come up with innovative ways to market the corporate side of the organization to the senior business community. Its fourth annual World Cup Business Forum takes place Friday, on the eve of the men’s alpine downhill race in Lake Louise, Alberta, as the 2006/2007 season opens. Former United States Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge and Gwynne Dyer, noted Canadian writer on international political events, will headline the forum, which this year focuses on the effect international security clampdowns are having on business. “[It] offers an unmatched setting for business leaders to discuss issues critical to the future prosperity of Canada while also attending the exciting first men’s speed events of the season,” claims Matt Mosteller, Senior Director of Business Development for Resorts of the Canadian Rockies, which operates the Lake Louise resort. According to an Alpine Canada spokesman, "What makes this business forum unique is the added thrill of World Cup racing action." A gala dinner with a live band is part of the package as well. And, of course, it not only gives Alpine Canada a chance to thank its existing sponsors, it brings the attention of business executives and their colleagues on the organization. The organizing committee for the forum includes Murray Edwards, who is the chairman of Resorts of the Canadian Rockies; John Cassels, the chairman of the Lake Louise Winterstart World Cup organization; Ken Read, the chief executive officer of Alpine Canada; Perry Spitznagel, a partner of the Albertan law firm Bennett Jones LLP; Jim Rooney, Q.C., a Calgary-based counsel for the national law firm of Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP; Wayne Henuset, the owner and president of Willow Park Wines & Spirits of Calgary; and, Alison Keene, the senior vice-president and managing director of the Toronto-based investment firm of BMO Nesbitt Burns.

CANADIAN PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE WARNED OF SEX-TRADE GROWTH IN 2010

The Canadian House of Commons Committee on the Status of Women was told yesterday in Ottawa that the thousands of visitors expected in Vancouver and Whistler for the 2010 Games will be the "biggest business opportunity" in Canada in two decades for traffickers who profit from the sexual exploitation of women. Benjamin Perrin of The Future Group, a non-profit organization created to combat human trafficking, told the Committee during hearings about trafficking in women that, "Traffickers will see this as a windfall." The "clock is ticking," Perrin told the Committee, adding, "Every major sporting event in the last decade, whether it's World Cup or the Olympic Games or even peacekeepers going abroad, has caused a trafficking explosion to spring up in the region."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 22, 2006

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #1994

Here are three more moguls we ran into today:

VANOC LOOKING FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS FOR AD-HOC WORK UNTIL 2010

VANOC has issued a formal Request for Proposals, calling upon professional photographers to help it with its on-demand picture requirements between January and March 31, 2010. The RFP says photographers interested in participating should contact VANOC by December 18 and submit a proposal; it's likely more than one will be selected. Photographers chosen will be required to provide a range of picture-taking several types in two groups. Creative photography involves pictures of street pictures of people going about their business; landscapes and cityscapes; product pics, portraits of specific people indoors and outdoors and, of course, sports and action photography but of general subjects. In the other component, Corporate Photography, VANOC is asking for four types: pictures of specific events, formal photos of specific groups and portraits under stage lighting, personal portraits and head shots, and pictures of news conferences -- those ones have a two-hour turnaround. Most of the work will take place in the Greater Vancouver or Whistler area -- within 150 kilometres of the photographer's office -- but VANOC estimates about 15% of the corporate portion will take place outside of that corridor, and about 5% of the creative. VANOC will be looking for pricing information for personnel, equipment and services provided, as well as a portfolio of work in a specific format. Also, as usual, there will be a gag order in the contract offered the successful proponent -- they won't be able to talk about their relationship with VANOC in any commercial way.

VANOC TO START FOCUSING ON FIGURE SKATING EARLY NEXT YEAR

VANOC is expected to begin expanding the organization's figure-skating development role early next year. According to VANOC documents, it expects to start making and then implementing detailed plans for delivering the requirements of the sport, including all the test and training events. Overall planning has already been done. And it will begin the process of coordinating the preparations of the figure skating and short-track speedskating venue at the Pacific Coliseum, which is being upgraded in east Vancouver. VANOC will also begin working in detail with the International Skating Union, Skate Canada, other parts of VANOC, the City of Vancouver, which owns the venue, and the Pacific Coliseum management itself about how the facility will be organized during those events and the Games, including the field of play -- that's all the aspects an athlete works with -- sport technical requirements and competition management. It will also begin developing detailed sport operational plans and budgets. Over the next couple of years, the function will also recruit and manage the sport-specific VANOC work force, including the competition committee and the sport's technical volunteers.

TOURISM ARTICLE LINKS 2010 OLYMPICS WITH SKI RESORT CAPITAL EXPENDITURES

An article by a freelance writer for Tourism BC that's getting wide circulation is suggesting, "With the countdown to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games well underway, B.C. ski resorts have spent millions of dollars in the off-season ramping up improvements to infrastructure and facilities, building new lifts, opening new terrain, unveiling luxurious lodges, and introducing new programs..." The article, by Steven Threndyle, is careful not to be specific that the 2010 Games is the reason for the expenditure, but he has tied the concepts closely in two parts of the article. There's more to come, he suggests. As he puts it, "As the countdown to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games continues, even more improvements and upgrades to facilities will be taking place at B.C. resorts. Regional, national, and international competitions will be staged throughout the province, not just at Whistler-Blackcomb."

BACKGROUND

Figure Skating at the 2010 Games:

At the Olympic Games, according to VANOC, "figure skating consists of four events: men’s singles, women’s singles, pairs and ice dancing. All are judged competitions, where the skaters are assigned scores out of ten. Judges give marks for creativity, difficulty, variety, confidence and speed. In singles skating, skaters must complete both a short program (two minutes 40 seconds) of required steps, jumps, spins and combinations, and a longer free skate (four minutes for women and four minutes 30 seconds for men) to music. The free skate – worth 70& of a skater’s final score – allows the athletes to demonstrate their musicality, grace and strength. The pairs event follows the same format as the singles, with a compulsory short program and a free skate. However, in this event, one male and one female skater work as a team, with the male partner lifting and sometimes even throwing his partner. Both skaters must remain graceful throughout."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 21, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #1993

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

FURLONG TELLS MONTREAL TWO-LANGUAGE COUNTRY SHOULD BE PROMOTED BY GAMES

VANOC CEO John Furlong today told a luncheon meeting of the Montreal Board of Trade that he wants to use the 2010 Winter Games to help promote the value of Canada's linguistic duality to the world. "We're a unique country," he said in his speech. "There are not too many like us and it's a tremendous opportunity for us to showcase the value of that on a world stage." The VANOC chief signed a protocol agreement with the government of Quebec last year in which each party would help the other in staging the Games, saying that he expected to sign similar documents with other provincial governments, but so far Quebec's is still the only one done. It covers a range of services, such as athlete training, cultural promotion, encouraging the use of French, and the encouraging business and job training opportunities. Quebec hosted the 1967 Summer Olympics, which is why he told the Montreal business people who attended, "You've got a great sports tradition here. There is a tremendous organizational capacity here in Quebec and we wanted to take advantage of that obviously." On the field, Quebec athletes are expected to form about half the Canadian team and win its share of medals, Furlong said, adding that nearly a quarter of employees at the Vancouver organizing committee are bilingual, and that number will grow. Pierre Cleroux, assistant deputy minister of economic development in Quebec, said Quebec has a lot to offer the Vancouver Games. He noted that Quebec companies helped with 2006 Winter Games in Turin, and said the provincial language office can help with French terminology in Vancouver. All of VANOC's formal Expression of Interest, Request for Quotes or Requests for Proposals are in both languages, as are its contract documents, and two Montreal-based companies, Bell Canada and Rona, the renovations company, are major sponsors of the 2010 Games. Seminars have also been held in Quebec to show companies how to be involved with VANOC. Although the budget and venue-construction deadlines have been extended several times since VANOC's formation in 2003, Furlong told the group that construction of Olympic venues is slightly ahead of schedule and under budget.

IOC SHORTLISTS FOUR AD AGENCIES FOR FIFTH YEAR OF BRAND CAMPAIGN

The International Olympic Committee has selected four advertising agencies to submit full proposals for its global integrated marketing communications campaign. The four -- Havas, Leo Burnett, Saatchi & Saatchi and United -- were chosen as part of the IOC’s formal Request For Information process in October. The short-listed agencies will present their final proposals to the IOC "in the first quarter of 2007," with the expectation that one will be chosen to launch the global campaign later in the year. The 2007/8 campaign will be the fifth version of an program called “Celebrate Humanity.” The IOC’s campaign objectives are to communicate the key Olympic values of its brand -- excellence, respect and friendship -- to a global audience, targeting the 12-19 age group. Previous iterations of the campaign have been communicated entirely through TV, radio and print work, but the IOC's brief to the selected agencies asks for "a creative, multi-dimensional approach, comprising TV, online, viral promotion, experiential and PR activities." The first “Celebrate Humanity” global promotion was developed in the build-up to the Sydney 2000 Olympic Summer Games by the agency TBWA\Chiat\Day. That company subsequently adapted the work for the Winter Games in Salt Lake in 2002. Saatchi & Saatchi then handled the campaign for the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004 and again in Torino earlier this year. Their ads featured personalities recognized around the world, such as Nelson Mandella, describing their personal experiences of the Olympic values.

Rogers again in top 100 of Canada's "most powerful women"

Judy Rogers, the City of Vancouver's manager and one of VANOC's 20-member Board of Directors, has been ranked in the top 100 of Canada's "most powerful women" by the Toronto-based Women's Executive Network. Rogers was recognized as one of 11 women in the Public Sector category; it's the four time in a row she has been on the annual list. The rankings are alphabetical, not numerical. She has held the role of City Manager since 1999 and is the first woman to be appointed to the position in Vancouver. She has been the City's representative on the VANOC board of directors since 2003, and her term was renewed for another four years this month.

RESOURCES

The Top 100 Women as compiled by the Women's Executive Network of Canada:

www-wxnetwork-com/images/Top100/WXN%20Awards%20Book-pdf

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 21, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |General| #1992

TOROC PRESIDENT CASTELLANI SAYS BOOKS WILL BE BALANCED AT C$5.2 BILLION BUT GAMES IMPACT WILL TAKE LONGER

The president of the Torino Olympic Organizing Committee says the 2006 Winter Games ended with a balanced budget of C$5.2 billion when the books are closed on the Games at the end of this year, but it will be a decade before the full impact of the Games is known on the area.

The budgeted amount says, Valentino Castellani, includes operations and venue construction, but he warns that it's difficult to compare the budgets of two Games, such as Torino's and Vancouver's, because each organizing committee and their governments decide what expenditures to include, which are required and which are optional, and those decisions are determined by the structure of their relationships. It also includes additional revenues generated by government lobbying to top up the budget before the Games.

Castellani is in BC this week to take part in a Legacies 2010 Now speaker series around the province.

"There were a lot of investments made by different entities in connection with the Torino Games," he notes, such as, "the first underground line in the City of Torino and some infrastructure interventions of urban regeneration of Torino that were anticipated with respect to the planning, and so on and so on. I must say that we can be satisfied with the results."

He notes the University of Rome has constructed an independent model of the economic impact of the Games. "For each Euro invested in the Olympic Games had an added value impact that induced e1.3, which is an interesting measure of the multiplication. I believe that we should have a very patient attitude in measuring these effects, because you have to wait at least four or five years to see what is going on, and what has been consolidated. It's still early to judge. The medium and long-term effects are what we call 'legacy', and so we have to measure them in five or 10 years from now."

The Piedmonte Regional government estimates that the economic impacts will be about C$25.6 billion in valued added increased production nationally in Italy, with C$19 billion of that occurring within the region. The Games, it estimates, increased the domestic gross product by 0.2% nationally.

Catellani notes that TOROC spent about C$838 million on marketplace goods and services, with 44% of that staying locally, 60% of it staying regionally and 80% it staying nationally. VANOC has an operational budget of about C$1.7 billion.

One of the most successful marketing ideas, he said, was the decision to go to local and regional suppliers and put together a gift basket that focused on locally produced high-profile items to help bolster tourism visits. The basket included wine, cheese and chocolate, and was given away by sponsors to VIPs, to guests and sold at retail stores to spectators at kiosks set up at all the venues. "Food and beverages are culture," Castellani says, particularly for international visitors.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 21, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |IOC| #1991

CANADIAN OLYMPIC COMMITTEE MEETS WITH BEIJING-BOUND TEAM TO TALK GAMES STRATEGY

With 625 days to go before the 2008 Summer Olympics, the Canadian Olympic Committee has gathered a group of 60 Olympic-bound athletes and 70 coaches, team leaders and other support staff in Toronto to discuss game strategy.

It's also a pattern expected to be repeated by the COC, and the Olympic committees of other countries, for the 2010 Winter Games when the time comes.

The session was part of a four-day conference sponsored by the COC and its sponsors, designed to provide athletes, coaches and their support team with the practical skills and strategies necessary to get them on the podium in Beijing.

As part of the workshop agenda, athletes met with previously successful Olympians to discuss the importance of devising a personal Olympic plan that meshes with that of the organization, while also providing personal accounts of the strategies used to overcome personal obstacles and challenges en route to capturing an Olympic medal.

Dr. Judy Goss, a sport psychology consultant for the COC Athlete Relations section, says, "For an Olympic athlete, gone are the days where you could simply rely on talent alone to achieve podium success, The main point we try to communicate to athletes at the Olympic Excellence Series is that there is no smooth road to the Olympic Games. On the road to Beijing, Canada's athletes will encounter a variety of struggles and challenges. Through the Olympic Excellence Series, our goal is to have successful Olympians provide them with the skills and strategies to help them effectively manage those challenges and distractions to ensure a greater probability of podium success."

In addition to the athlete portion of the Series, the COC and its Performance Enhancement Team met with the coaches, team leaders and high-performance members of each summer national sport federation to provide an initial overview of the Olympic environment, and information on some of the on-site challenges their sport may encounter in Beijing. That information was gleaned by COC officials in visits to the city beforehand.

The COC's second and final Olympic Excellence Series for 2008 Olympic hopefuls is scheduled for a year from now, in next November.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 21, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |General| #1990

VANCOUVER CITY COUNCIL BUDGET HEARING INVOLVING PROPOSED OLYMPIC LEGACY FUNDING DISRUPTED BY MOB

A group of people calling themselves the Anti-Poverty Committee last night stormed a public meeting at the main library called by Vancouver city council to hear comments about its budget for next year, which included items to do with the 2010 Olympics.

The city’s Olympic and Paralympic Operations Office some time ago asked council to put aside C$5 million each year for four years, starting in 2007, to create a Legacy Reserve Fund for the Winter Games. This reserve would be used to implement community, sustainability or hosting ideas.

The group, however, has been demanding for months that the city spend more money on housing for homeless and low-income people, particularly on the city's tough Downtown East Side area. After marching several blocks from the Vancouver Art Gallery to the library, chanting and shouting, and, when they arrived, pounded on the doors of the meeting room.

Vancouver police, as they brought the mob under control, said some people who were grabbing for officer's gun belts, were pepper-sprayed by one officer. Some of the protesters were able to get into the meeting, and began throwing chairs.

Several people, including the group's leader, were arrested.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 21, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #1989

VANCOUVER TO PAY C$1.9 MILLION FOR FOUNDATION WORK ON OLYMPIC VILLAGE STRUCTURE, AND ANOTHER C$1 MILLION FOR SURROUNDING SITE SERVICING

The City of Vancouver has awarded another contract, this one worth C$1.9 million, to a Prince George construction company for work on the city's Olympic Village, and council has approved yet another C$1 million to help pay for the Village's growing site-servicing costs.

The contract went to Ruskin Construction -- a firm that specializes in foundation and marine construction -- which last January won a C$1 million contract from Vancouver to build a temporary coffer dam to aid construction work on the Village's foreshore. Ruskin's price of C$1,657,370 was the lowest of bidders responding to an RFP issued in October to upgrade the foundation of the Salt Building, a distinctive heritage structure that is to be used for the 2010 Olympics, and then turned over to the City as a cornerstone building for the residential neighbourhood the Village is to become after the Games are completed. The additional C$242,630 is to cover the federal government's 6% Goods and Services Tax and sundries.

The foundation upgrade is just part of the structural upgrade of the entire building to prepare it for potential use during the 2010 Winter Games and afterwards with a still-to-be-determined use, but will likely be retail. The foundation upgrade, including the installation of steel sheet piles around the perimeter of the building, is required before the roads surrounding the building can be excavated and backfilled with clean structural fill.

Meanwhile, city staff requested -- and council granted -- another $1 million for additional site-servicing costs, including:

Construction site logistics including fencing, security and first aid;

Change orders to existing construction contracts for site servicing and the Olympic

Village; and

Design modifications required to accommodate updates to the site plan.

It's not the first time City staff have asked for more money to cover the increasing costs of preparing the eight-block site for construction of buildings, expected to start early next year. The latest approval brings interim funding to C$3.2 million. Previous interim site-servicing funding requests occurred on May 12, 2005, for C$200,000, to cover consultancy contracts. Last January 19, council approved C$1 million for consultancy and construction work, and a further C$1 million was approved on July 18.

The money is coming out of the City's Property Endowment Fund, which is acting as the land developer. A private company, Millennium Development, through a similarly named subsidiary, is designing and will be constructing the condominiums and apartment buildings that will form the Village itself, and after the Games has agreed to buy the property.

BACKGROUND

The story so far on Vancouver's 2010 Olympic Village construction:

On May 12, 2005, Vancouver city council established the South East False Creek & Olympic Village Project Office to manage the development of the Olympic Village and surrounding city-owned lands, as well as oversee the design and construction of the public infrastructure for the entire area. That work included selecting a developer and work with it to design and construct the buildings on city lands in the Olympic Village, as well as designing and constructing the parks, streets, waterfront, other public spaces, and the site-servicing infrastructure, such as sewer, water, storm water, energy and other utilities.

Site preparation began in early January 2006 with the removal and disposal of the decking and piles in a small inlet located northwest of the Salt Building. Construction by Ruskin of the cofferdam to aid work in and around the inlet began in early February and is now completed. In early April, the site preparation, excavation and backfill began, along with and the waterfront densification; work that is also now done. Also in April, the road excavation and backfill and construction of a large storm-water outfall began. In July, construction of the roads and utilities in the Olympic Village, including the installation of water, sanitary, storm, district heating, lighting, electrical and telecommunications infrastructure began. Construction of a small man-made island and work on the shoreline began in August. In the meantime, Millennium was designing and preparing the documentation for a public hearing on rezoning the property from industrial to residential.

Here is the tender pricing from the three lowest firms for the Salt Building foundation work:

Ruskin Construction - $1,657,370

West Shore Constructors - $2,342,962

JJM Construction - $2,546,000

The prices listed exclude GST and are based on a lump-sum amount for mobilization, demobilization, removal of debris from below the building, temporary bracing of the building and concrete work. They also include unit rates for excavation, disposal of excavated material, supplying and placing backfill material, and suppling and installing steel-sheet piles. The contractor is to be paid for the actual quantities of material, whether it is more or less than the amount estimated.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on November 21, 2006

Monday, November 20, 2006

Morgan:News:2010 |Business| #1988

REAL ESTATE FIRM SAYS ADVENT OF 2010 NO LONGER HEATING UP WHISTLER HOUSING PRICES

A Whistler-based company says enough of the heat has come out of the area's real estate prices, despite the advent of the 2010 Games, that the market has switched from one that favours sellers to one that favours buyers.

Pat Kelly, the president of Whistler Real Estate Company, says, "The market is positive, and prices are stable -- whether it is a condo in the C$300 to C$400 thousand range, or a chalet-style home in the C$1 million-plus range, price levels have stabilized, there is good value, and lots of choices." The company has been in business in the area for about 30 years.

Kelly says he and his agents have watched the rapid growth in recreational real estate sales in Whistler and the surrounding area for several years. "Excitement surrounding the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympics games, international interest because of the low Canadian dollar, improved access to the ski area, aggressive marketing, and an unparalleled mountain recreation experience all contributed to that growth between 1999 and 2003," he says.

But Kelly adds that such an escalation rate in the marketplace was never sustainable, "A predictable adjustment in activity and prices has occurred. No