Thursday, May 3, 2012
Women's World Cup to Vancouver in 2015
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Exclusive: Transparency 1 Canadian soccer secrecy 0
The FIFA Independent Governance Committee tabled its first report March 30 to FIFA at its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland. Read a Forbes summary here. The full report, by Mark Pieth (with input from Canadians Alexandra Wrage and James Klotz), is here. FIFA's procedures are diplomatically described as "insufficient."
FIFA's response is best described as "baby steps." Transparency International issued this statement slamming FIFA for not immediately accepting and acting on all the recommendations. We're still no closer to finding out the story behind the ISL bribery scandal, despite well-respected Pieth urging FIFA publish the documents.
FIFA's 2011 financial report shows a $36 million profit based on revenue of $1.07 billion and expenses of $1.034 billion.
Meanwhile, closer to home, CONCACAF has announced that there is only one candidate to become the organization's next president. Jeffrey Webb, a banker from the Cayman Islands, will fill the post left vacant when bribery suspect Jack Warner quit in disgrace last year to avoid a FIFA investigation. The Canadian Soccer Association did not field a candidate and general secretary Peter Montopoli did not respond to my interview request.
Webb appears to be reform-minded, but he will have to take demonstrative action to introduce transparency to overcome his stigma. At a time when the world of soccer is under pressure to root out any hint of corruption, CONCACAF appears close to rubber-stamping the presidency of a banker from a notorious tax haven. The optics aren't good.
Speaking of the CSA, the governing body for the game in the biggest country (by land area) in CONCACAF does not publish its financial information -- even for its members! It publishes an annual report without financial statements. But it does submit audited statements to the Government of Canada annually to qualify for taxpayer funds via Sport Canada.
I have exclusively obtained the CSA's 2010 financial statements, which show an $807,944 profit based on $16.163 million revenue and $15.355 expenses. The biggest sources of income were membership fees ($6.617 million), sponsorships and donations ($3.479 million) and taxpayer grants ($3.145 million). Read the full report below.
Here's hoping the CSA does the right thing and proactively publishes its 2011 financial statements, instead of forcing a reporter to send a $5 cheque to the government.
Friday, March 30, 2012
Sticking it to Alzheimer's
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| Ron Toigo (left), Gordie Howe, Terry Wright, Sharon Craver, Orland Kurtenbach at the Scotiabank Pro-Am news conference on March 28. |
Marty McSorley was back on ice in Vancouver March 28, but not at the scene of the crime.
On Feb. 21, 2000 at then-General Motors Place, then-Boston Bruin McSorley struck Vancouver Canucks’ enforcer Donald Brashear in the side of the head with his stick with three seconds left in the game. McSorley was sent to fight Brashear after the Canuck earlier knocked goaltender Byron Dafoe out of the game with a knee injury. Brashear didn't want to drop his gloves.
Brashear fell backwards, hit his head on the ice, suffered a seizure and a serious concussion. McSorley was charged and convicted of assault with a weapon and didn’t return to the National Hockey League after his year-long suspension.
“I went out with my boots on, I went out the same way I came in,” McSorley said. “I do think the situation kinda served a bunch of masters, there were a lot of people upset with the game, upset with the NHL, Canadian teams were moving, we've gotta hold the NHL accountable. I seem to feel like I was in the middle of that.”
McSorley, who recently had double-hip replacement surgery, laced up his skates at the Pacific Coliseum for a game of shinny in a rink where his memories are fonder. It was there that he set-up Los Angeles King Gary Shuchuk’s pivotal, game five double-overtime winner in the second round of 1993’s playoffs. The Kings disposed of Vancouver in game six.
McSorley had 108 goals and 251 assists in his 961 career games and registered 3,381 penalty minutes. He was packaged along with Mike Krushelnyski in the milestone trade of Wayne Gretzky from the Edmonton Oilers to Los Angeles Kings on Aug. 9, 1988 and assisted Gretzky’s record-breaking 802nd career goal in 1994.
That goal put the Great One ahead of Mr. Hockey, Gordie Howe, who was also in the Pacific Coliseum for a news conference to promote the Oct. 26-28 Scotiabank Pro-Am for Alzheimer’s in North Vancouver.
Howe’s wife Colleen died of dementia-causing Pick’s disease in 2009. Howe, himself, no longer does press interviews despite making dozens of personal appearances annually. His son Marty insists his famous 84-year-old dad doesn’t have Alzheimer’s disease, but he instead may be feeling the cumulative effects of head injuries suffered during his lengthy NHL career.
“We're learning more about brain injuries and damage to the brain, it's really kind of come home,” said McSorley, whose father-in-law suffered a degenerative brain condition. “We, amongst older players, we know how many head injuries or maybe we don't even know how many head injuries we've truly had over the course of our careers. You're saying OK, that could be one of my former teammates or me down the road.”
The Pro-Am offers teams that raise $25,000 or more the chance to draft a former NHLer, like McSorley, to play on their team for at least three games in a three-day tournament aimed at raising $1 million for the Alzheimer Society of B.C. and Baycrest Foundation, a University of Toronto-linked neuroscience research hospital.
The fundraiser is also somewhat of a VANOC reunion. The co-chairman of the organizing committee is Terry Wright, the executive vice-president in charge of Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics transportation, security and accommodation. Joining him are VANOC CEO John Furlong, deputy CEO Dave Cobb, chairman Rusty Goepel, director Jeff Mooney, along with Irene Kerr (transportation vice-president), Dick Vollett (operations vice-president), Katrina Galas (project manager/client manager) and Lizette Parsons Bell (operations communications director).
“I signed on early and convinced a lot of people to help me, it's a great cause,” Wright said. “It needs a bit more promotion and a bit more awareness. It's something that has afflicted my family severely.”
Wright said a VANOC alumni team is entered and sponsor Scotiabank has challenged its competitors to join.
“Every five minutes, another Canadian comes down with (dementia), we have a population that's approaching the age where they're more vulnerable to it. I think it's going to become a bigger issue for society.”
Monday, March 12, 2012
Professor proffers Olympic predictions
Any Canadians expecting the gold medal dominance of their Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics team to translate into improvement for the London 2012 Summer Olympics team will be disappointed if predictions released March 12 come true.
Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan-native Daniel Johnson, an economics professor at Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colo., predicts Canada will win 17 medals, including four gold, in London. That was also his prediction for Beijing 2008. The actual tally four year ago was 18 medals and three gold. Not too shabby, eh?
Well, maybe if you're the Canadian Olympic team. That would put Canada in 15th on the gold medal scale and 12th overall. On overall medals, Johnson predicts Canada will be surpassed by Netherlands and Hungary (19), Italy and Japan (31), Australia (38). On the gold medal scale, he believes India, Poland and Netherlands will win 5. Romania (6), Hungary (7) and Australia (8), he predicts, will also beat Canada.
Johnson boasts a remarkable 93 percent success rate in his Olympic predictions over six consecutive Games, and his model does not include athletics. He instead relies on a nation's per capita income, population and its proximity to the host city.
Johnson predicts the U.S. will win the most overall (99) and most gold (34). China (67 including 33 gold), Russia (82 including 25 gold), and host Great Britain (45 including 20 gold) are the top four. According to Johnson's March 12-issued news release:
What Johnson doesn't mention is that his prediction for Canada's gold medals in Vancouver 2010 was a paltry 5. Canada won a record 14.
Read more here and see the ranked prediction table below.
2012 Olympic medal predictions by Dan Johnson
Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan-native Daniel Johnson, an economics professor at Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colo., predicts Canada will win 17 medals, including four gold, in London. That was also his prediction for Beijing 2008. The actual tally four year ago was 18 medals and three gold. Not too shabby, eh?
Well, maybe if you're the Canadian Olympic team. That would put Canada in 15th on the gold medal scale and 12th overall. On overall medals, Johnson predicts Canada will be surpassed by Netherlands and Hungary (19), Italy and Japan (31), Australia (38). On the gold medal scale, he believes India, Poland and Netherlands will win 5. Romania (6), Hungary (7) and Australia (8), he predicts, will also beat Canada.
Johnson boasts a remarkable 93 percent success rate in his Olympic predictions over six consecutive Games, and his model does not include athletics. He instead relies on a nation's per capita income, population and its proximity to the host city.
Johnson predicts the U.S. will win the most overall (99) and most gold (34). China (67 including 33 gold), Russia (82 including 25 gold), and host Great Britain (45 including 20 gold) are the top four. According to Johnson's March 12-issued news release:
"During the last Summer Games, in Beijing in 2008, Johnson’s model forecast that the U.S. would top the medal count, and it did, winning 110 medals (seven more than predicted). He also correctly predicted that China would top the gold medal count, and it did, winning 51 gold medals (seven more than predicted). During the last Winter Games, in Vancouver in 2010, the model predicted 27 medals for Canada (they won 26 instead), but the American and German teams both vastly outperformed expectations and topped the podium more often."
What Johnson doesn't mention is that his prediction for Canada's gold medals in Vancouver 2010 was a paltry 5. Canada won a record 14.
Read more here and see the ranked prediction table below.
2012 Olympic medal predictions by Dan Johnson
Professor proffers Olympic predictions
Any Canadians expecting the gold medal dominance of their Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics team to translate into improvement for the London 2012 Summer Olympics team will be disappointed if predictions released March 12 come true.
Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan-native Daniel Johnson, an economics professor at Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colo., predicts Canada will win 17 medals, including four gold, in London. That was also his prediction for Beijing 2008. The actual tally four year ago was 18 medals and three gold. Not too shabby, eh?
Well, maybe if you're the Canadian Olympic team. That would put Canada in 15th on the gold medal scale and 12th overall. On overall medals, Johnson predicts Canada will be surpassed by Netherlands and Hungary (19), Italy and Japan (31), Australia (38). On the gold medal scale, he believes India, Poland and Netherlands will win 5. Romania (6), Hungary (7) and Australia (8), he predicts, will also beat Canada.
Johnson boasts a remarkable 93 percent success rate in his Olympic predictions over six consecutive Games, and his model does not include athletics. He instead relies on a nation's per capita income, population and its proximity to the host city.
Johnson predicts the U.S. will win the most overall (99) and most gold (34). China (67 including 33 gold), Russia (82 including 25 gold), and host Great Britain (45 including 20 gold) are the top four. According to Johnson's March 12-issued news release:
What Johnson doesn't mention is that his prediction for Canada's gold medals in Vancouver 2010 was a paltry 5. Canada won a record 14.
Read more here and see the ranked prediction table below.
2012 Olympic medal predictions by Dan Johnson
Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan-native Daniel Johnson, an economics professor at Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colo., predicts Canada will win 17 medals, including four gold, in London. That was also his prediction for Beijing 2008. The actual tally four year ago was 18 medals and three gold. Not too shabby, eh?
Well, maybe if you're the Canadian Olympic team. That would put Canada in 15th on the gold medal scale and 12th overall. On overall medals, Johnson predicts Canada will be surpassed by Netherlands and Hungary (19), Italy and Japan (31), Australia (38). On the gold medal scale, he believes India, Poland and Netherlands will win 5. Romania (6), Hungary (7) and Australia (8), he predicts, will also beat Canada.
Johnson boasts a remarkable 93 percent success rate in his Olympic predictions over six consecutive Games, and his model does not include athletics. He instead relies on a nation's per capita income, population and its proximity to the host city.
Johnson predicts the U.S. will win the most overall (99) and most gold (34). China (67 including 33 gold), Russia (82 including 25 gold), and host Great Britain (45 including 20 gold) are the top four. According to Johnson's March 12-issued news release:
"During the last Summer Games, in Beijing in 2008, Johnson’s model forecast that the U.S. would top the medal count, and it did, winning 110 medals (seven more than predicted). He also correctly predicted that China would top the gold medal count, and it did, winning 51 gold medals (seven more than predicted). During the last Winter Games, in Vancouver in 2010, the model predicted 27 medals for Canada (they won 26 instead), but the American and German teams both vastly outperformed expectations and topped the podium more often."
What Johnson doesn't mention is that his prediction for Canada's gold medals in Vancouver 2010 was a paltry 5. Canada won a record 14.
Read more here and see the ranked prediction table below.
2012 Olympic medal predictions by Dan Johnson
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Exclusive: inside the B.C. government name game
Some observers of the government's snub of Telus over the B.C. Place Stadium naming sponsorship wonder why the government didn't just let Budweiser buy the name and be done with it.
Telus installed $10 million to $15 million worth of wi-fi and mobile phone systems and video screens as part of the deal it reached with B.C. Pavilion Corporation in March 2011. That $35 million to $40 million you've heard about is not all cash on the table. It relied heavily on the provision of goods and services. Now PavCo has to buy its way out with your money and mine. The only way it can soften the blow now is to designate Telus as an exclusive or official supplier.
But the bigger reason is that no provincial government building in B.C. can be named after Budweiser. Or Molson Canadian. Or Guinness. Or even the Sorrento, B.C.-made Crannog Back Hand of God Stout or Gael's Blood Potato Ale.
The province's Naming Rights Policy says government will not approve an opportunity for naming recognition:
Yes, the province has a naming rights policy and applications are overseen by a little-known committee of bureaucrats (chaired by Executive Lead of Strategic Vendor Management Richard Poutney) under the Intellectual Property Program within the Ministry of Labour, Citizens’ Services and Open Government. You can read it here. However, the policy contains a loophole that opens the decision to political interference.
Section 4.5 of the policy says cabinet will decide on naming opportunities if:
All three apply in the context of the B.C. Place naming rights opportunity. The minutes for the committee's only meeting in 2011 (below) show that the Telus proposal to rename B.C. Place Stadium as "Telus Park" was not submitted to the committee. This was handled (or, perhaps, mishandled) solely by cabinet and, therefore, we may not know the details until 2026 or 2027 when the particular cabinet documents would become public.
What do you think? Should the naming of any and all provincial buildings in B.C. be vetted first by a committee that reports publicly (and doesn't wait for reporters to file a Freedom of Information request)? Should cabinet have a role, particularly when the bidder is a major donor to the ruling party or a major government contractor? (Telus donated more than $350,000 since 2005 to the B.C. Liberals and was given a $1 billion, 10-year government service contract in 2011.) And what happens if the chairman of the public body with the name up for sale has close ties with the corporation that wants to buy the name of the public building? (David Podmore's Concert Properties board includes two senior Telus executives and two senior officials from the Telecommunications Workers Union.)
It is, after all, taxpayers' money and taxpayers' own the buildings...
Province of British Columbia Naming Committee
Telus installed $10 million to $15 million worth of wi-fi and mobile phone systems and video screens as part of the deal it reached with B.C. Pavilion Corporation in March 2011. That $35 million to $40 million you've heard about is not all cash on the table. It relied heavily on the provision of goods and services. Now PavCo has to buy its way out with your money and mine. The only way it can soften the blow now is to designate Telus as an exclusive or official supplier.
But the bigger reason is that no provincial government building in B.C. can be named after Budweiser. Or Molson Canadian. Or Guinness. Or even the Sorrento, B.C.-made Crannog Back Hand of God Stout or Gael's Blood Potato Ale.
The province's Naming Rights Policy says government will not approve an opportunity for naming recognition:
"that involves an individual, business or organization whose main business is derived from the sale of alcohol, other than a provincial or national industry association that focuses on harm reduction regarding the responsible use of alcohol."
Yes, the province has a naming rights policy and applications are overseen by a little-known committee of bureaucrats (chaired by Executive Lead of Strategic Vendor Management Richard Poutney) under the Intellectual Property Program within the Ministry of Labour, Citizens’ Services and Open Government. You can read it here. However, the policy contains a loophole that opens the decision to political interference.
Section 4.5 of the policy says cabinet will decide on naming opportunities if:
(a) the size or visibility of the asset is of particular significance;
(b) the value of the contribution is greater than five million dollars;
(c) the asset is or will likely be the object of media attention, or is otherwise in the public eye;
All three apply in the context of the B.C. Place naming rights opportunity. The minutes for the committee's only meeting in 2011 (below) show that the Telus proposal to rename B.C. Place Stadium as "Telus Park" was not submitted to the committee. This was handled (or, perhaps, mishandled) solely by cabinet and, therefore, we may not know the details until 2026 or 2027 when the particular cabinet documents would become public.
What do you think? Should the naming of any and all provincial buildings in B.C. be vetted first by a committee that reports publicly (and doesn't wait for reporters to file a Freedom of Information request)? Should cabinet have a role, particularly when the bidder is a major donor to the ruling party or a major government contractor? (Telus donated more than $350,000 since 2005 to the B.C. Liberals and was given a $1 billion, 10-year government service contract in 2011.) And what happens if the chairman of the public body with the name up for sale has close ties with the corporation that wants to buy the name of the public building? (David Podmore's Concert Properties board includes two senior Telus executives and two senior officials from the Telecommunications Workers Union.)
It is, after all, taxpayers' money and taxpayers' own the buildings...
Province of British Columbia Naming Committee
Friday, March 9, 2012
Does "Brown out" mean lights out for Premier?
The shocking resignation of Peter Brown from the board of the B.C. Pavilion Corporation could be the beginning of the end for Premier Christy Clark's nearly year-old reign as Premier of British Columbia.
Brown was in New York March 9, while Clark was in Ottawa. Brown's name and profile disappeared from the B.C. Pavilion Corporation website at the end of the same week when Clark and Minister responsible Pat Bell publicly confirmed that the B.C. Place Stadium naming rights deal with Telus was cancelled. Telus had installed $10 million to $15 million of wi-fi stations, mobile phone antennas and video screens in the stadium as part of the deal that PavCo recommended to cabinet.
Through his Vancouver investment house, Canaccord, Brown has donated $312,230 to the B.C. Liberals since 2005 and backed George Abbott for the leadership of the party in the 2011 race. Brown was one of the biggest boosters of Gordon Campbell, who left the premiership after almost a decade and is now Canada's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. Clark was sworn-in on March 14, 2011.
Brown has resigned before from a similar organization because of political interference.
Brown was vice-chairman of the Expo 86 Corporation and chairman of the B.C. Place Corporation, a PavCo predecessor which merged with the B.C. Development Corporation to form the B.C. Enterprise Corporation.
Brown resigned in April 1988 after he was accused by Premier Bill Vander Zalm's secretary David Poole of wining and dining Li Ka-Shing, the eventual winning bidder for the Expo lands. Brown admitted hosting Li's son Victor for dinner at his Point Grey home, but denied any wrongdoing. He offered a stinging rebuke of Poole, the most powerful unelected official in the Vander Zalm government.
Brown was on the board of directors for the original North American Soccer League Vancouver Whitecaps. He is also a collector of Group of Seven masterpieces.
It could be theorized that Brown's resignation in 1988 was part of the slow process that led to the eventual fall of Vander Zalm, who was finally forced out in 1991 by the Fantasy Gardens conflict of interest scandal.
Could the fumbling of the renaming of B.C. Place be the undoing for Clark?
UPDATE: On March 12 I received the following email from Peter Brown, who declined my March 10 request for an interview ("At 70 years of age I am trying to get my privacy back which is more difficult than it should be," Brown wrote, via his iPad.)
(Bob's notes: Brown's Canaccord Capital donated $11,500 to Abbott's campaign on March 28, 2011. No donations to any other contestant are listed on the Elections B.C. database. Canaccord donated $25,000 to Vision Vancouver in 2009. The Non-Partisan Association is the civic free enterprise party in Vancouver. I asked for, and Brown declined to supply me, the date on which he tendered his PavCo resignation and the contents of the resignation letter.)
Brown was in New York March 9, while Clark was in Ottawa. Brown's name and profile disappeared from the B.C. Pavilion Corporation website at the end of the same week when Clark and Minister responsible Pat Bell publicly confirmed that the B.C. Place Stadium naming rights deal with Telus was cancelled. Telus had installed $10 million to $15 million of wi-fi stations, mobile phone antennas and video screens in the stadium as part of the deal that PavCo recommended to cabinet.
Through his Vancouver investment house, Canaccord, Brown has donated $312,230 to the B.C. Liberals since 2005 and backed George Abbott for the leadership of the party in the 2011 race. Brown was one of the biggest boosters of Gordon Campbell, who left the premiership after almost a decade and is now Canada's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. Clark was sworn-in on March 14, 2011.
Brown has resigned before from a similar organization because of political interference.
Brown was vice-chairman of the Expo 86 Corporation and chairman of the B.C. Place Corporation, a PavCo predecessor which merged with the B.C. Development Corporation to form the B.C. Enterprise Corporation.
Brown resigned in April 1988 after he was accused by Premier Bill Vander Zalm's secretary David Poole of wining and dining Li Ka-Shing, the eventual winning bidder for the Expo lands. Brown admitted hosting Li's son Victor for dinner at his Point Grey home, but denied any wrongdoing. He offered a stinging rebuke of Poole, the most powerful unelected official in the Vander Zalm government.
"The dinner in my house was part of a purely proper program to encourage any bidder that we could to participate in the B.C. Enterprise bid process," Brown was quoted in the Vancouver Sun. "Any attempt to cast aspersions on that function by anyone is a bitter and petty act by someone who's proved before he's not sure what the rules are."
Brown was on the board of directors for the original North American Soccer League Vancouver Whitecaps. He is also a collector of Group of Seven masterpieces.
It could be theorized that Brown's resignation in 1988 was part of the slow process that led to the eventual fall of Vander Zalm, who was finally forced out in 1991 by the Fantasy Gardens conflict of interest scandal.
Could the fumbling of the renaming of B.C. Place be the undoing for Clark?
UPDATE: On March 12 I received the following email from Peter Brown, who declined my March 10 request for an interview ("At 70 years of age I am trying to get my privacy back which is more difficult than it should be," Brown wrote, via his iPad.)
"It would be nice to be in a profession like yours where rampant poetic license was practiced. Here are some facts that you neglected in your blog:
"I did not back George Abbott for leadership of the Liberal Party as I believed he never had a chance.
"I entertained every bidder for BC Enterprise in my home and Grace McCarthy, the Minister responsible, was always present.
"That newspaper reference was caused by David Poole's attempt to improperly influence the privatization of the assets of BC Enterprise. This was a failed attempt by him. I had always agreed to serve as Chairman of BC Enterprise until the principle assets were privatized which was concluded with the sale of the Expo Lands. The government of the day had nothing to do with my decision.
"My current resignation is as I publicly stated. I agreed to go on the board of PAVCO to oversee the complex construction of two major Vancouver icons. That job is complete and I believe that board representation should now come from people in Tourism and Marketing - neither of which are my expertise. The decision was compounded by the fact that I have taken on too many boards and committees and need to cut back on boards like this where my contribution going forward is less relevant.
"As to my politics, I think it should be obvious to everyone that I am a supporter of governments who believe in free trade and free markets and believe the best results for all citizens will be generated by free enterprise alternatives. In this case, even you should be able to ascertain my political choice as the only one possible which makes the inferences in your article ridiculous. All the more so when one considers choices in the upcoming election and the critical impact the wrong decision could have on our economic well being."
Peter Brown
(Bob's notes: Brown's Canaccord Capital donated $11,500 to Abbott's campaign on March 28, 2011. No donations to any other contestant are listed on the Elections B.C. database. Canaccord donated $25,000 to Vision Vancouver in 2009. The Non-Partisan Association is the civic free enterprise party in Vancouver. I asked for, and Brown declined to supply me, the date on which he tendered his PavCo resignation and the contents of the resignation letter.)
Saturday, March 3, 2012
The name remains the same
After announcing a three-year, $3 billion investment in B.C. (enabled by its 10-year, $1 billion provincial government supply deal), Telus CEO Darren Entwistle told me that the company invested between $10 million and $15 million of goods and services to make B.C. Place Stadium the world's first "all-digital" stadium.
Yet, it remains B.C. Place. The naming rights deal that was supposed to happen last fall didn't. Maybe it will never happen, judging from what Entwistle (who is pictured on the right with NDP leader Adrian Dix) told reporters on March 2.
"That question as it relates to sponsorship is best posed to (B.C. Pavilion Corporation). That's their responsibility and ultimately their decision. In terms of Telus's perspective, we're tremendously excited about the part we played to bring that stadium to fruition from a technology perspective. The technology that's been infused into that stadium will create an unparalleled fan and technology experience.
"For us right now we're just focussed on the technology component of that solution. Again, any sponsorship conversation is best had with the PavCo organization. At the end of the day, as a public organization, we're deploying technology. Certainly there will be a commercial return associated with that and we'll work that out in a technology supplier agreement with PavCo which we're in the progress of doing right now."
Backbench MLA Colin Hansen was the only Liberal politician at the news conference. No executives from B.C. Pavilion Corporation, which operates B.C. Place, were seen. On March 2, Telus also placed full-page ads in Vancouver newspapers promoting its work in B.C. Place. There was even a strategically placed dogwood blossom in the upper right corner. (Dogwood is the provincial flower.)
The Vancouver Whitecaps, who are sponsored by Telus competitor Bell, are the stadium's main sports tenant and start their first full-season in B.C. Place on March 10, playing on what the Major League Soccer franchise calls "Bell Pitch."
B.C. Place workers were recently issued uniforms that include the new B.C. Place logo. They had received blank shirts and jackets before the Sept. 30, 2011 reopening, in anticipation of the name change sometime before the 99th Grey Cup. PavCo even paid more than $50,000 to remove the old B.C. Place external sign and commission a new one bearing the Telus name.
My Feb. 23 interview request to PavCo chairman David Podmore and CEO Warren Buckley was referred to Pat Bell, the Minister Responsible, who told me:
"It may or may not take on a corporate name. It is B.C. Place. The fact it has B.C. Place on the uniforms is something we were contemplating regardless. The name of the facility is B.C. Place. It may have a corporate sponsor, it may not, but it is B.C. Place… It is B.C. Place for us, that's what we've called it for a long, long time. British Columbians know it as B.C. Place."
So there you have it. Telus, which was supposed to be the naming rights sponsor, is still negotiating a contract so it can be called an official supplier. The six-month-old B.C. Place logo has finally shown up on the uniforms of staff.
The sale of naming rights was supposed to help lessen the burden on the taxpayer for the $563 million renovation.
Yet another broken promise? Or a casualty of the telecom marketing wars?
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
B.C. sport shakeup
A new era in British Columbia sport will begin March 1 when Scott Ackles is announced as the chief executive officer of the B.C. Sport Agency.
It is part of an overhaul in the province's sport system in the wake of the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics.
Ackles was the general manager of Vancouver's 2005 and 2011 Grey Cup festivals and replaces interim B.C. Sport Agency CEO Cathy Priestner Allinger, the Own the Podium blueprint author and VANOC executive vice-president of sport who was named last August to head of Vancouver's 2014 Special Olympics Canada Summer Games.
Ackles effectively becomes the most powerful executive in amateur sport in B.C. Former VANOC sport vice-president Tim Gayda has left his post as Sport BC CEO to be a consultant. Gayda's position will not be filled.
Sport BC and the B.C. Sport Agency will be working in concert for the betterment of sport in the province. The B.C. Sport Agency takes over management of programs that were under the wings of 2010 Legacies Now, such as the Aboriginal Youth Sport Legacy Fund and First Nations Snowboard Team. The former 2010 Legacies Now group rebranded as Lift Philanthropy Partners.
It is part of an overhaul in the province's sport system in the wake of the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics.
Ackles was the general manager of Vancouver's 2005 and 2011 Grey Cup festivals and replaces interim B.C. Sport Agency CEO Cathy Priestner Allinger, the Own the Podium blueprint author and VANOC executive vice-president of sport who was named last August to head of Vancouver's 2014 Special Olympics Canada Summer Games.
Ackles effectively becomes the most powerful executive in amateur sport in B.C. Former VANOC sport vice-president Tim Gayda has left his post as Sport BC CEO to be a consultant. Gayda's position will not be filled.
Sport BC and the B.C. Sport Agency will be working in concert for the betterment of sport in the province. The B.C. Sport Agency takes over management of programs that were under the wings of 2010 Legacies Now, such as the Aboriginal Youth Sport Legacy Fund and First Nations Snowboard Team. The former 2010 Legacies Now group rebranded as Lift Philanthropy Partners.
The Battle for Bodog
I have had Bodog on my radar for more than seven years, as Calvin Ayre's Vancouver-founded online gambling company has very publicly targeted gamblers in North America despite federal laws to the contrary. The Americans enforce theirs, Canada doesn't.
Here is my 2005 feature from the Vancouver Courier.
Bodog has been, in one word, dynamic. It branched out into mixed martial arts events and a record label. Ayre operated secretly in Vancouver before remaking himself in the image of Richard Branson and Donald Trump: a celebrity, jet-setting CEO through which others may live vicariously. It took until 2010 before many in the Canadian media took notice. Here is CTV's W5 profile on Ayre and Alwyn Morris, the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic gold medallist who is behind Bodog operations on the Kahnawake Mohawk reserve near Montreal.
Bodog was a sponsor of the 2011 Grey Cup in Vancouver, Canada's biggest annual, one-day sporting event -- under the guise of its dot-net "educational" and "free-to-play" website. The online gambling industry's dot-net sites are thinly veiled, yet vital promotional tools for the revenue-generating, dot-com websites.
The Grey Cup also receives federal and provincial subsidies. Yes, the same federal government which banned gambling (and the promotion of gambling) in the Criminal Code unless it is operated and/or licensed by a provincial government monopoly. See sections 206 and 207. In British Columbia, the B.C. Lottery Corporation's PlayNow.com is the only legal avenue (though it is still banned from taking bets on the outcome of single sporting events).
Here is academic background on the Legalization of Gambling in Canada.
In the fall of 2006, President George W. Bush signed the Unlawful Gambling Enforcement Act. Since then, U.S. authorities have methodically picked-off online gambling outfits that target Americans. It was a matter of when, not if, Bodog would become the target. That finally happened Feb. 27 when the U.S. District Court in Maryland authorized seizure of the Bodog domain. The company, Ayre, James Philip, David Ferguson and Derrick Maloney were also indicted on charges of carrying on a gambling business and conspiracy to launder money.
The whereabouts of the accused are not known, but a statement on Ayre's website says:
Ayre, ever the smooth operator, has constructed a complex web and in late 2011 even launched a whole new gambling site, called Bovada. (Get it? BOdog, neVADA?)
The question has to be asked: what is the U.S. government's end game?
Is it simply enforcing laws against unregulated gambling on moral grounds? Wherever gambling goes, the risk of crime seems to follow. There are also very real and reasonable concerns about gambling addiction. Teenage boys, who were weaned on video games and are passionate about pro sports celebrities, are particularly susceptible to online gambling. The CBC documentary Gambling Boys is enlightening. McGill University's Dr. Jeffrey Derevensky is the foremost researcher on youth gambling trends. Here is his presentation to a 2009 conference in Singapore.
Or is the U.S. government playing catch-up with technology in a bid to ensure all forms of gambling available to American citizens can be regulated and taxed? The U.S. is a major debtor and grabbing a piece of the gambling pie has been bandied about as a means of mopping up the red ink.
The U.S. government's website seizure and indictment notices against Bodog are below. This will be one of the biggest sports business stories of 2012.
Bodog Website Seizure Warrant
Bodog Indictment
Here is my 2005 feature from the Vancouver Courier.
Bodog has been, in one word, dynamic. It branched out into mixed martial arts events and a record label. Ayre operated secretly in Vancouver before remaking himself in the image of Richard Branson and Donald Trump: a celebrity, jet-setting CEO through which others may live vicariously. It took until 2010 before many in the Canadian media took notice. Here is CTV's W5 profile on Ayre and Alwyn Morris, the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic gold medallist who is behind Bodog operations on the Kahnawake Mohawk reserve near Montreal.
Bodog was a sponsor of the 2011 Grey Cup in Vancouver, Canada's biggest annual, one-day sporting event -- under the guise of its dot-net "educational" and "free-to-play" website. The online gambling industry's dot-net sites are thinly veiled, yet vital promotional tools for the revenue-generating, dot-com websites.
The Grey Cup also receives federal and provincial subsidies. Yes, the same federal government which banned gambling (and the promotion of gambling) in the Criminal Code unless it is operated and/or licensed by a provincial government monopoly. See sections 206 and 207. In British Columbia, the B.C. Lottery Corporation's PlayNow.com is the only legal avenue (though it is still banned from taking bets on the outcome of single sporting events).
Here is academic background on the Legalization of Gambling in Canada.
In the fall of 2006, President George W. Bush signed the Unlawful Gambling Enforcement Act. Since then, U.S. authorities have methodically picked-off online gambling outfits that target Americans. It was a matter of when, not if, Bodog would become the target. That finally happened Feb. 27 when the U.S. District Court in Maryland authorized seizure of the Bodog domain. The company, Ayre, James Philip, David Ferguson and Derrick Maloney were also indicted on charges of carrying on a gambling business and conspiracy to launder money.
The whereabouts of the accused are not known, but a statement on Ayre's website says:
“I see this as abuse of the U.S. criminal justice system for the commercial gain of large U.S. corporations. It is clear that the online gaming industry is legal under international law and in the case of these documents is it also clear that the rule of law was not allowed to slow down a rush to try to win the war of public opinion... it will not stop my many business interests globally that are unrelated to anything in the U.S. and it will not stop my many charity projects through my foundation."
Ayre, ever the smooth operator, has constructed a complex web and in late 2011 even launched a whole new gambling site, called Bovada. (Get it? BOdog, neVADA?)
The question has to be asked: what is the U.S. government's end game?
Is it simply enforcing laws against unregulated gambling on moral grounds? Wherever gambling goes, the risk of crime seems to follow. There are also very real and reasonable concerns about gambling addiction. Teenage boys, who were weaned on video games and are passionate about pro sports celebrities, are particularly susceptible to online gambling. The CBC documentary Gambling Boys is enlightening. McGill University's Dr. Jeffrey Derevensky is the foremost researcher on youth gambling trends. Here is his presentation to a 2009 conference in Singapore.
Or is the U.S. government playing catch-up with technology in a bid to ensure all forms of gambling available to American citizens can be regulated and taxed? The U.S. is a major debtor and grabbing a piece of the gambling pie has been bandied about as a means of mopping up the red ink.
The U.S. government's website seizure and indictment notices against Bodog are below. This will be one of the biggest sports business stories of 2012.
Bodog Website Seizure Warrant
Bodog Indictment
Monday, February 27, 2012
Gaglardi coy about Stars, doesn't dismiss a Canucks deal
Tom Gaglardi is the newest owner in the National Hockey League, having bought the Dallas Stars in last fall's bankruptcy auction. The president of Vancouver's Northland Properties, and majority owner of the Western Hockey League's Kamloops Blazers, lost a bitter court battle with Francesco Aquilini for the Vancouver Canucks and Rogers Arena in 2008.
During a morning interview on Feb. 27, I tried to get hints about whether the Stars would be buying or selling players before the trade deadline.
"I don't really know, our team's core and our best players are our young guys in their 20s... We're listening to a lot of teams, teams pursuing some of our assets. If we can make our team better, then we might do something. We need to get better on the ice and build around our young core of guys.
"We like our team, it's kind of a disappointing middle frame of the season. But we've won four in a row and played the way we always thought we could. It wouldn't surprise us to do very little, if not nothing, by this afternoon."
Could there be a deal with the Vancouver Canucks?
"Oh, sure, Joe (Nieuwendyk) talks to every general manager in the league, i know he talks to Mike Gillis regularly as well. It's as possible as any team in the NHL."
During a morning interview on Feb. 27, I tried to get hints about whether the Stars would be buying or selling players before the trade deadline.
"I don't really know, our team's core and our best players are our young guys in their 20s... We're listening to a lot of teams, teams pursuing some of our assets. If we can make our team better, then we might do something. We need to get better on the ice and build around our young core of guys.
"We like our team, it's kind of a disappointing middle frame of the season. But we've won four in a row and played the way we always thought we could. It wouldn't surprise us to do very little, if not nothing, by this afternoon."
Could there be a deal with the Vancouver Canucks?
"Oh, sure, Joe (Nieuwendyk) talks to every general manager in the league, i know he talks to Mike Gillis regularly as well. It's as possible as any team in the NHL."
Sunday, February 5, 2012
NFL juggernaut touches down in Vancouver
The roof of B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver was lit with New York Giants' blue after the Tom Coughlin-coached squad completed the second most impressive end of a season in football on this continent by winning Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis. (The Grey Cup champion B.C. Lions had an even better comeback season.)
In Vancouver, the National Football League's marketing juggernaut (driven by Bud Light) took over the Commodore Ballroom, where the big game was screened. Team 1040's Scott Rintoul hosted the event with special guests like Oakland Raiders' wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh (right) and Football Hall of Famer Marcus Allen (below), the brother of Canadian Football League legend Damon Allen. (Photos: Ryan Harris)
Members of the Seattle Seahawks' SeaGals performed and the Sheepdogs of Saskatoon rocked.
There was even a spotting of Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics women's skicross gold medallist Ashleigh McIvor.
In Vancouver, the National Football League's marketing juggernaut (driven by Bud Light) took over the Commodore Ballroom, where the big game was screened. Team 1040's Scott Rintoul hosted the event with special guests like Oakland Raiders' wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh (right) and Football Hall of Famer Marcus Allen (below), the brother of Canadian Football League legend Damon Allen. (Photos: Ryan Harris)
Members of the Seattle Seahawks' SeaGals performed and the Sheepdogs of Saskatoon rocked.
There was even a spotting of Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics women's skicross gold medallist Ashleigh McIvor.
Friday, January 13, 2012
And the nominees are...
I had the pleasure of being part of the group of British Columbia amateur sport boosters that gathered Jan. 10 at Sport BC’s head office in Richmond to vote on the finalists for the 46th Annual Athlete of the Year Awards.
As always, the jury was faced with a high-quality crop of athletes of all ages and abilities (and from all regions) from which to choose. The winners will be announced March 8 at the River Rock Show Theatre in Richmond.
Athlete with a Disability, presented by the Province of British Columbia
Braedon Dolfo (Langley, BC) – BC Blind Sports Athletics
David Scott Patterson (Vancouver, BC) – Swimming
Michelle Stilwell (Nanoose, BC) – Wheelchair Athletics
Coach of the Year, presented by Canadian Sport Centre Pacific
Anatoliy Bondarchuk (Kamloops, BC) – Athletics
Peter Lawless (Victoria, BC) – Wheelchair Athletics/ Handcycling
Bruce Wilson (Victoria, BC) – Soccer
College Athlete of the Year
Li (Melody) Liang (Burnaby, BC) – Badminton, Douglas College
William Quiring (Abbotsford, BC) – Volleyball, Columbia Bible College
Preston Tucker (Vernon, BC) – Volleyball, UBC Okanagan
High School Female Athlete of the Year, presented by Scotiabank
Georgia Ellenwood (Langley, BC) – Athletics, Langley Secondary School
Alexandra McCawley (North Vancouver, BC) – Field Hockey/Basketball/Rugby, Carson Graham Secondary
Emily Oxland (North Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball, Handsworth Secondary
High School Male Athlete of the Year, presented by The Province
Sunny Dhinsa (Abbotsford, BC) – Wrestling, WJ Mouat Secondary
Adam Keenan (Victoria, BC) – Athletics, Lambrick Park Secondary
Reiner Theil (West Vancouver, BC) – Basketball/Football, Vancouver College
Junior Female Athlete of the Year
Shirley Fu (Burnaby, BC) – Table Tennis
Jisoo Keel (Coquitlam, BC) – Golf
Emily Schmidt (Victoria, BC) – Diving
Junior Male Athlete of the Year, presented by Triple O’s
Curtis Lazar (Vernon, BC) – Hockey
Kevin Kwon (Pitt Meadows, BC) – Golf
Filip Peliwo (North Vancouver, BC) – Tennis
Master Athlete of the Year
Christa Bortignon (West Vancouver, BC) – Athletics
Margaret Hudson (Port Alberni, BC) – Badminton
Stephanie Keifer (Vancouver, BC) – Triathlon
Official of the Year, presented by MyBackCheck.com
Jim Mitchell (Abbotsford, BC) – Wrestling
Terry Mosdell (Surrey, BC) – Lacrosse
Wayne Van Osterhout (Victoria, BC) – Rowing
Senior Female Athlete of the Year
Paula Findlay (Victoria, BC) – Triathlon
Amanda Gerhart (Vancouver, BC) – Wrestling
Rebecca Marino (Vancouver, BC) – Tennis
Senior Male Athlete of the Year, presented by TELUS
Dylan Armstrong (Kamloops, BC) – Athletics – Shot Put
Ryan Cochrane (Victoria, BC) – Swimming
Vasek Pospisil (Vancouver, BC) – Tennis
Team of the Year, presented by the TEAM 1040
Surrey United (Surrey, BC) – Soccer
TWU Men’s Volleyball (Langley, BC) – Volleyball
UBC Women’s Volleyball (Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball
University Athlete of the Year, presented by the Vancouver Sun
Helen Crofts (West Vancouver, BC) – Athletics, Simon Fraser University
Jacob Doerksen (Langley, BC) – Basketball, Trinity Western University
Shanice Marcelle (Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball, University of British Columbia
As always, the jury was faced with a high-quality crop of athletes of all ages and abilities (and from all regions) from which to choose. The winners will be announced March 8 at the River Rock Show Theatre in Richmond.
Athlete with a Disability, presented by the Province of British Columbia
Braedon Dolfo (Langley, BC) – BC Blind Sports Athletics
David Scott Patterson (Vancouver, BC) – Swimming
Michelle Stilwell (Nanoose, BC) – Wheelchair Athletics
Coach of the Year, presented by Canadian Sport Centre Pacific
Anatoliy Bondarchuk (Kamloops, BC) – Athletics
Peter Lawless (Victoria, BC) – Wheelchair Athletics/ Handcycling
Bruce Wilson (Victoria, BC) – Soccer
College Athlete of the Year
Li (Melody) Liang (Burnaby, BC) – Badminton, Douglas College
William Quiring (Abbotsford, BC) – Volleyball, Columbia Bible College
Preston Tucker (Vernon, BC) – Volleyball, UBC Okanagan
High School Female Athlete of the Year, presented by Scotiabank
Georgia Ellenwood (Langley, BC) – Athletics, Langley Secondary School
Alexandra McCawley (North Vancouver, BC) – Field Hockey/Basketball/Rugby, Carson Graham Secondary
Emily Oxland (North Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball, Handsworth Secondary
High School Male Athlete of the Year, presented by The Province
Sunny Dhinsa (Abbotsford, BC) – Wrestling, WJ Mouat Secondary
Adam Keenan (Victoria, BC) – Athletics, Lambrick Park Secondary
Reiner Theil (West Vancouver, BC) – Basketball/Football, Vancouver College
Junior Female Athlete of the Year
Shirley Fu (Burnaby, BC) – Table Tennis
Jisoo Keel (Coquitlam, BC) – Golf
Emily Schmidt (Victoria, BC) – Diving
Junior Male Athlete of the Year, presented by Triple O’s
Curtis Lazar (Vernon, BC) – Hockey
Kevin Kwon (Pitt Meadows, BC) – Golf
Filip Peliwo (North Vancouver, BC) – Tennis
Master Athlete of the Year
Christa Bortignon (West Vancouver, BC) – Athletics
Margaret Hudson (Port Alberni, BC) – Badminton
Stephanie Keifer (Vancouver, BC) – Triathlon
Official of the Year, presented by MyBackCheck.com
Jim Mitchell (Abbotsford, BC) – Wrestling
Terry Mosdell (Surrey, BC) – Lacrosse
Wayne Van Osterhout (Victoria, BC) – Rowing
Senior Female Athlete of the Year
Paula Findlay (Victoria, BC) – Triathlon
Amanda Gerhart (Vancouver, BC) – Wrestling
Rebecca Marino (Vancouver, BC) – Tennis
Senior Male Athlete of the Year, presented by TELUS
Dylan Armstrong (Kamloops, BC) – Athletics – Shot Put
Ryan Cochrane (Victoria, BC) – Swimming
Vasek Pospisil (Vancouver, BC) – Tennis
Team of the Year, presented by the TEAM 1040
Surrey United (Surrey, BC) – Soccer
TWU Men’s Volleyball (Langley, BC) – Volleyball
UBC Women’s Volleyball (Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball
University Athlete of the Year, presented by the Vancouver Sun
Helen Crofts (West Vancouver, BC) – Athletics, Simon Fraser University
Jacob Doerksen (Langley, BC) – Basketball, Trinity Western University
Shanice Marcelle (Vancouver, BC) – Volleyball, University of British Columbia
Friday, January 6, 2012
Coach sounds off on international bobsled fed
Canada’s skeleton team remained in the Altenberg world cup in the former East Germany, but the bobsledders withdrew from racing because of coach Tom De La Hunty’s safety worries.
“In my mind they should have cancelled the race,” De La Hunty said on a Jan. 6 media conference call, the day after Canada 2 pilot Chris Spring was seriously injured in a training crash at turn 16.
After Spring lost control of the sled, it broke through wooden barriers at the roof of the track. A steel girder ripped off the front axle, which was dragged through the sled to the rear axle, with the athletes in side. De La Hunty withdrew his bobsledders because International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation officials did not follow through on a pledge to repair the turn and improve safety at the track.
"There was no change at all except some new shiny bits of wood, therefore the track was equally as dangerous," De La Hunty said.
The 27-year-old from Australia, who is based in Calgary, was airlifted to hospital Jan. 5 in Dresden with a broken noise and serious cuts and bruises. Bill Thomas of Queensville, Ont. suffered bruised lungs and minor trauma while Graeme Rinholm of Saskatoon, Sask. sustained a broken fibula and cuts to upper legs, buttocks and underlying musculature. Tim Randall of Toronto suffered minor injuries. When the quartet will return to Canada and how long their rehabilitation will take is not yet known.
“It's just a miracle the guys got out of it without having their limbs ripped off,” De La Hunty said.
Spring learned bobsledding in 2008 and raced for Australia at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics before joining Canada last season. He successfully completed four two-man training runs in his first visit to Altenberg, but completed only one of three four-man training runs. Canada 1 pilot Lyndon Rush speculated that Spring may have been nervous from the first crash and could have been distracted by falling snow, but said “crashing in bobsledding happens, but you never go through the roof.”
“You always have concern when you go to Altenberg, but Chris Spring has driven Whistler and Lake Placid, and they’re two of the other toughest tracks in the world. He’s done well there,” De La Hunty said.
“This wasn't a mental problem, this was a physical problem with the bobsleigh track, and I would not be doing my job if I sent the team down on a track that I knew was dangerous, really dangerous.”
Spring finished 14th in four-man and 19th in two-man at the 2011 world championships in Konigssee, Germany.
The Altenberg track officially opened in 1986 and was renovated for the Feb. 10-12, 2012 FIL world championships. FIBT executive director Heike Groesswang said Friday that “an official statement would be published by tomorrow.”
The crash was arguably the biggest incident in sliding sports since Feb. 12, 2010 when Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili died from a training crash on the Whistler Sliding Centre on the opening day of the 2010 Winter Olympics. The 2010 Games facility hosts the bobsled and skeleton world cup on Feb. 2-4.
“In my mind they should have cancelled the race,” De La Hunty said on a Jan. 6 media conference call, the day after Canada 2 pilot Chris Spring was seriously injured in a training crash at turn 16.
After Spring lost control of the sled, it broke through wooden barriers at the roof of the track. A steel girder ripped off the front axle, which was dragged through the sled to the rear axle, with the athletes in side. De La Hunty withdrew his bobsledders because International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation officials did not follow through on a pledge to repair the turn and improve safety at the track.
"There was no change at all except some new shiny bits of wood, therefore the track was equally as dangerous," De La Hunty said.
The 27-year-old from Australia, who is based in Calgary, was airlifted to hospital Jan. 5 in Dresden with a broken noise and serious cuts and bruises. Bill Thomas of Queensville, Ont. suffered bruised lungs and minor trauma while Graeme Rinholm of Saskatoon, Sask. sustained a broken fibula and cuts to upper legs, buttocks and underlying musculature. Tim Randall of Toronto suffered minor injuries. When the quartet will return to Canada and how long their rehabilitation will take is not yet known.
“It's just a miracle the guys got out of it without having their limbs ripped off,” De La Hunty said.
Spring learned bobsledding in 2008 and raced for Australia at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics before joining Canada last season. He successfully completed four two-man training runs in his first visit to Altenberg, but completed only one of three four-man training runs. Canada 1 pilot Lyndon Rush speculated that Spring may have been nervous from the first crash and could have been distracted by falling snow, but said “crashing in bobsledding happens, but you never go through the roof.”
“You always have concern when you go to Altenberg, but Chris Spring has driven Whistler and Lake Placid, and they’re two of the other toughest tracks in the world. He’s done well there,” De La Hunty said.
“This wasn't a mental problem, this was a physical problem with the bobsleigh track, and I would not be doing my job if I sent the team down on a track that I knew was dangerous, really dangerous.”
Spring finished 14th in four-man and 19th in two-man at the 2011 world championships in Konigssee, Germany.
The Altenberg track officially opened in 1986 and was renovated for the Feb. 10-12, 2012 FIL world championships. FIBT executive director Heike Groesswang said Friday that “an official statement would be published by tomorrow.”
The crash was arguably the biggest incident in sliding sports since Feb. 12, 2010 when Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili died from a training crash on the Whistler Sliding Centre on the opening day of the 2010 Winter Olympics. The 2010 Games facility hosts the bobsled and skeleton world cup on Feb. 2-4.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
2010 Games live forever in B.C. Sports Hall of Fame
The Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics opened and closed at B.C. Place Stadium, and that’s where the tangible memories are now housed.
Almost two years after the Games, the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame and Museum doors reopened Jan. 6 at Gate A with its marquee Vancouver 2010 Gallery.
The 2,000 artifacts in the Olympic and Paralympic collection include gold, silver and bronze medals, mascots Miga, Quatchi and Sumi, a podium, torches, the late Jack Poole’s Olympic Order award, athlete uniforms and equipment and gifts brought by national Olympic committees. For Olympic pinheads, the Hall purports to have every single one of the keepsakes made for the 2010 Games.
The treasures were gathered via the tireless efforts of president Sue Griffin, curator Jason Beck, operations director Allison Mailer and trustee Joanie McMaster. Griffin reasonably feared before the Games that cash-strapped VANOC was going to put everything up for auction.
Much of the collection is organized in five display cases resembling each of the Olympic rings and representing the venues where the Games took place. You will find artifacts worn, used or signed by Canada's stars of the Games, like Alexandre Bilodeau, Joannie Rochette, Maelle Ricker, Jon Montgomery, Sidney Crosby and Hayley Wickenheiser. But there is a plethora of other nuggets that might surprise you.
There is a suit, helmet, goggles and practice snowboard that belonged to Johnny Lyall, who flew through the air on a ramp from level 4 and landed on the floor of B.C. Place to greet opening ceremony viewers from around the world. His script on a folded white piece of paper in large Helvetica type is included in the display case: "Welcome to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games! Bienvenue!"
Nancy Greene-Raine’s torch relay uniform and the torch she used to light the ceremonial cauldron was autographed by Wayne Gretzky, Steve Nash, Catriona Le May Doan and Rick Hansen.
Two dozen of the 84 nations of the Games donated a set of ceremonial uniforms.
"Azerbaijan, they've got some good pants, just as good as the Norwegian curling crew,” said the hall’s operations director Allison Mailer during a preview tour.
Hockey superfan Dave Ash, who owns Regina-based Dash Tours, donated his white hockey helmet with the red siren light and his giant Canada flag that Corey Perry borrowed for Team Canada’s victory celebration. Ash paid $3,000 for his front-row seat to the Feb. 28, 2010 gold medal hockey game.
Pakistani alpine skier Muhammad Abbas, who was 79th in the giant slalom, donated the hand-carved, wood plank skis on which he learned as a child.
"Our wish list has been completed, we're just so thrilled,” Mailer said. “The only thing we really want is a Shaun White snowboard. I think we'll still work on it. Maybe we'll send him pictures of the gallery and tell him what's missing."
The provincial sports shrine also reopens with a redesigned Hall of Champions that features a touchscreen multimedia archive of all 325 individuals and 54 teams inducted since its 1966 establishment. Nearby is a display case that include mementoes of Vancouver visits by the 20th century’s greatest athletes -- a Santos jersey worn and signed by Pele and handwraps autographed by Muhammad Ali -- plus the puck used to score the Vancouver Canucks’ first National Hockey League goal and a stopwatch that timed the famed 1954 Miracle Mile between Roger Bannister and John Landy at Empire Stadium.
Elsewhere, the hall includes jerseys, trophies and gear spanning the histories of the B.C. Lions, Canucks, Vancouver Whitecaps and Vancouver Canadians, plus galleries devoted to Hansen, late race car driver Greg Moore and national hero Terry Fox.
The grand reopening is planned for Feb. 10, two days before the second anniversary of the 2010 Winter Olympics.
Canada withdraws from dangerous German bobsled track
JAN. 6 UPDATE: Citing track safety, Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton pulled all of its bobsledders out of this weekend's Altenberg world cup after the Jan. 5 crash that seriously injured pilot Chris Spring.
“This is a highly technical track that has a history of crashes,” said head coach Tom De La Hunty in a Jan. 6 Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton news release. “I reviewed the corner this morning, and the track crew simply replaced the piece of wooden board that was damaged. Repairs to the corner were not enhanced, or done to an acceptable safety standard so there are no guarantees the same thing cannot happen again.”
“My ultimate responsibility is the health and safety of the team of athletes I represent,” De La Hunty said. “I am simply not comfortable sending them down this track under these conditions, and I am confident this is the right decision for the best interest of our entire team and national program.”
Spring is a 27-year-old newcomer to the German track where he crashed, according to statistics on the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation website.
Spring and teammates Graeme Rinholm of Saskatoon and Bill Thomas of Queensville, Ont. suffered serious injuries at turn 16 of the Altenberg course on the last day of training before the world cup. Toronto’s Tim Randall had only minor injuries.
Spring, who was airlifted to Dresden University Hospital, suffered a broken nose and serious cuts and bruises. Thomas has bruised lungs and minor trauma. Rinholm has a broken fibula, cuts to his upper legs, buttocks and underlying musculature.
“All of the athletes are resting comfortably, there is no life threatening injuries,” said Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton chief executive Don Wilson from Calgary in a Jan. 5 media conference call.
“The major injuries were quite a severe laceration to the buttock and upper leg area; obviously in the position they’re sitting in debris in the sled ended up cutting them, and in the pilot’s case, ending up in him.”
Wilson said Spring lost a substantial amount of blood because he was the last person extracted from the heavily damaged sled. Fears that Spring suffered a punctured lung or broken ribs were unfounded.
“The German medical people have gone through CT scans and ruled those out,” Wilson said.
Darwin, Australia-native Spring earned bobsledding in 2008 in Calgary and slid for Australia at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics before joining Canada full-time last season. He was 14th in the four-man event and 19th in two-man at the 2011 world championships in Konigssee, Germany. Spring piloted Canada to 10th place despite a snowstorm in the Dec. 18 world cup race at Winterberg, Germany. He was preparing for his first world cup appearance at Altenberg when the crash happened. The 1986-opened track, renovated for the 2012 luge world championships, is considered one of the most difficult on the international circuit.
Canadian high performance director Nathan Cicoria said from Calgary on Jan. 5 that the sled exited the corner at the wrong angle and traveled in an upwards trajectory before hitting a wall. He said he had not seen video footage of the crash but denied limits on training runs contributed to the crash. Teams are supposed to get six runs over three days before the two competition runs.
“We’re not getting into conversations about whose fault it is or whether or not it is a function of the race organizers -- it’s a risky sport,” Cicoria said. “You always want to have more training runs and want to be more prepared, but we felt this crew was at world class-calibre and they were competing at that level. Chris’s results to date reflect that. We need to make sure that we’re focussed on their daily condition versus who's to blame here.”
BCS scheduled a midday teleconference on Jan. 6 to offer more details. Canada's skeleton team will remain in the Altenberg competition. Bobsledders will resume wold cup competition Jan. 13-15 in Konigssee.
Whistler Sliding Centre, the 2010 Olympic track, hosts the world cup tour Feb. 2-4. The tour moves to Calgary for the Feb. 9-11 races and ends with the world championship at Lake Placid, N.Y. Feb. 17-19 and 24-26.
After last month's luge world cup, the Whistler Sliding Centre launched bobsled rides for tourists. The track was the site of the fatal crash of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili on the opening day of the 2010 Winter Games. Actual speeds on the track were faster than design estimates, but VANOC made no major pre-Games safety changes. The British Columbia coroner ruled Kumaritashvili's death an accident but ordered a safety audit of the track.
2010goldrush@gmail.com
“This is a highly technical track that has a history of crashes,” said head coach Tom De La Hunty in a Jan. 6 Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton news release. “I reviewed the corner this morning, and the track crew simply replaced the piece of wooden board that was damaged. Repairs to the corner were not enhanced, or done to an acceptable safety standard so there are no guarantees the same thing cannot happen again.”
“My ultimate responsibility is the health and safety of the team of athletes I represent,” De La Hunty said. “I am simply not comfortable sending them down this track under these conditions, and I am confident this is the right decision for the best interest of our entire team and national program.”
Spring is a 27-year-old newcomer to the German track where he crashed, according to statistics on the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation website.
Spring and teammates Graeme Rinholm of Saskatoon and Bill Thomas of Queensville, Ont. suffered serious injuries at turn 16 of the Altenberg course on the last day of training before the world cup. Toronto’s Tim Randall had only minor injuries.
Spring, who was airlifted to Dresden University Hospital, suffered a broken nose and serious cuts and bruises. Thomas has bruised lungs and minor trauma. Rinholm has a broken fibula, cuts to his upper legs, buttocks and underlying musculature.
“All of the athletes are resting comfortably, there is no life threatening injuries,” said Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton chief executive Don Wilson from Calgary in a Jan. 5 media conference call.
“The major injuries were quite a severe laceration to the buttock and upper leg area; obviously in the position they’re sitting in debris in the sled ended up cutting them, and in the pilot’s case, ending up in him.”
Wilson said Spring lost a substantial amount of blood because he was the last person extracted from the heavily damaged sled. Fears that Spring suffered a punctured lung or broken ribs were unfounded.
“The German medical people have gone through CT scans and ruled those out,” Wilson said.
Darwin, Australia-native Spring earned bobsledding in 2008 in Calgary and slid for Australia at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics before joining Canada full-time last season. He was 14th in the four-man event and 19th in two-man at the 2011 world championships in Konigssee, Germany. Spring piloted Canada to 10th place despite a snowstorm in the Dec. 18 world cup race at Winterberg, Germany. He was preparing for his first world cup appearance at Altenberg when the crash happened. The 1986-opened track, renovated for the 2012 luge world championships, is considered one of the most difficult on the international circuit.
Canadian high performance director Nathan Cicoria said from Calgary on Jan. 5 that the sled exited the corner at the wrong angle and traveled in an upwards trajectory before hitting a wall. He said he had not seen video footage of the crash but denied limits on training runs contributed to the crash. Teams are supposed to get six runs over three days before the two competition runs.
“We’re not getting into conversations about whose fault it is or whether or not it is a function of the race organizers -- it’s a risky sport,” Cicoria said. “You always want to have more training runs and want to be more prepared, but we felt this crew was at world class-calibre and they were competing at that level. Chris’s results to date reflect that. We need to make sure that we’re focussed on their daily condition versus who's to blame here.”
BCS scheduled a midday teleconference on Jan. 6 to offer more details. Canada's skeleton team will remain in the Altenberg competition. Bobsledders will resume wold cup competition Jan. 13-15 in Konigssee.
Whistler Sliding Centre, the 2010 Olympic track, hosts the world cup tour Feb. 2-4. The tour moves to Calgary for the Feb. 9-11 races and ends with the world championship at Lake Placid, N.Y. Feb. 17-19 and 24-26.
After last month's luge world cup, the Whistler Sliding Centre launched bobsled rides for tourists. The track was the site of the fatal crash of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili on the opening day of the 2010 Winter Games. Actual speeds on the track were faster than design estimates, but VANOC made no major pre-Games safety changes. The British Columbia coroner ruled Kumaritashvili's death an accident but ordered a safety audit of the track.
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