HEY RUSSIA- THX 4 HELPING US WIN WWI AND WWII- OR WE'D ALL BE WHITE AND PURE IN THIS PART OF THE WORLD....
----------------
SOOOOO COOOL.... LOVE U MOTHER RUSSIA-THX 4TAKING GOOD CARE OF OUR YOUNG GLOBAL ATHELETES AND MAKING IT ABOUT THEM....
Vladimir Putin
pays surprise visit to U.S., Canada houses in Sochi
ANGELA CHARLTON THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published February 14, 2014 - 12:18pm
Last Updated February 14, 2014 - 12:20pm
Published February 14, 2014 - 12:18pm
Last Updated February 14, 2014 - 12:20pm
Russian President Vladimir Putin, centre, emerges from Canada House in Olympic Park after visiting there and the U.S. House during the 2014 Winter Olympics on Friday. (DAVID PHILLIP / The Associated Press)
SOCHI, Russia — Russian President Vladimir Putin is making the rounds of national houses in Sochi, and from the pictures posted by athletes to Twitter, the visits are something of a surprise for most.
Putin visited both USA House and Canada House. The unannounced visits to the gathering spots for athletes and their families on Friday elicited some fun “selfie” photos, too.
U.S. luger Preston Griffall wrote, “Just hanging out at the USA house in #Sochi with Putin! No big deal! #sochiselfie.” In a photo, the Russian leader is on a couch behind Griffall’s left shoulder.
Earlier this week, Putin visited Holland House, where he “cuddled” with speedskater Ireen Wust after her win in the 3,000-meters.
------------------------------
UPDATE FEB 11 2014 SOCHI- 12:30pm news
1 Canada 7 3 3 1
2 The Netherlands 7 3 2 2
3 Norway 7 2 1 4
4 United States 5 2 0 3
5 Germany 2 2 0 0
6 Russia 6 1 2 3
7 Austria 3 1 2 0
8 France 2 1 0 1
9 Poland 1 1 0 0
10 Slovakia 1 1 0 0
11 Switzerland 1 1 0 0
12 Czech Republic 3 0 2 1
13 Sweden 2 0 2 0
14 Italy 2 0 1 1
15 China 1 0 1 0
-------------------------------------
FACEBOOK POSTING- it's about our beautiful global athletes and our nations and the thrill of the winter games... not about u... the olympics r not about u...
TOLD YA..... THE GAY SHEET BITCHIN IS2OVRTHETOP.... Could all the 'Russia is gay' jokes at Sochi be doing more harm than good?
The Winter Olympics opening ceremony, rainbow uniforms and that police choir singing Daft Punk – all 'totally ga...See More
The Winter Olympics opening ceremony, rainbow uniforms and that police choir singing Daft Punk – all 'totally ga...See More
Could all the 'Russia is gay' jokes at Sochi be doing more harm than good?
The Winter Olympics opening ceremony, rainbow uniforms and that police choir singing Daft Punk – all 'totally gay', right? Um, no. It's well meant, but camp and gay aren't the same thing
Volunteers in their rainbow colored Sochi Winter Olympic outfits
Volunteers in their rainbow colored Sochi Winter Olympic outfits Photograph: Barbara Walton/EPA
Have you seen the Russian Interior Ministry police choir performing Daft Punk's hit Get Lucky? It's a group of men singing a disco song so it's really gay. Vladimir Putin likes to pose for photographs with his top off and he once said he liked Elton John, the big gay. The opening ceremony for the Sochi winter Olympics featured We Will Rock You by Queen, which is really gay because it's Freddie Mercury. Just like the official volunteer uniforms, which are loud and rainbow coloured and really, really gay. Ballerinas: gay. Neon dancers dressed as sea anemones: gay. The luge: gay. Russia: so very gay!
"Nobody tell Russia, but look how super gay their Olympics opening ceremony was," reported the Huffington Post. "Sorry Putin, the Sochi opening ceremony was totally gay," wrote the Daily Beast, while New Statesman went for: "At the Sochi winter Olympics, the Russian establishment is trying to out-gay the gays."
The problem is that these articles conflate "gay" and "camp". It becomes a paradox of homophobia, albeit a well-intentioned one: in highlighting the ridiculousness of being anti-gay, these pieces fall back on hackneyed stereotypes of gay life. The cover of Get Lucky, a macho tale of "getting some" with a girl who's been out all night partying, is only being labelled gay because it's got a disco riff, and all gay people love disco, right?
The same goes for the opening ceremony's much-mocked sparkles, excesses, showy outfits and glitzy melodrama (as if this is somehow different to any other Olympics opening ceremony in recent history). It was camp, but camp is not inherently gay. Nor is a man crying at a film, though a Buzzfeed article titled "The 16 Most Homoerotic Photos of Vladimir Putin", suggests that when Putin does it, it means he definitely likes to have sex with men.
I know it's satire and that they mean well. Many of these writers are gay. Pointing out that Russia is full of gayness is in direct opposition to the Sochi mayor's assertion that there are no gay people in his city. It is empowering to challenge the now-official edict that gay people should not be seen or heard, and it is all the more satisfying to do this with wit.
So I understand why it's amusing to imply that Putin, who warns gay people to stay away from children because of the widely held belief in Russia that homosexuality is the same as paedophilia, is as gay as the people whose lives he is effectively criminalising. But to do this is to employ cliches and stereotypes broadly asserting that all gay people are the same. They are not, and if this awful Russian legislation teaches us anything, it's that there is real danger in insisting that they are.
http://www.theguardian.com/world/shortcuts/2014/feb/10/could-gay-russia-jokes-do-more-harm
--------------------------
Cole: Canada and Russia have much in common
PHOTO: Ed Kaiser/Postmedia Olympic Team
by Cam ColeFeb 07, 2014 - 3:38 PM EST
Last Updated: Feb 07, 2014 - 4:00 PM EST
The great cauldron that will burn for the duration of the Sochi Games was lit here Friday night by a Hockey Hall of Fame goalie, three-time Soviet team gold medalist Vladislav Tretiak, and Irina Rodnina, another three-time Olympic champion in pairs figure skating.
Hockey and figure skating: loved in similar proportions by both the host country of these Olympics, and the one that played host to the last gathering of the world’s greatest winter athletes.
At the end of an opening ceremony illuminated by the colourful lighting that has been designed to accentuate the positive of Sochi — or more properly Adler — at night, and especially its spectacular Olympic Park, the two enduring heroes of the host country’s sporting past capped an evening of rapturous classical music, ballet and often powerful images from Russia’s very serious history.
Raw: Opening fireworks of the Winter Games
And if the evening’s first star was Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, whose soaring music from Swan Lake made multiple appearances in the elaborate production, the ceremony was also notable for the brief, scripted sentence spoken by these Olympics’ most influential mover, Russian president Vladimir Putin, who declared the Games open and then stepped away from the microphone, a bit player in the protocol.
The sigh of relief from Vancouver could be felt on the exact opposite side of the planet Earth when a key element in the opening ceremony failed to deploy.
One
of the snowflake shapes malfunctioned and failed to open up into a ring
to form the Olympic rings shape at the Opening Ceremony in Fisht
Stadium at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, February 7, 2014. (Ed
Kaiser-Postmedia Olympic Team)
Sochi had none of the heartbreak of Vancouver’s opening to overcome; no young Georgian luger’s life was snuffed out in a horrible accident on the day of the opening; and yet there was little chance that the opening of the Games would be a light-hearted romp through Russian history, or anything like the often whimsical, self-deprecating, campy show in London two years ago.
The ceremony also had nothing quite as eye-popping as the snowboarder bursting through the flaming rings at B.C. Place Stadium, or as plaintive as k.d. lang’s haunting Hallelujah, but it succeeded in the most important respect: it was over on time.
The organizers’ intention was to move the march of the athletes briskly through the obligatory parade of nations and into their respective positions in the stands.
But the concept sketched out by celebrated screenwriter Konstantin Ernst, the ceremony’s artistic director — a sort of Google Earth zeroing in on the athletes’ country of the origin, out of which they would march — instead looked like people parading out of a vague brown mass, each map looking pretty much like the one before.
Still, Tretiak didn’t have to ride to his destination in the back of a pickup truck, in the rain, as Wayne Gretzky did four years ago.
So the Russians are up 1-0, at the end of the first.
ccole@vancouversun.com
----------------------------------------------------------------
FEBRUARY 2014 - PHOTOS
INCREDIBLY BEAUTIFUL- Anna Netrebko - my eyes filled with tears... swear was Anna was Maria Callas rising up.... God bless this beautiful gift from God
Winter Olympics start with glittering Opening Ceremony=Euronews
http://www.euronews.com/2014/02/07/winter-olympics-start-with-glittering-opening-ceremony/SOCHI WINTER OLYMPICS- 'There is a festive atmosphere everywhere.'
http://www.euronews.com/2014/02/08/sochi-winter-olympics-there-is-a-festive-atmosphere-everywher/
PHOTOS FROM EURONEWS
-----------------------------------------------------
Sochi Winter Olympics 2014- Mascots- SUPERSTAS-OHYESUR
Canada's First Medal
Sochi! Sochi! Sochi! Winter Paralympics and Olympics 2014
Canadians Are Polite ?! Molson Canadian Commercial
OH CANADA....CLASSIFIED
CANADIAN PLEASE
CANADIAN PLEASE!
I Am Canadian Anthem
Day 1 Sochi Winter Olympics 2014- Glorious
#Sochi2014
#CDNOlympicTeam
#WeAreWinter
#openingceremony (7 photos)
CN Tower turns Red 4 Canadian Team in Sochi....
CN Tower turns red in support of Canadian athletes in Sochi
CTV Toronto
Published Saturday, February 8, 2014 9:21AM EST
Published Saturday, February 8, 2014 9:21AM EST
The CN Tower will be lit red for the next two weeks to show support for Canada's athletes competing at the Winter Games in Sochi.
From February 7 to 23, the Toronto landmark will turn red nightly. The red colour will also mark Valentine's Day on Feb. 14.
A record 220 Canadian athletes are competing in Sochi, making it the largest Canadian contingent to participate in the Olympics.
On Saturday, Canada won its first medal with Regina snowboarder Mark McMorris taking the bronze in men's slopestyle.
From February 7 to 23, the Toronto landmark will turn red nightly. The red colour will also mark Valentine's Day on Feb. 14.
A record 220 Canadian athletes are competing in Sochi, making it the largest Canadian contingent to participate in the Olympics.
On Saturday, Canada won its first medal with Regina snowboarder Mark McMorris taking the bronze in men's slopestyle.
Read more: http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/cn-tower-turns-red-in-support-of-canadian-athletes-in-sochi-1.1676976#ixzz2skdzMp1D
FROM CANADA WITH LOVE- 80% OF THE WORLD WILL not SEE WINTER OLYMPICS.... BECAUSE OF POVERTY... SO GAY FOLKS... GET WITH THE REAL WORLD...WE TOLD YA...protest... but don't hijack our beautiful athletes and Sochi Winter Olympics 2014 in Mother Russia..... it's about them and our nations...it's not about u...
Nova Scotia Canada- this is just hilarious......God bless Russia.... where Russian people and their values rule in the face of gay threats by 2 many media owned propaganda globally .... enough.... many agree with Canada's Rob Ford.... and Canada needs representation in Sochi showing love of our athletes... hey Chris Hadfield..... come join us..... Minister of Sport and Governor General Johnston... should be here... as a courtesy 2 Canada - WTF???
Imho...
WE TOLD YA UR GAY SHIT IS NOT GOING 2 DIRTY OUR WINTER OLYMPICS..... 99% OF THE WORLD AGREES WITH ROB FORD...... JUST BECAUSE U OWN THE WORLD'S MEDIA- U DON'T OWN EVERYDAY PEOPLE.... SHAME ON THE LOT OFYA...\
Ford nixes rainbow flag
THE CANADIAN PRESS
TORONTO — Toronto’s controversial mayor has ordered city staff to take down a rainbow flag that was raised outside city hall Friday in support of gay and human rights as the Olympic Games begin in Sochi.
Rob Ford said he wants to see the Canadian flag raised instead.
“This is about the Olympics. This is about being patriotic to your country. This is not about someone’s sexual preference," he said.
When told the gesture was meant to protest anti-gay laws in Russia, Ford replied: “Let Russia do what they want. We’re Canadians here." At least one city councillor agreed with the mayor.
“If the city of Toronto was to fly a flag, I believe it should be the Canadian flag or I think it should be the Olympic flag," Coun. Denzil Minnan-Wong said.
“This should be about sport and about Canadians."
Toronto is one of several Canadian cities — including Montreal, Ottawa and Edmonton — to fly the rainbow flag, a longstanding symbol of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights and pride.
Ford has previously come under fire for his staunch refusal to attend Toronto’s gay pride parade.
In the past, Ford had said his refusal to attend the event was due to a family tradition of spending the Canada Day long weekend at the cottage.
------------------
-----------------------
Canada's Captain Sid... Sochi....2014
We knew this back in mid-2000s..... the whole world's nations are doing this... and now ur surprised?
From Russia, with love 
------------------
BLOGGED:
SOCHI
2014 WINTER OLYMPICS- beautiful stunning opening Feb.7-u honour the world /
Troop-SOME MILITARYSHARED FUN- SOME SERIOUS from back in 2010 and 2011/God
bless our Troops always
-----------------
B
LOGGED:
SOCHI
OLYMPICS/PARALYMPICS- Dec31-Jan 2014 -WE REMEMBER BOSTON- All Nation countries
band 2gether 2 BRING THE BEST OF THEIR BOMB DOGS AND HUNTERS- who are the
world's best at catching the coward Heretic Muslim Monsters- - The Winter
Olympics/Paralympics of Sochi, Mother Russia are 4 the global children of this
world 2 honour the best of the best of all that is good about our world class
athletes.... All nations stepping up.... 4 Sochi.... r kids matter...
February
5 2014- HUGS OUT 2 RUSSIA...
---------------
BLOGGED:
CANADA
MILITARY NEWS: SOCHI- Dec 10 -we are told 2 get with the fact- it's about
global team spirit of global athletes who have worked 4 years 2 compete with
world's best - NOT POLITICS OR INTERVENTIONS- Canada loves lost in beautiful
translations... SOCHI, SOCHI, SOCHI- won't apologize 4 Ukraine love but will
focus on Athletes- which had been doing mostly.... this is such an exciting
time... especially 4 the old Canadians who may NOT get 2 watch another Winter
Olympics/Paralympics- updates
----------------
BLOGGED:
SOCHI
WINTER OLYMPICS/PARALYMPICS - 2014- thrill, excitement 4 global atheletes
globally- Russia's ancient history- from Canada with love-SOCHI JEUX OLYMPIQUES
D'HIVER / Jeux Paralympiques - 2014-frisson, excitation 4 atheletes
globaux(mondiaux) globalement(à l'échelle mondiale) - l'histoire antique de la
Russie - du Canada avec amour
------------------------------
BLOGGED:
CANADA
MUST STEP AWAY FROM WINTER OLYMPICS/PARALYMPICS 2014- SOCHI RUSSIA-we must
stand with everyday people of beloved Ukrainepeople-basic human rights
identifies Canada
----------------------
WHOA...WHOA...WHOA...THERE..... GAY ARMY..... 7 BILLION PEOPLE- 99% OF WORLD BARELY LITERATE AND .....DON'T GIVE A SHIT ON GAY
RIGHTS.... BECAUSE FOOD, SAFETY, MEDICINE, CHILDREN, WOMEN, HOME, EDUCATION,
JOBS-FREEDOM MATTER ....MORE....
POSTED
COMMENT: WE SPENT ALMOST 50 YEARS SUPPORTING GAY RIGHTS.... AND YET... GAYS
HAVE NEV-A HELPED US... NOT ONCE WITH KIDS, WOMEN, POVERTY, ABUSE, EDUCATION
ETC. ..NOT ONCE....
SOCHI-
WHAT DO ALL OUR CANADIAN ATHLETES WANT- 4 years of training- the Winter Olymics
must go ahead- but Olympics and FIFA and world sports MUST CHOOSE CIVILIZED
COUNTRIES....China was wonderful and awesome- WHY CAN'T RUSSIA?- our global
children deserve respect 4 their sporting skills.... our Olympics and
Paralympics deserve honour
and...
darn...it..... we want our Winter Olympics in Russia- come on!!!!!- don't diss
200 global nations.... and FIFA must do the same.... civilized nations must be
the way of progress 4 humanity....it just must..... we have been kind long
enough... imho- BUT WE ALSO MUST ACCEPT COUNTRIES ON THIS PLANET.... and honour
what we can.... discard what we can't- we had a wonderful time in China.... it
was awesome- what's 2 say it won't be in Russia- BUT IF GAYS RUIN EVERYTHING
THERE WITH SPOILT MEDIA 'ME, ME, ME'- instead of honouring our nations and
their flags and the youth - the world's finest.... then look out gay bros and
sis-tas cause we'll nev-a 4give ya-
...many
of us walked the talk since the 60s and 70s..... and when we came 2 u 4 help
with PAEDOPHILES, ABUSE OF WOMEN, PAY EQUITY, WORKPLACE SAFETY, GLOBAL
POVERTY.....CHILDREN'S RIGHTS, DISABLITY- VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE... AND RACE
EQUALITY... ETC... ya all ignored
us..... and that hurt.....
....
so let's all stand alongside each other 4 human rights.... but let's remember-
ALL HUMAN RIGHTS.... especially children and ONE BILLION RISING- breaking the
chains of abuse of girls, boys and sex trafficking... ok??? IMHO
BLOGGED:
CANADA
MILITARY NEWS: UPDATED AUG 23- luv u gay bros and sistas-but DO NOT HIJACK
winter olympics/paralympics- we'll NEV'A 4give ya/Nova Scotia News/AGAHANISTAN
UP2DATE NEWS/BULLYCIDE N BULLYS GET LAW NOVA SCOTIA STYLE
and...
'MY
FIRST ASSESMENT... BACK IN JULY.... till ya all got naughty.... and... mean...
Agree
with Stephen Fry many of us live in a civilized world- BUT DON'T RUIN WINTER
OLYMPICS 2014 for our beautiful 4years training athletes 4 Olympics and
Paralympics- could never 4give that.....
China was beautiful and here are countries around the world with problems being
colour blind, gender illiterate and religious comfort- Canada was founded on
our Christian Bible and we are okay with Faiths that are peaceful, kind and
equality and respect of children.... matters..
BLOGGED:
STEPHEN
FRY- is right- this is a civilized world- take away Sochi Winter Olympics- move
them 2 Vancouver, Utah- where free actually means free- where colour blind,
gender illiterate, and religious comfort lives prominently and with dignity-
it's just not right- nor is FIFA's choices
--------------
Sochi Olympic Winter Games kick off with Opening Ceremony - TSN.ca
www.tsn.ca/olympics/story/?id=443208
The Sports NetworkLoading...1 day ago - And that's just the way Vladimir Putin wants these Winter Games to be. ... Maple Leaf to lead representatives from Canada's 220-athlete team.
Sochi 2014 - CBC Sports - Vladislav Tretiak lights Olympic cauldron ...
olympics.cbc.ca/news/article/sochi-opening-ceremony-set-begin.html
1 day ago - Winter Olympic Games officially opened. Olympic flame lit ... Wickenheiser was followed by 220 of her Canadian teammates. Not surprisingly ...
Canada's golden hopes as Winter Games official open in Sochi ...
www.1310news.com/.../canadas-golden-hopes-as-winter-games-o...
CIWWLoading...1 day ago - SOCHI, Russia - Canada has golden hopes as the Winter Olympics ... Canada has 220 athletes in Sochi, a record high for a Winter Games.
-----------------------
Sochi
start: All about fun
Controversial
issues set aside during opening ceremony of Games
ANGELA
CHARLTON NATALIYA VASILYEVA THE ASSOCIATED PRESS SOCHI, RUSSIA — A Russia in
search of global vindication kicked off the Sochi Olympics looking more like a
Russia that likes to party, with a pulse-raising opening ceremony about fun and
sports instead of terrorism, coddling despots and gay rights.
And
that’s just the way Vladimir Putin wants thes e Winter Games to be.
The
world’s premier athletes on ice and snow have more to worry about than
geopolitics as they plunge into the biggest challenges o f their lives on the
mountain slopes of the Caucasus and in the wet-paint-fresh arenas on the shores
of the Black Sea.
But
watch out for those Russians on their home turf. A raucous group of Russian
athletes had a message for their nearly 3,000 rivals in Sochi, marching through
Fisht Stadium singing that they’re “not gonna get us!"
Superlatives
abounded and the mood soared as Tchaikovsky met pseudo-lesbian pop duo Tatu.
Russian TV presenter Yana Churikova shouted: “Welcome to the centre of the
universe!"
Yet
no amount of cheering could drown out the real world.
Fears
of terrorism, which have dogged these Games since Putin won them amid
controversy seven years ago, were stoked during the ceremony itself. A
passenger aboard a flight bound for Istanbul said there was a bomb on board and
tried to divert the plane to Sochi. Authorities said the plane landed safely in
Turkey.
The
show op ened with an embarrassing hiccup, as one of five snowflakes failed to
unfurl as planned into the Olympic rings, forcing organizers to jettison a
fireworks display and disrupting one o f the most symb olic moments in an
opening ceremony.
Some
world leaders purposely stayed away, but U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and
dozens of others were in Sochi for the ceremony. He didn’t mention the very
real anger over a Russian law banning gay “propaganda" aimed at minors
that is being used to discriminate against gay people.
But
IOC President Thomas Bach won cheers for addressing it Friday, telling the
crowd it’s possible to hold Olympics “with tolerance and without any form of
discrimination for whatever reason ."
Als
o missing from the show: Putin’s repression of dissent, and inconsistent
security measures at the Olympics, which will take place just a few hundred
kilometres away from the sites of a long-running insurgency and routine
militant violence.
And
the poorly paid migrant workers who helped build up the Sochi site from
scratch, the disregard for local residents, the environmental abuse during construction,
the pressure on activists, and the huge amounts o f Sochi construction money
that disappeared to corruption.
For
all the criticism, there was no shortage of pride at the ceremony in what
Russia has achieved with these Games. The head of the Sochi organizing
committee, Dmitry Chernyshenko, captured the mood of many Russians present when
he said, “We’re now at the heart of that dream that became reality."
“The
Games in Sochi are our chance to show the whole world the best of what Russia
is proud of," he said. “Our hospitality, our achievements, our
Russia!"
The
ceremony presented Putin’s version of today’s Russia: a country with a rich and
complex history emerging confidently from a rocky two decades and now capable o
f putting on a major international sports event.
Putin
hims elf was front and centre, declaring the Games open from his box high above
the stadium floor. Earlier, he looked down as the real stars of the Games —
those athletes, dressed in winter wear of so many national colours to ward off
the evening chill and a light dusting o f man-made snow — walked onto a
satellite image of the Earth projected on the floor, the map shifting so the
athletes appeared to emerge from their own country.
As
always, Greece — the birthplace of Olympic competition — came first in the
parade of nations. Five new teams, all from warm weather climates, joined the
Winter Olympics for the first time. Togo’s flagbearer looked dumbstruck with
wonder, but those veterans from the Cayman Islands had the style to arrive in
shor ts.
Canada
entered midway through the march. Women’s hockey star Hayley Wickenheiser
carried the Maple L eaf to lead representatives from Canada’s 220-athlete team.
It’s Canada’s biggest team ever assembled for a Winter Games.
“To
represent the best of Canada is such an honour, it’s chilling,"
Wickenheiser said. “There is so much excitement."
Canada
looked sharp in outfits designed by Hudson’s Bay, featuring a red coat with
toggle style buttons and a black stripe adorning the hip line.
The
women in the Canadian contingent wore black mock turtlenecks and wool V-neck
sweaters, while the men sported a tailored white dress shirt, wool cardigan and
red and white striped ties. Black bottoms rounded out the ens embles.
“I
wish our Olympians the b est of luck as they take on the world in Sochi,"
Prime Minister Stephen Harper posted on his Twitter account .
Canada’s
target is to finish first overall in the medal count after finishing third with
26 medals at home in 2010.
Artists
perform during the opening ceremony of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi,
Russia, on Friday. MARK HUMPHREY • AP
---------------
FRIDAY’S
HIGHLIGHTS
GUIDING
LATVIA
Former
Acadia Axemen head coach Tom Coolen is in Sochi guiding the Latvian men’s
hockey team. The Halifax native is an assistant to head coach Ted Nolan, the
bench boss of the Buffalo Sabres. But Coolen ran a training camp and ser ved as
an interim head coach during Latvia’s exhibition games until Nolan ar rives in
Russia after the NHL’s Olympic break, which begins Sunday. Latvia opens the
Olympic men’s hockey tournament on Wednesday against Switzerland. Coolen also
coached at UNB and in the AHL, QMJHL and pro leagues across Europe.
BACH
TALKS
International
Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach won cheers at the opening ceremony,
telling the crowd it’s possible to hold Olympics “with tolerance and without
any for m of discrimination for whatever reason."
KRIPPS
BLOCKED
Canadian
bobsledder Justin Kripps’ website was censored in Russia. “Looks like my
website is censored in Russia, haha classic #SochiProblems I wonder if there’s
a camera in my room" Kripps tweeted.
COMPETITION
TO WATCH TODAY
WOMEN’S
HOCKEY
Canada
vs. Switzerland 9 a.m.
SPEED
SKATING
Men’s
5,000 metres 7:30 a.m.
FIGURE
SKATING
Team,
Ice Dance Short; Women Shor t; Pairs free 10:30 a.m.
SKI
JUMPING
Men’s
individial qualification
12:30
p.m.
BIATHLON
Men's
10K sprint 10:30 a.m.
CROSS
COUNTRY SKIING
Women
Skiathlon, 7.5 km CT + 7.5 km FT 6 a.m.
FREESTYLE
SKIING
Women
Moguls 10 a.m., 2 p.m.
SNOWBOARD
Men’s
slopestyle 1:30 a.m., 4:45 a.m.
LUGE
Men
10:30 a.m.
COMPETITION
TO WATCH SUNDAY
SPEED
SKATING
Women
3000 m, 7:30 a.m.
FIGURE
SKATING
Team
men Free; Women Free; Ice Dance, Free 11 a.m.
SKI
JUMPING
Men's
Individual NH, 1:30 p.m.
BIATHLON
Women
7.5 km Sprint , 10:30 a.m.
CROSS-COUNTRY
Men
Skiathlon, 15 km CT + 15 km FT, 6 a.m.
ALPINE
SKIING
Men
Downhill
3
a.m.
SNOWBOARD
Women
Slopestyle, 2:30 a.m., 5:15 a.m.
LUGE
Men,
10:30 a.m.
-------------
Play
it again,
Sid!
Pressure
on Crosby to dig for Olympic gold
STEPHEN
WHYNO THE CANADIAN PRESS
Sidney
Crosby was already a S tanley Cup winner and the face o f the NHL when he
arrived at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. He’d performed under pressure
before, but it was never quite like this.
Canadians
were counting on winning a gold medal in their own country. And they exp ected
him to deliver it .
Most
of Team Canada felt the pressure too, but the game’s best player carried the
weight of an entire country desperate to erase the failures of 2006 and
reassert its dominance in the sport.
“That
amount of pressure is probably the most I’ve felt in my hockey career,"
Crosby said. “Because it was right there, you were in Canada, there was so
much going on. Everyone’s talking about it. You’re in a Canadian city."
It
was so evident that his parents could see it.
“There
was so much at stake," said his mother, Trina. “When you’re the
goaltender’s parent you just feel so responsible because it’s your kid in net.
And then, when you’re Sidney’s parents, you always feel like he’s the one who
either has to set it up or score. You just feel it. It’s pressure."
The
Cole Harbour native delivered in a big way, scoring the overtime goal against
the United States to win the gold medal for Canada .
“It
was a storybook ending," Trina Crosby said.
Crosby’s
new challenge is just beginning. He enters the 2014 Sochi Olympics as Canada’s
captain and arguably playing the best hockey of his professional career, only
this time he’s able to draw from his experience in Vancouver.
Needing
to live up to that gold standard again means the weight hasn’t lifted from the
26-year-old’s shoulders.
“I
think the pressure is there regardless. I think it’s always going to be there
no matter where it is," Crosby said. “As far as my game and my mindset, I
think that having gone through Vancouver hopefully will help."
Crosby
was an alternate captain in Vancouver at the age of 22. By that time he’d
already done almost everything in the NHL , inclu ding making two trips to the
Cup final, capturing a Hart Trophy as MVP and winning the scoring race.
When
the Pittsburgh Penguins named Crosby captain in 2007, he was the youngest in
league history. He then validated that trust by winning the Cup in 2 009.
But
when it came time to pick the captain for the 2010 Olympics, veteran defenceman
Scott Niedermayer got the call. Crosby was the third-youngest player on the
team, but Niedermayer still thought Sid the Kid was ready.
“He
was probably ready when he was 16," Niedermayer said in November at the
Hockey Hall of Fame’s induction weekend. “The thinking was he’s going to have
enough pressure on him just from who he is and things like that that he doesn’t
need one more thing to worry about, give it to some old guy that’s just trying
to figure things out out there."
That’s
when Crosby’s apprenticeship began, wearing an A alongside experienced Olympians
Jarome Iginla and Chris Pronger. Of course Niedermayer set the standard as
captain.
“Everyone
knew what had to be done, what was expected to be done," Niedermayer said.
“There was not going to be a lack of emotion or energy for everybody getting
dressed. It was just a matter of being level-headed and staying focused."
While
it was Crosby’s first Olympics, it was Niedermayer’s second, Iginla’s third and
Pronger’s fourth. Still, much of the spotlight was on Crosby, and his teammates
knew it .
“We
were the favourite going in, we were on home ice, and that being Sid’s first
Olympics and what happened to us in 2006," Pronger said in a phone
interview. “You can name off a whole bunch of other issues that can get lumped
on to someone’s back, but I think the biggest ones were being on home ice (and
it being) his first experience."
Coach
Mike Babcock cycled through several linemates for Crosby, including Eric Staal,
Patrice Bergeron, Rick Nash, Mike Richards, Jonathan Toews and Iginla. Pronger
could see the pressure ramping up game to game because, in a one-and-done
tournament, there’s “even more pressure to not lay an egg."
Crosby’s
parents could sense how the pressure was affecting him .
“The
truth of the matter is perhaps Troy and I could feel it too," Trina Crosby
said. “Just his demeanour. He’s very focused anyway. It was just a different
level."
Crosby
could look to Niedermayer as an example of what exp erience cou ld bring to
the captaincy.
“I
felt a bit of confidence, just knowing that I’d been through an Olympics with
some success, I’d been in a lot of big games in the NHL," Niedermayer
said.
Knowing
Crosby had participated in a Memorial Cup, a Cup Final Game 7, two world
juniors and a world championship meant Canada’s leaders didn’t baby him.
“I
don’t think you want to go around sermonizing to guys," Pronger said. “A
lot of them have been on the big stage — maybe not the biggest stage at the
Olympics, but they’ve been on a big stage before. Playing in Stanley Cup
finals, winning Stanley Cups, winning Calder Cups, all the rest of those
things.
“All
those experiences really help in playing under that scrutiny and pressure of
every shift, every pass, every shot matters. You’ve got to bring your A-game
each and every time you’re on the ice. There’s no shifts off in a tournament
like that."
Crosby
knew that it was crucial to be at his best with the spotlight on him. But it
was advice he impar ted on another Canadian Olympian that showed he wasn’t
collapsing under the weight o f exp ectations.
Figure
skater Patrick Chan was 19 and competing in his first Olympics, too. On one
drive to the rink, Chan told trainer Andy O’Brien — who also trains Crosby — he
was nervous.
“Andy
was like, ‘Oh, I’ll call Sid,’ " said Chan. “We talked about expectations
and at the end of the day, he told me, ‘Yeah, the Canadian hockey team has the
most pressure out of all the events.’ The way he put it in perspective was
that we train every day and we train every day to kind of build an automatic
pilot, and in order to initiate that automatic pilot when you’re playing, you
have to put it in perspective."
That
perspective for Chan was that competing wasn’t “the end of the world." And
Crosby’s message was simple.
“You’re
obviously going to be nervous, there’s going to be pressure, but that’s what
you work so hard for," Crosby said. “So part of you has to realize, hey,
you’ve got to enjoy this, this is what you do. Go out and enjoy it ."
Chan
finished fifth in Vancouver but has won three straight world titles since.
As
much as Chan got from that conversation, Crosby gained something, too.
“I
think the biggest thing is they train four years for that one time or that one
run, and I don’t think there’s anything that you can compare to that,"
Crosby said. “Even as a hockey player you aren’t playing one shift. A shift’s a
minute. They get one shift."
Crosby
took countless shifts during the 2010 Olympics, but he was remembered for his
final one and the shot past Ryan Miller that brought a collective sigh of
relief and joy to the host nation .
When
Crosby scored that golden goal, there was no guarantee NHL players would be
going to Sochi. But once the deal was finalized to have NHLers in the 2014
Games, Canada’s defence of that medal — and a whole new challenge for Crosby —
began.
Canada
hasn’t won back-toback gold medals in men’s hockey at the Olympics since 1948
and 1952, before the country had even adopted the red and white flag Crosby
waved after winning gold in 2010.
Extra!
Use your Chronicle Herald app to scan Crosby’s photos and view a slideshow of
his meteoric hockey career.
Canada's
Sidney Crosby celebrates his game-winning goal against the United States at the
2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver. PAUL CHIASSON • CP
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Canuck
snowboarder raring to go
Quebec’s
Parrot, 19, ‘would be proud’ to bring home gold in the slopestyle event
ROBERT
LAFLAMME THE CANADIAN PRESS
KRASNAYA
POLAYNA, RUSSIA
—
If he had his way, Maxence Parrot would have held the Olympic slopestyle finals
right after qualifications on Thursday. Granted, if he had his way, he’d
compete every day.
The
young snowboarder from Bromont, Que., will have to wait until this afternoon —
which will b e the middle o f the night in Canada — to see if he’ll claim the
first gold medal of the Sochi Games and the first in the history of the Winter
Olympics in slopestyle.
That
would be something big for him, he acknowledges.
“I
attach a lot of importance to this," the 19-year-old said. “I would be
very happy to be an ambassador of my sport worldwide."
Parrot
is well positioned going into the final having finished first in qualifying at
the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park.
Parrot
seems to be displaying the same confidence in Russia that he did in Stoneham,
Que., when he won his first World Cup race on Jan. 19. He went on to take two
gold medals at the X Games the next week.
“I
have begun to realize that I am at the Olympics," he said after receiving
his career-best score, which was 97.50. “Even after I got here, it didn’t sink
in . But when I saw the crowds, the atmosphere — I’m here.
“The
Olympic Games is the biggest event so far for us in slopestyle," he
continu ed. “I would like to win. I would be proud to bring the gold medal to
Canada."
In
the end, Parrot will be facing off against his teammate Sebastien Toutant as
well as competitors from Norway, Sweden and Finland.
Regina’s
Mark McMorris, a gold-medal favourit going into Sochi, will have to get through
the semifinals Saturday morning while nursing a rib injury. The Regina native
was the favourite before the Games and a strong contender at the end o f
qualifying but his recovery adds a question mark to his performance.
Charles
Reid of Mont-Tremblant is also vying for one of the final four spots onfinal
Saturday afterno on .
A
sweep by Canada does seem unlikely but Parrot isn’t ruling it out .
“I
think a triple will still b e possible," Parrot says. “It will all depend
on how Mark feels physically."
Unlike
Parrot, Toutant is not at the top of his game now. But the 21-year-old
Montrealer nicknamed “Seb Toots" is still able to pull a rabbit out of
his hat.
Everyone
is expected to pull out all the stops for the final.
Robert
Joncas, the director of Canada Snowboard, the sport’s governing body, predicted
the Canadians will try two triple somersault corkscrews in their performance
although Parrot didn’t attempt that in qualifying because he hadn’t perfected
it.
“I
may try something else in the final," he said. “I did two triple
corkscrews in Aspen (at the X-Games) but I’ll see in practice on Friday if it
can be done. The course is hard but it may be feasbile. We’ll see."
Norwegian
Staale Sandbech, who is ranked second behind Parrot in the World Cup and holds
a bronze medal from the X Games, is his main opponent.
Sandbech,
20, had a s olid qualifying run with 94.50 points.
Gjermund
Braaten is another Norwegian to watch, with Finns Roope Tonteri and Peetu
Piiroinen as well as Swede Sven Thorgren among the other major con
tenders.
Canada’s
Maxence Parrot will be chasing snowboard slopestyle gold today in the event’s final.
AP
------------------
Tired
Canucks take to the ice
Canada’s
Olympic women out to defend gold after nearly 50 games since August
DONNA
SPENCER THE CANADIAN PRESS
SOCHI,
RUSSIA — Recognizing his players were physically and mentally spent, Kevin
Dineen held out a credit card. Forward Jayna Hefford grabbed it.
Dineen’s
only condition that January night in St. Poelten, Austria, was that all 21
players on the Canadian women’s hockey team were involved in whatever they
charged to the coach’s plastic.
“He
said ‘one drink,’ " Hefford said. “He didn’t say how big, though ."
And
s o the Canadian women began refilling their empty tanks for the 2014 Winter
Games in Sochi, Russia.
Canada
opens defence of its three straight Olympic gold medals in women’s hockey today
against Switzerland. The Canadians meet Finland on Monday and take on reigning
world champion U.S. on Feb. 12 to conclude the preliminary round.
The
Canadian women have played almost 50 games since they began training full time
in Calgary in August.
The
final three weeks of preparation were gruelling by design to further
battle-harden them for Sochi. Games were sandwiched between stepped-up dryland
training s essions.
On
the team’s final weekend in Canada before departing for Austria , the women
lost to a midget triple-A team Jan. 17, rode the bikes hard for an hour after
practice the following day and then had less than 24 hours to recover before
an afternoon game Jan. 19.
The
players were exhausted after that final game.
“I
think we felt like we’d been run over by a truck," defenceman Meaghan
Mikkelson said.
“I
remember being on that bike on that Saturday and thinking to myself ‘I’ve never
been this physically exhausted in my life’ and I’ve always trained very hard.
In fact, I overtrain. I’ve never been pushed like that."
While
the women were driven similarly hard in their last phase of training before
2010 and 2006, there were more emotional stressors this time.
The
abrupt departure of Dan Church on Dec. 12 meant Canada was without a head coach
for five days less than two months out from the opening ceremonies.
They
had to adjust on the fly to Dineen, an NHL coach and former player who was
fired by the Florida Panthers in November.
Canada
lost all four exhibition games to the U.S. women and went 1-6 in the Alberta
Midget Hockey League after Church’s departure.
Playing
games exhausted and losing would make any athlete question the plan, but
veterans of previous Olympic teams assured the rookies there was a point to
their pain .
“It
was challenging in a lot of ways," said Hefford, a five-time Olympian.
“Confidence-wise as an athlete, you lose and you lose and you never want to be
in that position where losing becomes OK and it b ecomes normal. I don’t think
we got to that point.
“S
ometimes it comes down to the veterans saying ‘This has happened before and
you’re going to feel good and we’ve got to push through this and believe in
that plan.’ " The hard training in combination with games was even counterintuitive
to Dineen. He was accustomed to games, not preparing for them , as the
priority in the NHL .
“That’s
not the way I was used to doing my business," he said. “I think we were a
tired bunch physically and mentally. “That’s the way the schedule was set up
and from Day 1, I bought into what we were doing to prepare for the
Olympics."
--------------
Fifth
ring a no-show at Sochi Olympic Games
SOCHI,
RUSSIA (AP) — Vancouver had the defective cauldron. Sochi now has the missing
ring .
The
opening ceremony for the Sochi Games hit a bump when only four of the five
Olympic rings materialized in a wintry opening s cene.
Five
large, glowing snowflakes emerged from a whimsical opening meant to depict the
four s easons. They floated to the top of Fisht arena and, one by one, started
to morph into the rings. But only four joined together while the fifth remained
a snowflake, apparently stuck behind the rest o f them .
For
viewers of Rossiya 1, the Russian host broadcaster, everything appeared to go
off without a hitch .
As
the fifth ring got stuck, Rossiya cut away to rehearsal footage. All five rings
came together, and the fireworks exploded on cue. “It didn’t show on
television, thank God," Jean Claude-Killy, the French ski great who heads
the IOC co-ordination commission for the Sochi Games, told The Associated
Press.
Producers
confirmed the switch, saying it was important to preserve the imagery of the
Olympic symb ols.
The
five were supposed to join together and erupt in pyrotechnics to get the party
started. Instead, they were eventually darkened and moved out of the arena,
just as Russian President Vladimir Putin was introduced.
The
incident was reminis cent of the opening ceremonies at the 2010 Vancouver
Olympics when four pillars were supposed to rise from the floor of B.C. Place
stadium, each one carrying a flame up to light the Olympic cauldron.
But
one of the pillars failed to rise, leaving torchbearer Catriona Le May Doan
standing alone awkwardly.
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always the troops... why here....
BLOGGED:
CANADA
MILITARY NEWS: 11 September 2013-Tribute n photos of Canadians Sept. 11
2001-World Trade Center-New York USA/Photos and Memorial 2 Canadians sacrificed
Afghanistan- We Remember Always
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