The 2010 Vancouver Olympics Were, Cough, a Resounding Success

But something changed. So,  I’m not doing that because it would be a load of bull hooey. 

Far more real would be for me to admit right here that  I was wrong. 

Like many others, I kvetched about the Olympics, and maintained a healthy (I thought) Canadian reserve about the whole “big show” aspect of it all. I found lots of faults and wasn’t quiet about pointing them out. 

So … sorry. 

I basically had my head up my butt on this one.

Now that they’re over, I believe that these Olympics were a resounding success, particularly in that they showed Vancouver — and by extension — Canadians — who they really were. Intelligent, creative, sociable, and more than a touch exuberant.

Goodbye, inferiority complex.   Certainly there were a few fails along the way. But  most were the fault of the oh-so-imperious IOC, not Vanoc, our province or ourselves. 

There was the incident of the luger killed at the beginning and the IOC’s pompous blame-the-victim response that he wasn’t experienced enough. Why not just admit that you never expected this to happen, screwed up, and would never do this again? Nobody’s perfect. 

There was the disgusting sight of rows of empty seats at Olympic venues because pompous IOC members and assorted hangers on decided they’d rather network in plush surroundings provided by some slavish corporate sponsor than to actually watch an event with the ordinary proles.

There was the inability of ordinary Vancouverites to afford or attend Olympic events. Joe citizen was left begging and had to content him or herself with wandering the streets. (which as it turned out was a good thing). Surely there could have been a mechanism to ensure others than the elite could take in some aspects of what the Olympics was supposed to be about.

But let’s look at some of the wins, or UnFails. 

The first would have to go the people of Vancouver and Canada themselves, who got over their crabbiness and usual bitchiness, and embraced these Olympics with an enthusiasm and joi de vivre that  will probably become an essential part of our identity from now on.

It’s because of ordinary Vancouverites that those august bureaucrats who run the Olympic empire can pat themselves on the back about how they really pulled it off this time. 

The second,should go to Vanoc, which showed everybody in Canada — and ourselves — that we have some supreme managerial talent in this town. Vanoc had an almost impossible job, and made it possible, even in the face of conditions that would have humbled captains of industry around the world.

How’d you like to manage something  that started with a death, suffered the worst weather conditions in history, featured a horrifying lack of your main product (snow) and in the final moments had to deal with an adversity no one would ever have dreamed of —  a tsunami watch.

And then there is OPD, Own The Podium, which I savaged along with many others. It actually worked and we hauled in a record number of gold as well as great showings throughout. 

Um, sorry. 

But mostly, I think we should look to Japadog as an example of what this city is all about. The two-stall hot-dog stand was the secret hit of the Olympics, drawing hour-long lines for its product and generating buzz throughout the world. 

If ever there was an innovation that exemplifies BC’s ability to synthesize many different cultures into creative thinking and new products, it was the humble Japadog, which proved that you don’t have to split the atom or find the secret to life in some lab to create a groundbreaking innovation.

So, despite my early attempt to be a cool journo and match my mates in other parts of the world, by the end I embraced this event with a fervour that surprised not only many others, but most of all myself. 

I actually felt pride in showing the world that we Canadians have a sense of self that stands up to anyone.

Sorry.