Canadian Olympic Foundation
Vancouver Games Top 10 – #8
#8 Opening + Closing Ceremonies
The Olympic Games are filled with unforgettable moments.
Stories of teamwork, sportsmanship and triumph flood the news and capture our attention. The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games were no different.
Canadian Olympic speed skater and cyclist Clara Hughes leads the Canadian team during the athlete’s parade at the opening ceremony
for the XXI Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, Friday, Feb. 12, 2010. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
From the Opening Ceremony to the golden goal, our most recent home Olympics were filled with some amazing moments. As the 10th anniversary of the Vancouver 2010 Games approaches, we will be reliving the top 10 moments of Vancouver 2010 through our eyes. This is #8.
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The Olympic Games are all about national pride. It’s about being proud of your heritage, where you come from and where you live. It’s about cheering on those athletes who are proudly wearing our maple leaf.
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For the host country, the Olympic Games are an opportunity to showcase their history. It’s a platform to celebrate and to inspire.
Vancouver 2010 was just that.
Team Canada enter B.C. Place Stadium during the Opening Ceremony at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, B.C. (THE CANADIAN PRESS 2010 HO-COC-Dave Sandford)
The Opening Ceremony was a spectacle of national pride, and an appreciation of our country from coast to coast. From the Arctic to the Prairies to the East Coast, Canada was able to showcase our heritage, our history, and our here and now.
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The ceremonies had many layers to show Canada’s rich history, beginning with a welcome from various groups of Indigenous peoples of Canada.
Canada can be proud of the show we put on to welcome the world into our country.
During the Opening Ceremony, the hydraulics on one arm of the Olympic torch malfunctioned, causing Catriona Le May Doan to stand awkwardly as her pillar would not light. Most countries would have been mortified, but Canada showed we could laugh at ourselves, by creating a tongue-in-cheek joke about “fixing” the last arm and completing the torch during the Closing Ceremony. It was the Canadian way of dealing with an unfortunate situation!
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With legends like Wayne Gretzky, Rick Hansen, Steve Nash and Nancy Greene in attendance and taking part, the Opening and Closing Ceremony of the Vancouver 2010 Games showed what it is to be truly Canadian and made us all proud to BE Canadian.
FIEL – This Feb. 12, 2010, photo shows a snowboarder sailing through the Olympic rings during the opening ceremony for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta, File)
Although the Opening and Closing Ceremony are still fresh in our minds, it has been 10 years since the Vancouver 2010 Games. That’s why we want to reignite the national pride we felt during those two weeks back in 2010 and celebrate the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games on its 10th anniversary.
As we continue to countdown to the 10th anniversary of Vancouver 2010, we will be announcing how you can get involved and share in the celebrations!
