Paralympic Mascot

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Paralympic mascot

Olympic Legacy

It’s been a year since the 2010 Winter Games invigorated Vancouver, but their spirit lives on

By Sheri Radford

The Richmond Olympic Oval. Photo by KK Law

Even though the 2010 Winter Games are long over, ways to relive the experience abound.

Visit the Olympic Cauldron downtown, which was lit on the opening night of the Games by hockey legend Wayne Gretzky. A picturesque reflecting pool now surrounds the cauldron. It is situated next to the west building of the Vancouver Convention Centre, which was completed in time for the Games and was used throughout as the main media centre. This eco-friendly building and its green roof (complete with four beehives and a full-time beekeeper) have won several awards for design.

Hop on the Canada Line SkyTrain, which was also completed just prior to the Games and which whisks visitors from the airport to downtown in 26 minutes. While in Richmond, visit the Richmond Olympic Oval, where speed skaters competed during the Games. This stunning, environmentally friendly building now houses an array of fitness facilities.

Pull on a pair of Olympic red mittens. If yours have worn out—or you weren’t lucky enough to snag any during Games fever—pick up a similar pair of maple-leaf-adorned mittens at The Bay. Proceeds go to the Canadian Olympic Foundation.

Olympic Cauldron in Jack Poole Plaza. Photo by Sheri Radford

If you’re searching for the perfect Quatchi, Miga, Mukmuk or Sumi souvenir, you’ll find the mascots’ smiling faces in Gastown’s many souvenir shops. To complete your Olympic coin collection—or catch a glimpse of some Olympic medals—visit the Royal Canadian Mint pop-up shop downtown on Granville Street. It’s only here until the end of February, but don’t worry: line-ups are shorter than the eight-hour waits common during the Games.

Olympic fever in Vancouver? It still burns on.

Paralympic Sport of the Day: Wheelchair Curling

VANCOUVER PARALYMPIC CENTRE

In this relatively new sport, two teams—comprised of both males and females, seated in wheelchairs—take turns pushing 19.1-kg (42-lb) granite stones towards the centre of a series of concentric circles. To throw stones, players can use either their hands or extender cues (delivery sticks). While throwing a stone, a player’s wheelchair must remain stationary. The winner of a game is the team with the most stones closest to the centre. Unlike Olympic curling, wheelchair curling does not employ sweeping.—Sheri Radford

Paralympic Sport of the Day: Cross-Country Skiing

WHISTLER PARALYMPIC PARK

Athletes compete against others with a similar disability in the categories of standing, sitting or visually impaired. Competitors use either classic cross-country technique, in which the skis remain parallel, or free technique, which involves pushing off with the edges of the skis, resulting in a slightly faster race. Individual events range from 2.5 to 20 km (1.5 to 12.5 mi). Other events include sprint and relay.—Sheri Radford

Paralympic Sport of the Day: Biathlon

WHISTLER PARALYMPIC PARK

Athletes compete against others with a similar disability in the categories of standing, sitting or visually impaired. Competitors alternate between skiing a loop of a cross-country course and, from the prone position, taking five shots at a target. In the short distance biathlon, competitors ski a 2.5-km (1.5-mi) loop three times and shoot twice, while in the long distance biathlon skiers complete the loop five times and shoot four times. Athletes with a visual impairment line up the target using an acoustic system. Events include individual and pursuit.—Sheri Radford

Paralympic Sport of the Day: Ice Sledge Hockey

UBC THUNDERBIRD ARENA

Players have a physical disability in the lower halves of their bodies. They sit on sledges made of aluminum or steel and fitted with two blades. The athletes move the puck using double-ended sticks, one in each hand; one end has a hooked blade for handling and shooting the puck, while the other has a pick for propelling the sledge. To allow players easy access and the ability to watch when waiting to play, the rink’s ice extends under the players’ benches and penalty boxes, and boards have been replaced with clear Lexan. Also called sled hockey, this sport follows most of the same rules as hockey. For the first time in Paralympic history, both genders are competing in this tournament.—Sheri Radford

Paralympic Sport of the Day: Alpine Skiing

WHISTLER CREEKSIDE

Athletes compete against others with a similar disability, in one of three categories. Standing skiers have a locomotive disability; they use the same equipment as able-bodied skiers and can use a prosthesis, plus stabilizing crutches instead of ski poles. Sitting skiers have no use of their legs; they use a mono-ski, which looks like a chair attached to skis. Skiers with a visual impairment must ski with a guide. Racers can exceed 100 km/h (62 mi/h) on vertical drops of 120 to 800 m (395 to 2,625 ft). Events include downhill, slalom, giant slalom, super-G (super giant slalom) and super combined.—Sheri Radford

Hot Entertainment: Meet Sumi

See Sumi out and about during the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, on from Mar. 12 to 21

With a name that derives from a Salish word meaning “guardian spirit,” it’s no wonder Sumi, the mascot for the Paralympic Games, takes on the role of protector. This little character has big shoes to fill: he’s an animal spirit who walks with the sturdy legs of a bear, possesses the powerful wings of the mythical thunderbird and wears the hat of the orca, known to First Nations as the keeper of the sea. Outfitted in fern green, his favourite colour, Sumi spends time skiing and flying above the mountains in Whistler, where he makes his home.—Kristina Urquhart