I’ve been quite fortunate in getting tickets to Olympic events here at the Vancouver 2010 Games! I’ve been lucky enough to acquire tickets to several events, all at face value. Events I’ve seen include speed skating at the Olympic Oval, men’s hockey at Canada Hockey Place, and women’s hockey at Thunderbird Stadium at UBC. I’ve also been to a Victory Ceremony and to the Molson Canadian Hockey House twice to watch hockey games there.
The best part about all of these opportunities for me is that I am able to take photos of once in a lifetime events in our beautiful city!
Here are some of those images to give you a taste of my 2010 Olympics experiences:
Speed Skating:
On February 13th, after winning tickets in the Holland Heineken House ticket lottery for Dutch citizens, I went to my first speed skating event. It was unbelievable! The energy in the Richmond Oval was electrifying! And the fact that Holland’s Sven Kramer won Gold, made it that much better!
Gold Medalist, Sven Kramer of the Netherlands.
Victory Ceremony:
The first gold medal for Canada was awarded to Alex Bilodeau on February 15th. I was at the medal ceremony to see it happen!
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Molson Canadian Hockey House:
On February 15th, Tom Cochrane played at the Molson Canadian Hockey House. Guests to his stage included Tyler Stewart of the Barenaked Ladies, and Donald Sutherland. It was an amazing show and the House was full of energy and excitement! A super fun time! If you have a chance to watch a game at the Molson Canadian Hockey House, take it! Included in the FanZone ticket is entrance, food, and non-alcoholic beverages. Beer is $7.50 tax and tip included.
Men’s Hockey:
I was at the USA vs Norway game on February 18th. We had seats right behind the photographers’ pit and I was able to sneak into the photographers area for about 20 minutes in the second period! It was amazing to be so close to the action and having the players bang up against the glass right in front of me! Here are some of the shots from that game.
Women’s Hockey:
On February 22nd, the Swiss played the Russians in Women’s Hockey at Thunderbird Stadium out at UBC. After a well-matched game, a few injuries, overtime and a shootout, the Swiss were victorious, winning 4th place in the 2010 Olympic standings! Congratulations Switzerland!
Believe it or not, there are still tickets available for upcoming events! We are into the final week of the Games and your final chances to see some awesome Olympic athletes in action! Try your luck for tickets at the Vancouver 2010 Fan to Fan site, Craigslist, or even right outside the venues from people trying to simply sell extra tickets at face value because they are unable to attend the event. It doesn’t always have to be pricey!A 10 Day
After winning the first Canadian gold medal on home turf freestyle moguls skier Alex Bilodeau had a press conference this morning which I sat in on at the BC International Media Centre.
The very humble Bilodeau replied in both French and English, offering much praise to the Own the Podium program, his family (in particular his brother), and his fellow athletes. “This extraordinary effort does not come in isolation,” said Peter Judge, CEO of the Canadian Freestyle Ski Association. “First and foremost we are thanking Canada.”
Running on 3 hours of sleep after many media meetings, appearances and television spots in the last 18 hours, Bilodeau did a great job of even addresses tough questions from press about judging at sporting events like his. “The only thing I can control is my performance,” he noted.
When asked what his coach’s last words of wisdom were before he went down his medal-winning run he simply replied, “I said to him, ‘thank you’.”
With many more press conferences, interviews, and photo ops on his horizon Bilodeau is ultimately looking forward to seeing his family tonight. He added, “for me it’s just the beginning of a great party & all of Canada is invited.”
The last week has been filled with the excited fervor of the last month and anticipation of the upcoming weeks.
Here is a photographic look into the last week of adventure and celebrations, before the officially opening of the Games in Vancouver.
The Olympic torch was carried downhill on the Blackcomb mountain by world champion and olympiad Steve Podborski. Steve won a bronze medal in the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. Currently he is part of the VANOC and works within International Relations.
Premier Gordon Campbell seemingly is Canada's number one fan. Campbell has travelled around Canada for the entire length of the torch relay. Here he is handing out coveted British Columbia Olympic pins to fans at the Whistler Torch Celebration.
Vancouver is part of the Coast Salish territories and has a Four Host First Nation welcoming committee as part of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games. Willie Lewis, dressed in a traditional Aborginal outfit, was part of the Whistler Torch Relay Celebration.
Static Photography had the chance to hang out in Whistler for the weekend with Chris Wheeler who had been following the torch relay through all of Canada. We had the chance to do some zip trekking with him! Our longest run was 2200 m.
The Olympic Torch had an extended route through all of Vancouver with the relay going through all of the neighborhoods in Vancouver. The Vancouver city council accompanied by Mayor Gregor Robertson welcomed the torch when it came to City Hall.
Vancouver Olympiad Lori Fung, with her gold medal, was present when the Olympic Torch came to the Vancouver City Hall. Fung was the first gold medalist awarded in the sport of Rhythmic Gymnastics during the 1984 Summer Olympics which were held in Los Angeles, CA.
This is the first Olympic Games where people are full-on involved with technology and the internet. Many fans often have out their own cameras to capture their memories themselves. With this sort of documentation present for the Vancouver Winter Olympics, some of the best Olympic news coverage will be coming from the internet!
There are many different pavilions popping up all over Vancouver with all sorts of awesome installations and displays. This is a touch screen graffitti media installation in the DigiBC part of the BC Pavilion. Here one of the creators is having fun creating some interactive art.
Mayor Gregor Robertson has been a very busy man during the preparations for the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Here he is outside of the W2 Media and Culture House in the DTES. He was the speaker at the ribbon-cutting of this independent media house which opened to the public.
Bombardier, the company who designed the Olympic Torch for the Vancouver Winter Olympics, also designed the Olympic Line, a train that runs from the Main Street Skytrain Station to Granville Island. Bombardier has given Vancouver two of their streetcars, on loan from Brussels, Belgium. The Olympic Line is a 60 day demonstration project so get a ride while you can!
Visitors have been packing into Vancouver from all over the world for the 2010 Winter Olympics. This group of women associated with Ukrainian team were photographed on their way into the Opening Ceremony on February 12th.
Another type of visitor that has been sighted in Vancouver is the increase in public security, with the influx of police from other provinces. These police officers are in fact from four different Canadian provinces!
It was very exciting to watch the crowd gather for the Opening Ceremony at the German Saxony House. The place was packed with locals and visitors for the three hour televised event. Of course, everyone went nuts when the Canadian team was ushered into BC Place.
The biggest secret of the 2010 Winter Olympics was the identity of the person who was to light the final torch in Vancouver during the official welcoming of the Games. Wayne Gretzky ended up carrying the torch from BC Place to the final outdoor giant torch at Waterfront station in a great fanfare. The night ended with a fireworks-filled sky.
The 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games have only just begun. The city of Vancouver has ahead of it three weeks of events and celebrations!
This is only the beginning so make sure to check back for more photographic recaps from Static Photography!
For seven years Vancouverites have been anticipating the 2010 Winter Olympics (in either a positive or negative way). On February 12th, 2007 the official countdown clock for the Olympic and Paralympic Games was installed outside the Vancouver Art Gallery. Over the last two years it’s been counting down to this single day, and a single moment in time that will happen tonight at BC Place.
Photo by Raincity Studios on Flickr
Photo by Espera on Flickr
Photo by pkdon50 on Flickr
Photo by Kanpeki Yume on Flickr
Photo by GusF on Flickr
Photo by Sea Turtle on Flickr
Photo by Jeff Tabaco on Flickr
Photo by scazon on Flickr
Photo by world of jan on Flickr
Photo by nnil on Flickr
Photo by Miss604 on Flickr
Photo by cheukiecfu on Flickr
Photo by John Bollwitt on Flickr
Photo by Miss604 on Flickr
I know a series of clock photos isn’t the most exciting (and as you can see it doesn’t snow that much) but it’s what this timepiece symbolizes that matters. The Vancouver 2010 Winter Games are here, and this is one excited city.
Wow…I’m still beaming from what happened early this morning. I never expected to get ‘into it’ like a lot of people have been but I now ‘get it’ after witnessing first hand what the Olympic Torch relay means to people.
This morning I had the privilege of doing a ride along in a GM support vehicle for the relay.
These guys have the tough job of keeping all the relay vehicles going as they drive across the country and back. This morning, our driver was Art and he has the enviable job of driving in the ‘parade’ of vehicles and coordinates repairs along the trip. This can include finding the nearest dealership to source parts or a repair bay to doing simple fixes on the road. Art seemed to love every minute of it though. You’ll see why in my photos – so many excited people of all ages cheering and smiling as we drove by.
We were behind the Coca Cola ‘float’ trucks that had music blasting while dancers handed out drinks to the crowd:
Our vehicle was nondescript – it had no official markings other than a sign on the windshield. As we drove past the cheering crowd we heard them shout all kinds of things including “Rockstars!” and “Hey look it’s the CSIS truck” and my favorite “who are those guys?”.
We still felt compelled to wave back as the energy from the crowds was incredibly infectious.
So many kids were possibly more excited than on Christmas morning had braved the cold and waited for the Torch to come by.
and finally, what the crowds were waiting for:
I made a little video to give you an idea of what it was like to drive in this crazyiness:
A HUGE thank you to Art, Alex, Jim, Michael and everyone at GM for allowing me to be a part of this….it was pretty special.
Here’s a slideshow of all the photos I took during the relay ride:
The 2010 Winter Olympic Games are upon us and things are heating up around Vancouver. You can feel the energy in the city as all the last minute details are pulled together for this huge event. The team at Static Photography has been out and about making photos of all the action and we have pulled together some of our favorites. You can find more Vancouver 2010 photos than you know what to do with here, but for now check out this first week of February in Vancouver with the Winter Olympic Games just around the corner.
We got a tour of Prince George, starting first with speed skating lessons from the speed skating youth team. These kids are fast!
Rebecca Bollwitt, otherwise known as Miss604, was up in Prince George for the winter adventures. Rebecca is a Vancouver blogger who will be covering the Olympic Games.
Dog-sledding was a great way to travel the back country of Prince George.
Prince George has a huge ancient forest with trees that are hundreds of years old. Static Photography’s Kris Krüg had a chance to prove his strength by holding up this fallen tree.
The ancient forest in Prince George provided a great canopy for the long winter hike.
The Prince George Coldsnap Music Festival showcases some of the best in Canadian musical talent. The Great Lake Swimmers were at the festival this year, headlining the main night.
The BC Cups #2 Cross-country Skiing event happened took place in Prince George. This event was all ages and the competition was strong even in the snowfall.
The Torch was traveling through Prince George in its journey through Canada. This is the passing of the Olympic flame from one torch bearer to another torch bearer, which is called a ‘kiss’.
There was a festive torch celebration when the Olympic flame was brought Prince George. The entire town was a captive audience when the Prince George cauldron was light by the Olympic flame.
Premier Gordon Campbell is obviously the Olympics biggest fan and has travelled around the country following the torch along its journey.
The Richmond Oval is a venue that was built specifically for the Olympic Games. This venue will hold the speed-skating events.
GM Place will be renamed Canada Hockey Place during the Olympic Games. All of the hockey events will be held at this venue during February.
Many changes have taken place in Vancouver during the preparation for the Olympic Games. A long standing Beatty Street mural was covered in the prep but is being repainted by local Vancouver artists.
This is the CODE Live 1 at Great Northern Way Campus in Vancouver. Wang Yuyang is showcasing his media installation Artifical Moon, which illuminates the entryway of CODE Live 1.
The 2010 Vancouver Cultural Olympiad has some public art installations around the city. One of these art installations is Fire with Fire by Isabelle Hayeur and is located in the W2 Woodward’s building.
The 2010 Vancouver Cultural Olympiad has curated over 60 days of arts, theatre and dance performances. The opening weekend showcased Elizabeth Streb’s show Streb: RAW with its amazing acrobatic feats of human flight.
We spent the weekend in Whistler with Tourism BC. Chris has been making videos while following the Torch through its journey of Canada.
The Peak to Peak Gondola takes you from the top of the Whistler Mountain to the top of the Blackcomb Mountain. This was part of our snowboard adventure with Tourism BC.
The Vancouver Winter Olympic Games will officially be here in the city in less than a week. We can’t wait to see what Vancouver has in store when the Games are finally here!
Definitely make sure to check back for more photo essays during the month of February!
Here is a slideshow of the images from this photo essay. Feel free to share this on your blogs and your networks under a Creative Commons license. Please make sure to link back to Static Photography!
Thanks!
The 2010 Winter Olympic Games are upon us and things are heating up around Vancouver. You can feel the energy in the city as all the last minute details are pulled together for this huge event. The team at Static Photography has been out and about making photos of all the action and we have pulled together some of our favorites. You can find more Vancouver 2010 photos than you know what to do with here, but for now check out this first week of February in Vancouver with the Winter Olympic Games just around the corner.
We got a tour of Prince George, starting first with speed skating lessons from the speed skating youth team. These kids are fast!
Rebecca Bollwitt, otherwise known as Miss604, was up in Prince George for the winter adventures. Rebecca is a Vancouver blogger who will be covering the Olympic Games.
Dog-sledding was a great way to travel the back country of Prince George.
Prince George has a huge ancient forest with trees that are hundreds of years old. Static Photography’s Kris Krüg had a chance to prove his strength by holding up this fallen tree.
The ancient forest in Prince George provided a great canopy for the long winter hike.
The Prince George Coldsnap Music Festival showcases some of the best in Canadian musical talent. The Great Lake Swimmers were at the festival this year, headlining the main night.
The BC Cups #2 Cross-country Skiing event happened took place in Prince George. This event was all ages and the competition was strong even in the snowfall.
The Torch was traveling through Prince George in its journey through Canada. This is the passing of the Olympic flame from one torch bearer to another torch bearer, which is called a ‘kiss’.
There was a festive torch celebration when the Olympic flame was brought Prince George. The entire town was a captive audience when the Prince George cauldron was light by the Olympic flame.
Premier Gordon Campbell is obviously the Olympics biggest fan and has travelled around the country following the torch along its journey.
The Richmond Oval is a venue that was built specifically for the Olympic Games. This venue will hold the speed-skating events.
GM Place will be renamed Canada Hockey Place during the Olympic Games. All of the hockey events will be held at this venue during February.
Many changes have taken place in Vancouver during the preparation for the Olympic Games. A long standing Beatty Street mural was covered in the prep but is being repainted by local Vancouver artists.
This is the CODE Live 1 at Great Northern Way Campus in Vancouver. Wang Yuyang is showcasing his media installation Artifical Moon, which illuminates the entryway of CODE Live 1.
The 2010 Vancouver Cultural Olympiad has some public art installations around the city. One of these art installations is Fire with Fire by Isabelle Hayeur and is located in the W2 Woodward’s building.
The 2010 Vancouver Cultural Olympiad has curated over 60 days of arts, theatre and dance performances. The opening weekend showcased Elizabeth Streb’s show Streb: RAW with its amazing acrobatic feats of human flight.
We spent the weekend in Whistler with Tourism BC. Chris has been making videos while following the Torch through its journey of Canada.
The Peak to Peak Gondola takes you from the top of the Whistler Mountain to the top of the Blackcomb Mountain. This was part of our snowboard adventure with Tourism BC.
The Vancouver Winter Olympic Games will officially be here in the city in less than a week. We can’t wait to see what Vancouver has in store when the Games are finally here!
Definitely make sure to check back for more photo essays during the month of February!
Here is a slideshow of the images from this photo essay. Feel free to share this on your blogs and your networks under a Creative Commons license. Please make sure to link back to Static Photography!
Today Premier Campbell had the exciting chance to be one of the first people to try out the zip-line in Robson Square.
This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to fly across Robson Square in downtown Vancouver.
The Zip Line will be available to the public starting February 12 2010 at 10am everyday for 17 days!
Get there early or be prepared to wait in line. As this is a very popular activity during the 2010 Olympics.
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