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Watched the victory in Ron’s studio with dad – pretty perfect. Well, being at the rink live would have been pretty spectacular as well. The changing of the guard from one ice surface to the next has launched this sport into Olympic splendor and I could not be more ecstatic. It’s about time. Rumour has it there was a loonie in the ice at the rink… You can not believe how this sport of curling has taken off in this country. I’ve done my best to explain the strategies and difficulty in playing to all of our Italian drivers, and they have all slowly but surely come to appreciate the sport. I half expect to see some of them in the next Olympics in Vancouver. Colleen even gave one of them a little lesson!

Posted a few more pics today… hope to get to the medal plaza ce soir to hear our anthem!

ciao

Not only has the world stopped across the province of Newfoundland each and every time the St. John’s rink has taken to the ice over the past few weeks , and each and every office in the downtown have televisions on bust, but schools across the province are shutting down for those precious 2 hours today. Dedication and Pride.

Here’s a little tid-bit of info that most folks are unaware of and all will find highly amusing: Bob Cole has a game to call at 9pm, Torino time, Russia vs. Finland – good game. Brad’s gold medal game is at 5:30 Torino time, and is an hour drive outside of the city into the mountains. Guess where Big Bob will be at 5:30? …..hope he makes it back for the puck drop! Priorities.

I’m not entirely sure if this translated to television, but to me, our Boys had very little passion for the duration of these games. I think that was the difference.

We are assured of the first ever Olympic medal for Newfoundland. The story of these Olympics is that for me. What colour will it be… Time Out: Check this last bit… the crack team of sports investigators of the CBC (aka Hil) have some corrections to make… NF has OF COURSE won some medals in the past – a gold even! – in rowing. Curling, however, is new blood.
Go Brad, Go NF, Go Team Canada – 17:30 Standard Torino Time, Friday, Feb 24th.
Now THESE guys have PASSION…!

As a Mr. Neale very bitterly and uncharacteristically seriously remarked once off head-set, “Harry Houdini showed up for the second and third and won that one for them”. Our Boys are struggling. They are the sole team who have yet to play anywhere near their potential. Alas, I am not worried and most folks here are nowhere near a state of panic. These guys will now show up. They are an unreal talented professional crew and now that we have entered the “do or die” stage, it’ll be magical. Just you wait. Tonight it all unfolds, 8:30 Torino time. There has been a ban on all of CBC crew to be in the buildings of hockey from here on in unless you are working the venue. This order has come from the IOC top, and was inspired due to the lack of media seats available for the writers and journalists who were actually covering a game. Naturally, all Canadians who are not working at the time of a Canada game have been flocking to the rinks in droves to catch our boys in action. Somebody complained, etc…. no more random Canada jackets allowed in press area. For me? Hey, I bring these hockey crew guys their lunch and dinner every day and ensure they are happy and all of their needs are met… I will be in those buildings for these last few games and there is no way around that! Plus, if push came to shove, and I ain’t about to succumb to pushing or shoving, I do happen to know this one guy who just might let me squeeze in with him for the game, incognito sans Canadiana paraphernalia of course!
The logistical nightmare of getting thousands of folks out of the mountains and out of Torino at the conclusion of the games has begun. I think I have to coordinate a whole slew of people and head to Milano with them to ensure they make their flights and all is well. This will all shake down in the very wee hours of Monday morning, several hours after I am planning to be celebrating a gold medal victory and a closing ceremony soiree – yikes! This could prove to be a bit of a tough go. I feel that it will be nothing too far off the work hard, play hard mantra I seem to have adopted throughout this crazy adventure. I think my body expects it at this point. I think I will make time for an espresso and perhaps a little shopping in an open market in Milano before returning to Torino! It’s astounding to me that this long haul is coming to an end within a matter of days. Although I feel very much at home in my new city of Torino, and I feel as if I have lived here forever, and Vancouver seems like a lifetime ago in some respects, the time here has flown by in a flash and the sadness of departing has begun to set in. All good things must come to an end. I don’t think I really believe that. I prefer “Until we meet again, Torino”…..
(Go Canada Go)
More pics happening…

In this International Olympic mayhem, it seems that the whereabouts of two items are of grave importance. One: accreditation – it is my ticket to life essentially. I did have one brief mishap one night when one of our drivers went home with this item in his car, unbeknownst to me, and to him for that matter. I talked my way into my media village dorm for the night and retrieved the accreditation the following morning. There was a slight panic and I was essentially stranded until I had this item back in my hot little hands again. (My room keys, wallet, Italy cell, computer were also in this car – I got through it and all is well). But without this accreditation, you are nothing, can do nothing, can go nowhere, you have no soul… The other item of somewhat importance is, of course, the passport. Eh-hem. This item, I have just discovered, holds far less significance in these parts in these times, and is not as big of a concern. To rectify the loss, no panic. Ah yes, I have “misplaced” my passport…. no, mum, not out late-night, but running around town, in and out of cars, hotels, venues, it could happen to anyone. I have contacted the Milano Consolati Canadesi, and I will have a new passport in a matter of days. I do, however, have to make my way to the stazione polizia and file a report. Lose the accred: life over. Misplace my actual ticket back to my homeland, facile, or as the Italians say, “no strees”!

Cruising through a private area in one of the arenas yesterday and lo and behold, smacked right into none other than Wayner and Kevin Lowe…. our boys had just lost the brutal match against the Swiss, but I had to say a hello anyhow. They were great… despite all that currently surrounds this man and all that he has been through over the past few months with his family, and now this recent kerfuffle, Wayne was still as lovely and charming and politely chatty as always with little ol’ me. I think Canada needed that loss to shock them into moving their feet and stepping things up a few notches, and now, look out baby!!

I had forgotten that I was a morning person and loved to get up with the dawn and ease into the day with a light run. It’s been a week of night-owl activities and I thankfully took the night off last night and was able to feed my morning addiction. The city had a light mist, the sun was rising over the rolling hills surrounding my area of town, la luna was still bright in the sky and the river I ran along, Fiume Po, was like glass. I feel rejuvenated and ready for the next 2 weeks.
Last night I spent some time with dad. It was nice to have more than the 5 or 10 minutes here and there with him, while I dash in and out of the rink he lives in. We had a driver take us out to the curling venue which is about a 40 minute jaunt from Torino into the mountains. My boss, Nicole, joined us as well – a good ol’ salt of the earth Winnipeg gal and die-hard curling fan. It was a perfect night except for the terrible loss our boys from St. John’s suffered. Very un-Brad. However, their record is still alright, so let’s hope the loss does not hurt them down the road. During the break in the game, Dad yelled over to Brad to give him the thumbs up, and I showed the boys the back of my curling sweater – mom’s 1970’s Tournament of Hearts gem that has “Cole”, the NF crest, and a big “Newfoundland” across the back – they loved it. Great moment. I spent a bit of the game directly behind the rink next to Joan, Mike and Don in the booth area, while dad joined the crew on air for the first 5 ends. It was all pretty neat. My first real venue event not working – a welcomed respite.
Christian has officially entered and is working in the mountain towns. Her first day on the job up there she had her car towed. How amusing for those of us who know her well! I think she’s in for quite the adventure.
Check for more pics – there’s a ton I need to post.
Go Canada.

Over the past four days and nights, I think I have slept an accumulation of about 9 hours. There are two reasons for this irresponsibility. One: hockey has begun, and what this means for me is a lot of running around to ensure our precious hockey fellas have everything that they need. Certo. And two: clubs in Torino are too much fun to pass up. That being said, I must take a break and though I am one who hates  to miss out on any fun, I must take a night off. I haven’t hit the wall just yet, but I do see it through the fog in the not so far off distance….
Having dad and Christian here is wonderful. Christian has spent the past few days in the city and today, picks up her car which she will be driving for the rest of the games, and heads up to the mountain towns where she will commence her new job. How fun! She will be a coordinator of some type and act as a liason for french and english television. That french degree and a year living it up in France is paying off for her now in spades. It’s too bad she and I will not see each other now until after the games have wrapped, however, for her, being up in the mountains is the real Olympic experience – this has all worked out for the better!
It’s pretty neat to have dad here working as well. Surreal to be in the north of Italia and see my dad at work every day. I love it. The hockey guys have tough schedules, usually two and three games a day, so they spend most of their time at the rinks. Dad is in great spirits (though he claims he’s not in his rhythm yet for calling a game – always the perfectionist!) and the man is the only CBC-er who was able to sleep a full 12-hour uninterrupted night upon arrival – he has adjusted just fine.
I hope tonight to have a chance to get out to the town of Pinerolo to catch Brad and boys kick some more butt – exciting to have them here aussi!
ciao for now.

It’s pretty much all a blur now. I am loving it still. Seeing the fantastic venues, but very little of the actual events. Just came from one hockey rink – our boys are here and were having their first practice. Should be juicy as we get going. More pics are posted… I’ve been working for 12 hours today (like most days) and so I simply cannot write any more ce soir… need dinner…. with vino… molto… ciao.

The CBC Studios at the International Broadcast Centre, my home away from home, erupted to the news of our first gold. There are, of course, many, many televisions all over the desks and studios in which we reside, and time stood still as all eyes were on our mogul champion. A warm rush of national unity and family washed over me. Time to make the departure from the embarrassing hockey news and let’s focus on these Olympians!
Sunny, bright blue skies and temperate weather once again today in Torino. The weather has been spectacular. The mountains could use a little more of the white stuff, but I am enjoying my shades and leaving the winter jacket behind when scooting around town!
Yesterday I was able to visit some of the venues for the first time. The two hockey venues in particular, imagine that. The building you will watch most of the men’s games from is a new structure erected this year (and barely ready in time). It is in close proximity to the Olympic Stadium and that infamous torch – what a site it is to look up into the night sky and see this beautiful structure that holds so much history in its’ flame. I can’t believe I can look at it with the naked eye.
The second hockey arena was once an auditorium, converted into a hockey rink. It, too, is an impressive building.
Most of the venues in the city are within 10 – 15 minutes apart by car. On the main streets throughout the city, there are designated “Olympic Lanes”. Local traffic has a bit of a tough time, but my zippy Italian drivers can blast through the city pretty efficiently. It’s fascinating to see what a well-oiled machine the production of the Olympics is from a television standpoint, but also to see how a city is able to transform itself to accommodate millions of people. The infrastructure of Vancouver scares me as it is now, but after seeing how this city is able to handle it, I now have total confidence that Vancouver will be able to pull this event off. It just might frustrate a few locals…!

Time for another espresso.
Ciao.

(check for more pics today – link added in left column)