Ben Heppner to sing anthem at Olympic closing
- From: Tiny Dancer <tinyd@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 26 Feb 2006 12:01:21 -0500
Just a bit of an idea of what to expect for at least part of the Olympic
closing ceremonies today. The closing's on from 1-4PM on CBC, followed
by the Figure Skating Gala from 4-6PM (encores at 6PM and midnight),
the whole day's on tape from 7-11PM on NBC. Can't wait! For me,
the best part will be when the flag's handed over to Vancouver's
quadriplegic mayor Sam Sullivan. The first time in Olympic history
a physically challenged person has participated in this ceremony.
You've come a long way, baby.
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Render&c=Article&cid=1140735015902&call_pageid=968332188492
Ben Heppner to sing anthem at Olympic closing
GREGORY STRONG - CANADIAN PRESS
TURIN, Italy ? Canadian-born opera star Ben Heppner will sing the
national anthem to kick off the start of an eight-minute Canadian
segment where the world will be invited to "Come Play with Us in
2010" during Sunday's closing ceremonies at the Turin Winter Olympics.
Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee (VANOC) officials released
some of the details about the segment at a Thursday news conference.
Heppner, who was born in Dawson Creek, B.C., will sing a cappella,
flanked by an honour guard of members of the Royal Canadian
Mounted Police.
The segment will also feature a Vancouver-based dance corps together
with the latest concepts in boarding, "sk8ting" and skiing as well as an
acrobatic performance from members of the acclaimed Montreal-based
National Circus School. Rock star Avril Lavigne of Napanee, Ont., will
headline the production, designed to celebrate Canada and to capture
the spirit of the 2010 host city.
"This segment is about inviting the world to Canada," said John Furlong,
VANOC's chief executive officer. "It's about making the world feel that
they'll be welcome in Vancouver and in Canada, that we can't wait for
people to come to our region and it's to give them a little bit of a glimpse
of who we are."
After Heppner's performance, the Olympic flag will be transferred from
Turin Mayor Sergio Chiamparino to IOC president Jacques Rogge, who
will present the flag to Vancouver Mayor Sam Sullivan, who will accept
it in a specially modified wheelchair.
A skiing accident left Sullivan a quadriplegic at the age of 19. It's
traditional for the new mayor to wave the flag ? which is six square
metres ? back and forth eight times. This presents a special problem
for Sullivan who has lost the use of the muscles in his fingers. Engineers
have designed a special stainless steel holster to fit on his motorized
wheelchair so he'll be able to receive the flag.
A ceremony to honour Canada's First Nations will follow the flag transfer,
after which a celebration of Canada's passion for winter sport and teamwork
will begin. With 32,000 spectators on hand and hundreds of millions watching
around the world, Furlong said he's ready for Vancouver to enter the spotlight.
"It's pressure but it's good pressure," Furlong said. "It's the kind of
pressure I think an athlete feels a little bit when they go on to the field
of play. There's little bits of uncertainty and they look around and you
see all the things that you have to compete against and all the people.
But you find a way somehow to get to the finish line first.
"And that's the job that we have to do."
http://calsun.canoe.ca/Sports/2006Games/2006/02/24/1460279-sun.html
Emotional mayor set to do wave
By ERIC FRANCIS, TEAM SUN
TURIN, Italy -- The countdown to the 2010 Games officially begins
Sunday with an eight-minute segment in the closing ceremony that'll
feature a stirring flag waving.
In a production that will include opera singer Ben Heppner and rock
star Avril Lavigne, it's Vancouver Mayor Sam Sullivan who is likely to
steal the show.
A quadriplegic since a skiing accident at age 19, Sullivan will be presented
with the Olympic flag by IOC president Jacques Rogge, who will insert
the flag pole into a modified-holster on Sullivan's motorized wheelchair.
Sullivan, who lost the use of muscles in his hands, will then wave the flag
by moving his wheelchair back and forth with hopes the six-metre flag
flutters in the wind.
"Some have questioned the wisdom of Vancouver sending its worst skier
to Turin but I've decided to do it in any case," joked the affable Sullivan
at a press conference yesterday unveiling the Vancouver Organizing
Committee's plans.
"My worst scenario, of course, is the flag blows in my face, I lose
orientation, go off the stage."
Sullivan demonstrated his technique, which he has practised for many
hours as part of the honourary flag passing.
"Twenty-seven years ago I was lying paralyzed in a hospital bed," said
Sullivan, a longtime city councilor who was given the Order of Canada for
community work with the disabled.
"For many years I was on welfare and in social housing.
"I never, ever imagined I'd be able to represent my country, my province
and my city in this wonderful event."
Heppner, a B.C. native, will kick off the segment with the national anthem,
followed by a celebration inviting the world to Vancouver, headlined by
Lavigne, that will include dancers, acrobats, skaters and mounted police.
Cheers,
TD (aka Rhonda)
I have a chair
Gets me from here to there
Takes me most anywhere
That any two feet could take me
from Sesame Street's "I Have A Chair"
for a good time call
www.tinyd.net
The Original Sesame Street Lyrics and Sounds Archive
http://www.tinyd.net/sesame1.html
.
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