Do You Believe?

By
sheena
-
3
607
Olympic Fever is setting in across the country.  As news stations scramble for local-athlete interviews and past medalists are remembered, we are experiencing a surge of national pride in the red & white leaf, which is now tattooed across hoodies and paraphernalia from the Bay.  With only 30 days until the opening ceremonies, it might be time to brush up on some of the characteristic facts of this year’s Vancouver Olympic Games!

  The 2010 Winter Olympics logo was unveiled on April 23, 2005, and is named Ilanaaq the Inunnguaq.  Ilanaaq is the Inuktitut word for friend.
 
The mascots for the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games were inspired by traditional First Nations creatures, the mascots include:

Miga — A mythical sea bear, part orca and part kermode bear.
Quatchi — A sasquatch.
Sumi — An animal guardian spirit who wears the hat of the orca whale, flies with the wings of the mighty Thunderbird and runs on the strong furry legs of the black bear.

Miga (right) and Quatchi (middle) are mascots for the Olympic Games, while Sumi (left) is the mascot for the Paralympic Games.
 
Now, lastly, there are the Red Mittens.  If you’ve been under a rock for the past few months, you won’t have noticed the hundreds of flaming red-and-white hands wandering around the city.  Little do most people know that there is actually real purpose behind these fuzzy gloves.  These mittens are meant to mimic the ones designed for the 12000 Torchbearers, who carry the spirit of the games from coast to coast.  As such, they are a must have commemorative item.   You are showing support for our amazing athletes while keeping cozy!

Can’t get enough of that Olympic Spirit? Come down to Olympic Plaza on January 18th and see the torch pass through our city.  Check here to see when and where the torch may be passing through your community!

Cheer on our athletes and stay tuned for regular Olympic updates once the games get going!

3 COMMENTS

  1. Apparently, people in B.C. can't get enough of these. The stores are always out of stock, and there can be small mobs when they get shipments…

  3. I'm not sure I buy into the 'buy Olympic merch, support athletes' deal. From what I know, none of that money goes to the athletes (correct me if I'm wrong), and a lot of that merchandise was made in China (the mittens in particular). There doesn't seem to be a lot of Canadian spirit in it, aside from the colours.

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