Olympic festivities: Victory is yours

Credit: Ian Mitchell

Maybe you can’t afford tickets to any Olympic sporting events, but a mere $22 buys you entry at one of the nightly victory ceremonies around Vancouver

As that day’s victorious teenaged athletes take to the podiums of B.C. Place, and live via satellite from Whistler’s Olympic Celebration Plaza to tearfully receive their medals (to the strains of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra’s rendition of their national anthems), even the most virulent anti-Olympic protester would find it difficult not to be overrun by a genuine outpouring of sympathetic pride followed by, yes, self-loathing: while these athletes were pushing physical prowess to its limits, what did you do all day but watch daytime talk shows? Hell, you almost didn’t get your ever-expanding butt off the couch to catch the SkyTrain down here tonight.

But these athletic paragons have spun around on the ice better than anyone else, swooshed down a hill faster than anyone else, and have given up most of their childhood to do so. Their entire lives have led up to this moment, and here you are privileged enough to witness it.

As you trudge back home, the cold, bitter rain of a Vancouver winter drumming its syncopated rhythm on your head, that little voice you’ve come to count on inside your head brings a devilish smile to your moistened lips. Your future may be a bleak and barren wasteland, but you’re used to the ache of unfulfilled desire. For you, life may always be an uphill battle.

But, for all their noble sacrifices, those kids have peaked and it’s all downhill for them from now on.

For more information on the Victory Ceremonies, visit www.vancouver2010.com.