Environmental groups are appealing the gas-guzzling cauldron at Turin’s Olympic stadium and are asking Turin officials to temporarily reduce or extinguish the flame to mark the first anniversary of the Kyoto Protocol on global warming. Olympic organizers had looked into the possibility of reducing the flame but decided there was too much of a risk that it would go out completely. The cauldron, at 57 metres in height, burns up 1,500 cubic metres of natural gas per hour, which is already less than half of the requirement organizers has originally calculated.
The Turin Games have been hailed by the European Union as the first truly environment-friendly major sports event in Europe. The main Olympic Village, housing 2,500 athletes, has a record amount of solar panels and low-energy light bulbs. In the mountains special tracks around the luge run and ski jumping hill will allow animals to pass through the area.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge is enjoying his stay at the Athlete’s Village. He says the bed is “very comfortable and I’m fully enjoying my time with the athletes”. He said, “the Olympic Village is an important element of the Olympic Games for the International Olympic Committee not just because it is where the athletes stay, but also because it is the embodiment of what the Olympic Movement strives for – the youth of the world living together in harmony and peace”.
If you thought you saw about 30 German athletes with the Belgian flag on their caps at the Games, it wasn’t your imagination. It was a mix-up of colours. German sports manufacturer Adidas produced hats for the German biathletes and Nordic combined specialists but used a black-gold-red combination – matching the Belgium flag – rather than the German sequence of black-red-gold. Adidas spokesman Oliver Bruggen apologized and said they will produce the right colour combination by the second week of the Games at the latest.
Canadian cross-country skier Sara Renner has sent Norwegian coach Bjoernar Haakensmoen a bottle of wine thanking him for giving her a pole when hers snapped during Tuesday’s Olympic team sprint. CP also reports that Norway’s chef de mission can expect a letter of thanks from the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC). Renner and teammate Beckie Scott went on to win the silver medal. The COC also plans to inform the International Olympic Committee about Haakensmoen’s unselfish act.
