While fog, snow and rain are a big worry for organizers of the skiing and snowboarding events, it’s not a concern for tonight’s opening ceremonies.
The XXI Olympic Winter Games be the first to hold them indoors.
About 55,000 spectators are expected to pack the BC Place Stadium. It’s got the largest air-supported dome in North America.
And that could prove a blessing. Forecasters predict showers all weekend.
Organizers of the Vancouver Winter Games are keeping a tight lid on details about the opening ceremonies, and that’s had Canadians speculating about who will cap things off by lighting the Olympic cauldron.
For some, Wayne Gretzky is the obvious choice. The hockey legend is consider the greatest player ever in Canada’s most cherished sport.
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But others are pulling for lesser known figures who might offer a different kind of inspiration.
One is Betty Fox. She’s the mother of Terry Fox, who lost a leg to cancer at age 18, but attempted a cross-country marathon of Hope in 1980. He had to cut short the run, but hobbled more than 3,000 miles on an artificial leg. He died of lung cancer in 1981 at age 22.
Another candidate is Rick Hansen, a paraplegic athlete who has won numerous wheelchair marathons and wheeled through parts of four continents to raise money for research into spinal cord injuries.
There’s also speculation that two cauldrons might be lit.
Mark Grimmette will lead the U.S. team into tonight’s opening ceremonies at the Winter Olympics.
He’s a two-time medalist in the doubles luge and this will be his fifth games.
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