The Closing Ceremony of the
2010 Winter OlympicsThe 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...
took place on February 28, 2010, beginning at 5:30 pm
PSTThe Pacific Time Zone observes standard time by subtracting eight hours from Coordinated Universal Time . The clock time in this zone is based on the mean solar time of the 120th meridian west of the Greenwich Observatory. During daylight saving time, its time offset is UTC-7.In the United States...
(01:30 UTC, March 1) at
BC Place StadiumBC Place is a multi-purpose stadium located at the north side of False Creek, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the home field for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League and the Vancouver Whitecaps FC of Major League Soccer . Originally opened on June 19, 1983 as the...
in
VancouverVancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
,
British ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
,
CanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It was the first Olympic Closing Ceremony held in an indoor venue since the
1984 Winter OlympicsThe 1984 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XIV Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated from 8–19 February 1984 in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. Other candidate cities were Sapporo, Japan; and Gothenburg, Sweden...
in
SarajevoSarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
.
Program
The production's director
David AtkinsDavid Atkins, OAM was recognised in the 2003 Queen’s Birthday Honours with a Medal of the Order of Australia for services to the entertainment industry and is Australia’s most awarded producer, choreographer and director, and CEO of David Atkins Enterprises, a major-events production...
previously directed the
Sydney 2000 OlympicThe Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
and the
2006 Doha Asian GamesThe 15th Asian Games, officially known as the XV Asiad, is Asia's Olympic-style sporting event that was held in Doha, Qatar from December 1 to December 15, 2006. Doha was the first city in its region and only the second in West Asia to host the games...
ceremonies. The choreographer for the finale was Jean Grand-Maître, artistic director of the Alberta Ballet.
Pre-ceremony activities
A joke was made about the hydraulic system failure with the indoor cauldron in the
opening ceremonyThe Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics was held on February 12, 2010 beginning at 6:00 pm PST at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This was the first Olympic opening ceremony to be held indoors...
. Electrical sparks, a fake chicken and feathers shot out of the hole where the fourth arm would have risen. After this, Québécois clown and mime Yves Dagenais, dressed in workmen's clothing, climbed out of the hole, plugged two long cords together, and pretended to pull the fourth pillar out as it emerged. Dagenais then "summoned" Catriona Le May Doan (who appeared from underneath the stage via an elevated trap door), holding a lit torch in her hand. She looked around bewildered (a little acting) and then saw Dagenais, and he happily presented to her the emerging fourth pillar. He then wiped his brow with a red handkerchief to signify a job well done and walked off the stage. After the pillar was in place, Le May Doan, who had been left out of the lighting of the cauldron in the opening ceremony because of the failure, saluted the audience by holding her torch in the air, walked over toward the pillar and was finally able to light the cauldron, to great fanfare from the audience. With the entire cauldron lit, Le May Doan saluted the audience again and then descended back underneath the stage.
A mass of white-clad high school students with snowboards flocked out and surrounded the cauldron while the band Inward Eye gave a performance, with the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra behind them. This took place during the countdown, which was followed by the release of fireworks in BC Place. After the countdown and fireworks, the anthem cast created the words Strong and Free followed by a maple leaf and then a circle (called the Death Star by the Anthem Cast) surrounding the cauldron to welcome the official party. After O Canada was sung, the cast did a droplet formation before creating a snowflake, a heart, and a peace sign before exploding up the voms.
Chief Leonard Andrew of the
Lil'watThe Lil'wat First Nation, aka the Lil'wat Nation or the Mount Currie Indian Band, is a First Nations government located in the southern Coast Mountains region of the Interior of the Canadian province of British Columbia...
, Chief Ernie Campbell of the Musqueam, Chief Bill Williams of the Squamish, and Chief Justin George of the Tsleil-Waututh were welcomed.
Stephen HarperStephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
, the
Prime Minister of CanadaThe Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
and
IOC presidentThe International Olympic Committee is a corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas on 23 June 1894. Its membership consists of the 205 National Olympic Committees...
Jacques RoggeJacques Rogge, Count Rogge , is a Belgian sports bureaucrat. He is the eighth and current President of the International Olympic Committee .-Life and career:...
were then introduced.
National anthem
A bilingual rendition of the Canadian
national anthemA national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history, traditions and struggles of its people, recognized either by a nation's government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the people.- History :Anthems rose to prominence...
O CanadaIt has been noted that the opening theme of "O Canada" bears a strong resemblance to the "Marsch der Priester" , from the opera Die Zauberflöte , composed in 1791 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and that Lavallée's melody was inspired by Mozart's tune...
was sung by the Anthem Cast, The Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra, & Inward Eye.
Entrance of the flag bearers and the parade of the athletes
The flag bearers for the participating nations then entered the stadium at the same time, making a ring around the Olympic Cauldron. Following tradition, the athletes entered the stadium in no particular order to parade around the Olympic Cauldron at the centre of the stadium, before filing out to take their reserved front row seats.
Flag bearers
- Albania: Erjon Tola
Erjon Tola is an Albanian alpine ski racer who represented Albania at the 2006 Winter Olympics and at the 2010 Winter Olympics. He was ranked the last among those who finished the men's Super-G, but finished 35th at men's giant slalom. Tola finished 48th, at the men's slalom and 63rd at the men's...
- Australia: Lydia Lassila
- Belgium: Pieter Gysel
- Brazil: Jaqueline Mourão
- Canada: Joannie Rochette
Joannie Rochette is a Canadian figure skater. She is the 2010 Olympic bronze medalist, the 2009 World silver medalist, the 2008 and 2009 Four Continents silver medalist, the 2004 Grand Prix Final bronze medalist, and a six-time Canadian national champion.-Personal life:Rochette was born in...
- Chile: Noelle Barahona
Noelle Barahona is a Chilean alpine skier. She represented Chile at the 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics. Currently studies in Chile when she is not training and has appeared on American TV show, Larry King Live to speak about the Feb. 27, 2010 earthquake.-Reference:*...
- China: Zhao Hongbo
Zhao Hongbo is a male Chinese pair skater. With his partner and wife Shen Xue, Zhao is the 2010 Olympic champion, the 2002 & 2006 Olympic bronze medalist, a three-time World champion, a three-time Four Continents Champion and a six-time Grand Prix Final champion.Shen and Zhao were the first...
- Democratic People's Republic of Korea: Ri Song Chol
Ri Song Chol is a North Korean figure skater. He is the 2003, 2007, 2008, and 2009 North Korean national champion.-Competitive highlights:-References:...
- Denmark: Johnny Frederiksen
Johnny Frederiksen is a Danish curler from Hvidovre. He is the skip of the men's Danish national team.Frederiksen skipped Denmark at three World Junior Curling Championships , two European Curling Championships and five World Curling Championships...
- Finland:Tanja Poutiainen
Tanja Poutiainen is a Finnish alpine ski racer, the silver medalist in the women's giant slalom at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino....
- France:Sandrine Bailly
Sandrine Bailly is a former French biathlete. She was most successful in the 2004–05 season, when she could win the overall World Cup, and in the 2007–08 season, when she finished second...
- Germany: Magdalena Neuner
Magdalena "Lena" Neuner is a German professional biathlete. She is the most successful woman of all time at Biathlon World Championships and a two-time Olympic gold medalist. At the age of 21, she became the youngest Overall World Cup winner in the history of the International Biathlon Union...
- Great Britain: Amy Williams
Amy Joy Williams MBE is an English skeleton racer and Olympic gold medallist. Originally a runner, she began training in skeleton after trying the sport on a push-start track at the University of Bath...
- Jamaica: Errol Kerr
Errol Kerr is a downhill skier formerly with the U.S. Ski Team. Kerr is the son of a Jamaican father and an American mother. Kerr started skiing at age 4 and started racing competitively at age 11, and as a child he also raced BMX and motocross. The multi-disciplined Kerr eventually found his...
- Ireland: Shane O'Connor
- Japan: Mao Asada
is a Japanese figure skater.She is the 2010 Winter Olympic silver medalist, the 2008 & 2010 World champion, the 2008 & 2010 Four Continents champion, a two-time Grand Prix Final champion, the 2005 World Junior champion, the 2004–2005 Junior Grand Prix Final champion and a four-time Japanese...
- Mexico: Prince Hubertus of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
- Netherlands: Sven Kramer
Sven Kramer is a Dutch long track speed skater. He is the Olympic champion of the 5000 meter in Vancouver 2010, and four-time European and World Allround Champion. He is also three-time world champion and world record holder in the 5,000 m, 10,000 m, and the team pursuit...
- New Zealand: Ben Sandford
Ben Sandford is a New Zealand skeleton racer who has competed since 2002. He finished tenth in the men's skeleton event at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin....
- Norway: Petter Northug
Petter Northug Jr. is a Norwegian cross country skier and double Olympic champion. He has 9 World Championship and Winter Olympic gold medals with 13 medals overall, and nine individual FIS Cross-Country World Cup wins with 20 podium places...
- Poland: Katarzyna Bachleda-Curuś
Katarzyna Bachleda-Curuś is a Polish speed skater, who was born in Sanok and resides in Zakopane. Her maiden name was Katarzyna Wójcicka....
- Slovakia: Pavol Hurajt
Pavol Hurajt is a Slovak biathlete. He competed at the 2006 Winter Olympics and 2010 Winter Olympics, winning a bronze medal in 2010 in the mass start. In the 2009 World Cup, Hurajt finished 5th in the 20 KM race. Hurajt finished 7th in the men's sprint at the 2010 Games.-External links:*...
- South Korea: Mo Tae-Bum
Mo Tae-Bum is a South Korean speed skater. He started speedskating while in the third grade. Prior to the 2010 Winter Olympics, Mo won two distances at the 2006 World Junior Speed Skating Championships...
- Sweden: Marcus Hellner
Marcus Hellner is a Swedish cross-country skier who has been competing since 2003.-Athletic career:Hellner had a total of seven victories in the junior levels of cross-country skiing up to 30 km from 2003 to 2005...
- Switzerland: Dario Cologna
Dario Cologna is a Swiss cross-country skier. He has two overall World Cup victories, one Olympic medal, and two Tour de Ski victories in his career so far.-Athletic career:...
- United States: Bill Demong
Bill Demong is an American Nordic combined skier and Olympic gold medalist. Demong is a four-time Olympian competing in Nagano, Salt Lake City, Torino and Vancouver.-Career:...
Musical portion
Three musicians,
Eva AvilaEva Avila is a singer and songwriter. She won the fourth season of the CTV reality show Canadian Idol in 2006.-Early life:...
,
Nikki YanofskyNicole "Nikki" Yanofsky is a Canadian jazz-pop singer from Hampstead, Quebec. She is involved in charitable causes, and released her first studio album on her own label, A440 Entertainment, and on Decca Records outside of Canada. Yanofsky sang Canada's national anthem at the opening ceremonies of...
, and
Derek Miller-External links:* - Official Website* Derek Miller's MySpace...
, each on an elevated, lighted column that rose out of the stadium floor, sang the song "Let's Have a Party" in French and English.
Medal ceremony
As with tradition, the medals to one of the marquee events of the Winter Games –
men's 50 km classical cross-countryThe cross-country skiing competition of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver were held at Whistler Olympic Park. The events were held between 15 and 28 February 2010.- Medal table :- Men's events :- Women's events :- Competition schedule :...
– were presented during the closing ceremony. The race was held earlier that day in
Whistler Olympic ParkThe Whistler Olympic Park is the location of the Nordic events facilities for the 2010 Winter Olympics and is located in the Madeley Creek basin in the Callaghan Valley, west of Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. The facility hosted the biathlon, cross-country skiing, nordic combined, and ski...
. The medals were given by
Gerhard HeibergJens Gerhard Heiberg is a Norwegian industrialist who was head of the Lillehammer Olympic Organising Committee and the Lillehammer Paralympic Organizing Committee and member of the International Olympic Committee....
, IOC member for Norway and member of the Executive Commission of the IOC. The flowers were given by the Ski Federation.
Recognitions
Two new members of the
IOCThe International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
,
Angela RuggieroAngela Marie Ruggiero is an American ice hockey defenseman. She is a member of the United States women's national ice hockey team. She is also the author of a memoir about her hockey experiences and a former contestant on the NBC reality show The Apprentice...
(USA) and
Adam PengillyAdam Pengilly is a British skeleton racer who has competed since 2004. He won a silver medal in men's skeleton event at the FIBT World Championships 2009 in Lake Placid....
(UK), were announced. The volunteers who made the games possible were also recognized.
Greek national anthem
A
Royal Canadian Mounted PoliceThe Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
honour guard raised the
Greek national flagThe flag of Greece , officially recognized by Greece as one of its national symbols, is based on nine equal horizontal stripes of blue alternating with white...
while the Greek national anthem was then sung by Greek-Canadian opera singer
Ariana ChrisAriana Chris is a Greek-Canadian mezzo-soprano. She is a graduate of the University of Toronto, and received additional training as a member of both the Atelier lyrique de l'Opéra de Montréal and the Apprentice Program for Singers of The Santa Fe Opera...
.
Olympic Hymn
Canadian opera singer
Ben HeppnerBen Heppner, CC is a Canadian tenor, specializing in opera and other classical works for voice.Heppner was born in Murrayville, British Columbia, and lived in Dawson Creek...
, born in
British ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
and singer of
O CanadaIt has been noted that the opening theme of "O Canada" bears a strong resemblance to the "Marsch der Priester" , from the opera Die Zauberflöte , composed in 1791 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and that Lavallée's melody was inspired by Mozart's tune...
at the
2006 closing ceremony in TorinoThe Closing Ceremony of the 2006 Winter Olympics took place on February 26, 2006 beginning at 20:00 CET at the Stadio Olimpico in Turin, Italy.-Program:...
, then sang the Olympic Hymn, mixing English and French, while an
RCMPThe Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
honour guard lowered the
Olympic flagThe Olympic symbols are icons, flags and symbols used by the International Olympic Committee to promote the Olympic Games. Some—such as the flame, fanfare, and theme—are more common during Olympic competition, but others, such as the flag, can be seen throughout the year.-Motto:The Olympic motto is...
. This flag will be raised again in
LondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on July 27, 2012 during the opening ceremonies of the
2012 Summer OlympicsThe 2012 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the "London 2012 Olympic Games", are scheduled to take place in London, England, United Kingdom from 27 July to 12 August 2012...
.
Handover of the Olympic flag
The
Olympic flagThe Olympic symbols are icons, flags and symbols used by the International Olympic Committee to promote the Olympic Games. Some—such as the flame, fanfare, and theme—are more common during Olympic competition, but others, such as the flag, can be seen throughout the year.-Motto:The Olympic motto is...
was handed off by
Gregor RobertsonGregor Angus Bethune Robertson is a Canadian politician who has been the 39th Mayor of Vancouver, British Columbia, since 2008. He was elected as part of the Vision Vancouver party slate...
, the
mayor of Vancouver, to
Jacques RoggeJacques Rogge, Count Rogge , is a Belgian sports bureaucrat. He is the eighth and current President of the International Olympic Committee .-Life and career:...
, the President of the
IOCThe International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
. It was then handed off to the mayor of
SochiSochi is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated just north of Russia's border with the de facto independent republic of Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast. Greater Sochi sprawls for along the shores of the Black Sea near the Caucasus Mountains...
,
Anatoliy PakhomovAnatoliy Nikolayevich Pakhomov is a Russian politician. He is currently the acting mayor of Sochi.Pakhomov served as the mayor of the town of Anapa from 2005 until 2008...
, whose city will host the
2014 Winter OlympicsThe 2014 Winter Olympics, officially the XXII Olympic Winter Games, or the 22nd Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event scheduled to be celebrated from 7 to 23 February 2014, in Sochi, Russia with some events held in the resort town of Krasnaya Polyana. Both the Olympic and...
. The flag arrived in Sochi at the end of March and was raised at that city's municipal building until the 2014 games. During that time, the orchestra played an excerpt from the Olympic Fanfare and Theme by John Williams. The
Russian national anthemThe National Anthem of the Russian Federation is the name of the official national anthem of Russia. Its musical composition and lyrics were adopted from the anthem of the Soviet Union, composed by Alexander Alexandrov, and lyricists Sergey Mikhalkov and Gabriel El-Registan. The Soviet anthem was...
was then sung by the Moscow State Chamber Choir, conducted by Vladimir Minin.
Greetings from Sochi
A demonstration was then staged by the Russians to showcase the
2014 Winter OlympicsThe 2014 Winter Olympics, officially the XXII Olympic Winter Games, or the 22nd Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event scheduled to be celebrated from 7 to 23 February 2014, in Sochi, Russia with some events held in the resort town of Krasnaya Polyana. Both the Olympic and...
in
SochiSochi is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated just north of Russia's border with the de facto independent republic of Abkhazia, on the Black Sea coast. Greater Sochi sprawls for along the shores of the Black Sea near the Caucasus Mountains...
. The segment featured Russian supermodel
Natalia VodianovaNatalia Mikhailovna Vodianova is a Russian model and philanthropist who now permanently resides in the United Kingdom.-Early life:Born in Gorky, Soviet Union , Natalia Vodianova grew up in a poor district of the city with her mother and two half sisters, one of whom has cerebral palsy...
on a special
troikaThe general meaning of the Russian and Bulgarian word troika is three of a kind, a collection of three or simply the number three. It may also mean:-Politics:* Troika of judges or political leaders...
containing white
neonNeon is the chemical element that has the symbol Ne and an atomic number of 10. Although a very common element in the universe, it is rare on Earth. A colorless, inert noble gas under standard conditions, neon gives a distinct reddish-orange glow when used in either low-voltage neon glow lamps or...
horses, the principal dancers of the Kirov,
BolshoiThe Bolshoi Ballet is an internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. Founded in 1776, the Bolshoi is among the world's oldest ballet companies, however it only achieved worldwide acclaim by the early 20th century, when Moscow became the...
and
MariinskyThe Mariinsky Ballet is a classical ballet company based at the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Founded in the 18th century and originally known as the Imperial Russian Ballet, the Mariinsky Ballet is one of the world's leading ballet companies...
ballets,
2006 OlympicThe 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...
champions
Tatiana NavkaTatyana Aleksandrovna Navka is a Russian ice dancer who has also competed for the Soviet Union and Belarus...
and
Roman KostomarovRoman Sergeyevich Kostomarov is a Russian ice dancer. With partner Tatiana Navka, he is the 2006 Olympic champion, two-time World champion , three-time Grand Prix Final champion , and three-time European champion .- Career :Kostomarov began skating at the age of nine and a coach put him in ice...
ice dancingIce dancing is a form of figure skating which draws from the world of ballroom dancing. It was first competed at the World Figure Skating Championships in 1952, but did not become a Winter Olympic Games medal sport until 1976....
by the
Black SeaThe Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
, giant
zorbZorbing is the recreation of rolling downhill in an orb, generally made of transparent plastic. Zorbing is generally performed on a gentle slope, but can also be done on a level surface, permitting more rider control. In the absence of hills some operators have constructed inflatable, wooden or...
s rolling around the stage, the appearance of
figure skaterFigure skating is an Olympic sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging moves on ice skates. Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level , and at local, national, and international competitions...
Evgeni PlushenkoEvgeni Viktorovich Plushenko is a Russian figure skater. He is the 2006 Winter Olympics Gold Medalist, 2002 Winter Olympics Silver Medalist, and 2010 Winter Olympics Silver Medalist, three-time World Champion, six-time European Champion, a four-time Grand Prix Final champion and an eight-time...
with
ice hockeyIce hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
players
Vladislav TretiakVladislav Aleksandrovich Tretiak, MSM is a former goaltender for the Soviet Union's national ice hockey team. Considered to be one of the greatest goaltenders in the history of the sport, he was voted one of six players to the International Ice Hockey Federation's Centennial All-Star Team in a...
and
Alexander OvechkinAlexander Mikhaylovich Ovechkin is a Russian professional ice hockey left winger and captain of the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League...
, and a live orchestra performance playing in
Red SquareRed Square is a city square in Moscow, Russia. The square separates the Kremlin, the former royal citadel and currently the official residence of the President of Russia, from a historic merchant quarter known as Kitai-gorod...
while being conducted, via satellite, by
Valery GergievValery Abisalovich Gergiev is a Russian conductor and opera company director. He is general director and artistic director of the Mariinsky Theatre, principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, and artistic director of the White Nights Festival in St. Petersburg.- Early life :Gergiev,...
at BC Place.
Games declared closed
The games were formally closed by International Olympic Committee President
Jacques RoggeJacques Rogge, Count Rogge , is a Belgian sports bureaucrat. He is the eighth and current President of the International Olympic Committee .-Life and career:...
calling them "excellent and very friendly" in his tradition of assigning each games their own identity in closing comments. Rogge also mentioned the tragic loss of Georgian luger
Nodar KumaritashviliNodar David Kumaritashvili was a Georgian luger, who suffered a fatal crash during a training run for the 2010 Winter Olympics competition in Vancouver, Canada, on the day of the opening ceremony...
, who died in an accident at the
Whistler Sliding CentreThe Whistler Sliding Centre is a Canadian bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track located in Whistler, British Columbia, that is north of Vancouver. The centre is part of the Whistler Blackcomb resort, which comprises two ski mountains separated by Fitzsimmons Creek...
on February 12, in his comments, stating his condolences for the country of Georgia, and that his memory "will always be with us."
John FurlongJohn Furlong, O.C, O.B.C was the President and Chief Executive Officer of VANOC which oversaw the preparation and execution of the 2010 Winter Olympics and 2010 Winter Paralympics Games...
, chair of VANOC, also spoke.
Neil YoungNeil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
sang "
Long May You Run-Side two:-Personnel:* Neil Young – vocals, guitars, piano, harmonica, synthesizer* Stephen Stills – vocals, guitar, piano* Jerry Aiello – organ, piano* George "Chocolate" Perry – bass, backing vocals...
" while the Olympic Flame was extinguished in both the indoor and outdoor cauldrons.
Cultural section
William ShatnerWilliam Alan Shatner is a Canadian actor, musician, recording artist, and author. He gained worldwide fame and became a cultural icon for his portrayal of James T...
,
Michael J. FoxMichael J. Fox, OC is a Canadian American actor, author, producer, activist and voice-over artist. With a film and television career spanning from the late 1970s, Fox's roles have included Marty McFly from the Back to the Future trilogy ; Alex P...
and
Catherine O'HaraCatherine Anne O'Hara is a Canadian-American actress and comedienne. She is well known for her comedy work on SCTV, and her roles in the films After Hours, Beetlejuice, Home Alone, and The Nightmare Before Christmas, and also in the mockumentary films written and directed by Christopher Guest...
came onto the stadium floor and delivered comedic monologues playing on stereotypes of Canadians. O'Hara's section involved the tendency of Canadians to be overly polite and apologetic. Shatner's section involved beer. Fox's section involved urban areas and terrain.
The theme of satirizing Canadian clichés continued with
Michael BubléMichael Steven Bublé is a Canadian singer. He has won several awards, including three Grammy Awards and multiple Juno Awards. His first album reached the top ten in Canada and the UK. He found worldwide commercial success with his 2005 album It's Time, and his 2007 album Call Me Irresponsible was...
dressed as a Mountie performing "
The Maple Leaf Forever"The Maple Leaf Forever" is a Canadian song written by Alexander Muir in 1867, the year of Canada's Confederation. He wrote the work after serving with The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada in the Battle of Ridgeway against the Fenians in 1866....
" first straight, followed by four scantily clad singer/dancers dressed as Mounties stripping his Mountie uniform to reveal a tuxedo leading to a whimsical Vegas-style arrangement of the song as a procession of giant Mounties, dancing Mounties, hockey players, giant
table hockeyTable hockey can refer to:* Miniature ice hockey games in general, see Table hockey games* The competitive sport organized by the International Table Hockey Federation, see ITHF table hockey* Air hockey...
players wearing gold medals (as Canada won both the men's and women's tournaments), complete with a child dressed as a puck for said game, followed by
voyageursThe Voyageurs were the persons who engaged in the transportation of furs by canoe during the fur trade era. Voyageur is a French word which literally translates to "traveler"...
and lumberjacks in dancing canoes, bare-midriff dancing and ceiling hung maple leaves, and last but not least, several giant inflatable flying moose. "The Maple Leaf Forever" was sung using a modern version rather than its traditional lyrics and was arranged in a medley with other pieces.
Hockey Night in CanadaHockey Night in Canada is the branding used for CBC Sports' presentations of the National Hockey League...
s former, but still iconic, signature tune, "
The Hockey Theme"The Hockey Theme" is a Canadian theme song written in 1968 by Dolores Claman and orchestrated by Jerry Toth. It has been referred to as Canada's second national anthem....
", was played during the giant-sized hockey match. The entrance of the voyageurs was accompanied by the traditional French-Canadian song "Envoyons d'l'avant nos gens" performed by
La Bottine SourianteLa Bottine Souriante is a folk band from Quebec specialising in traditional Québécois music, often with a modern twist.Formed in 1976, they have toured extensively through North America and Europe. As well as the traditional accordion, fiddle, guitar, piano and double bass, the band added a...
, while the cultural section ended with Bublé singing the last line of "
O CanadaIt has been noted that the opening theme of "O Canada" bears a strong resemblance to the "Marsch der Priester" , from the opera Die Zauberflöte , composed in 1791 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and that Lavallée's melody was inspired by Mozart's tune...
". Audience members were provided with and encouraged to wear headgear fashioned into moose antlers.
Concert section
- Nickelback
Nickelback is a Canadian rock band from Hanna, Alberta. Since 1995 the band has included guitarist and lead vocalist Chad Kroeger, guitarist and back-up vocalist Ryan Peake and bassist Mike Kroeger.. The band's current drummer and percussionist is Daniel Adair who has been with the band since 2005....
opened the concert section with "Burn It to the Ground"Burn It to the Ground" is the fourth U.S. single released off of Canadian rock band Nickelback's sixth studio album Dark Horse.- Promotional use :...
".
- Avril Lavigne
Avril Ramona Lavigne is a Canadian singer-songwriter. She was born in Belleville, Ontario, but spent most of her youth in the small town of Napanee. By the age of 15, she had appeared on stage with Shania Twain; by 16, she had signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records worth more...
, who performed "Who Knows" during the closing ceremony of the Torino Olympics, performed "My Happy Ending"My Happy Ending" is a song written and produced by Avril Lavigne and Butch Walker, and engineered by Russ T. Cobb for Lavigne's second album, Under My Skin . It was released as the album's second internationally released single in 2004 and became Lavigne's fourth most successful single. It peaked...
" and "Girlfriend"Girlfriend" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne. The song was written by Lavigne with her producer Dr. Luke for Lavigne's third studio album, The Best Damn Thing . "Girlfriend" was released as the lead single from The Best Damn Thing on 27 February 2007...
" afterwards.
- Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination...
performed "Wunderkind"Wunderkind" is a song written and recorded by Alanis Morissette, and produced by Mike Elizondo for the soundtrack of the 2005 film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe-Background:...
".
- Simple Plan
Simple Plan is a Canadian pop punk band from Montréal, Québec. The band has had no line up changes since its inception in 1999. Members are Pierre Bouvier , Jeff Stinco , Sébastien Lefebvre , David Desrosiers and Chuck Comeau...
performed "Your Love Is a Lie"Your Love Is a Lie" is the second single by Simple Plan from their self-titled third studio album.-Background:The song exists in two versions. One is found on the explicit editions, in which lead singer Pierre Bouvier sings the word fucks in the second verse. In clean versions of the CD and for...
"
- Hedley
Hedley is a Canadian pop rock band comprising lead singer Jacob Hoggard, Tommy Mac on bass, Dave Rosin on lead guitar and Chris Crippin on drums. The current band retains the original name of Hoggard's pre-Canadian Idol group, although the membership has changed. The band originated in Abbotsford,...
performed "Cha-Ching"Cha-Ching" is the first single from Hedley's third studio album. The song entered the Canadian Hot 100 at #34 on the 36th week of 2009 and ended up reaching the top ten peaking at #6...
"
- Marie-Mai
Marie-Mai Bouchard also known as her stage name Marie-Mai, is a French Canadian singer from Quebec...
performed "Emmène-moi" (Take me along)
- k-os
Kevin Brereton , better known by his stage name k-os , is a Canadian rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer...
performed "Eye Know Something" with various Vancouver-area hip-hop dancers, including members of Now or Never Crew, Xtreme Soul Style, freshh, and Style-O-Phonics.
- Invented instrument ensemble Scrap Arts Music performed an abridged version of "Phonk" in the closing minutes of the concert section.
Notable attendees
Aside from celebrities participating in the ceremony, mayors Robertson and Pakhomov, and
members of the International Olympic Committee, the following notable people were in attendance:
- Chief Leonard Andrew of the Lil'wat Nation
- Chief Ernie Campbell of the Musqueam Indian Band
The Musqueam Indian Band is a First Nations government in the Canadian province of British Columbia, and is the only Indian band whose reserve community lies within the boundaries of the City of Vancouver....
,
- Chief Bill Williams of the Squamish Nation
- Chief Justin George of the Tsleil-Waututh First Nation
The Tsleil-Waututh First Nation, also known as the Burrard Indian Band or Burrard Band, is a First Nations government in the Canadian Province of British Columbia...
- Michaëlle Jean
Michaëlle Jean is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation, from 2005 to 2010....
, Governor General of Canada
- Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
, Prime Minister of CanadaThe Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
- Gordon Campbell, Premier of British Columbia
The Premier of British Columbia is the first minister, head of government, and de facto chief executive for the Canadian province of British Columbia. Until the early 1970s the title Prime Minister of British Columbia was often used...
- Janet Napolitano
Janet Napolitano is the third and current United States Secretary of Homeland Security, serving in the administration of President Barack Obama. She is the fourth person to hold the position, which was created after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. A member of the Democratic Party, she was the 21st...
, U.S. Secretary of Homeland SecurityThe United States Secretary of Homeland Security is the head of the United States Department of Homeland Security, the body concerned with protecting the American homeland and the safety of American citizens. The Secretary is a member of the President's Cabinet. The position was created by the...
- Kathleen Sebelius
Kathleen Sebelius is an American politician currently serving as the 21st Secretary of Health and Human Services. She was the second female Governor of Kansas from 2003 to 2009, the Democratic respondent to the 2008 State of the Union address, and chair-emerita of the Democratic Governors...
, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human ServicesThe United States Secretary of Health and Human Services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, concerned with health matters. The Secretary is a member of the President's Cabinet...
The Canadian TV network CTV claimed that traditionally a senior government representative of the country hosting the next Winter Olympics is also present during the Closing Ceremony, but neither Russian President
Dmitry MedvedevDmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
nor
Prime MinisterThe Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation The use of the term "Prime Minister" is strictly informal and is not allowed for by the Russian Constitution and other laws....
Vladimir PutinVladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
attended. CTV speculated that this was due to domestic discontent over
their nation's performance in VancouverRussia participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.In summary, the country's participants earned 15 medals: 3 gold, 5 silver and 7 bronze. The 3 gold medals was the worst ever result for Russia since competing after the breakup of the Soviet Union. The 15 total...
. In comparison, Canada's
Governor GeneralThe Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
Michaëlle JeanMichaëlle Jean is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation, from 2005 to 2010....
had attended the
Torino Olympics closing ceremonyThe Closing Ceremony of the 2006 Winter Olympics took place on February 26, 2006 beginning at 20:00 CET at the Stadio Olimpico in Turin, Italy.-Program:...
.
Television broadcast
In
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
coverage was carried on the
Nine NetworkThe Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
and
FoxtelFoxtel is an Australian pay television company, operating cable, direct broadcast satellite television and IPTV services. It was formed in 1995 through a joint venture established between Telstra and News Corporation....
.
In Canada,
CTVCTV Television Network is a Canadian English language television network and is owned by Bell Media. It is Canada's largest privately-owned network, and has consistently placed as Canada's top-rated network in total viewers and in key demographics since 2002, after several years trailing the rival...
,
Omni TelevisionOmni Television, corporately styled as OMNI Television, is a Canadian television system owned and operated by Rogers Communications. It consists of the company's conventional television stations in Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta which are licensed as multicultural stations...
,
Rogers SportsnetSportsnet was launched on October 9, 1998 as CTV Sportsnet. The name was chosen to match the regional "Fox Sports Net" operations across the United States...
,
TSNThe Sports Network, commonly abbreviated as TSN, is a Canadian English language Category C specialty channel and is Canada's leading English language sports TV channel. TSN premiered in 1984, in the first group of Canadian specialty cable channels...
,
RDSRéseau des sports , is a Canadian French language Category C specialty channel showing sports and sport-related shows. It is available in 2.5 million homes, and is owned by CTV Specialty Television Inc....
and V broadcast the ceremony live. However there were lengthy commercial breaks during the broadcast, one of which excluded the entrance of the Canadian athletes when returning live. Furthermore the Canadian broadcast also omitted the men's 50 km classical cross-country medal ceremony and the subsequent Norwegian national anthem. The broadcast was the second-most watched event in Canadian television history, with an estimated 24.5 million people watching some part of the ceremonies (of a population of ~ 34 million).
In China,
CCTV-1CCTV-1 is the primary channel of the Chinese television network, CCTV in the People's Republic of China. It has a mixture of all kinds of TV programs, and is available to both cable and terrestrial television viewers.-External links:*...
and
CCTV-5CCTV-5 , also known as the Sports Channel, part of the China Central Television family of networks, is the main sports broadcaster in the People's Republic of China. CCTV-5 began broadcasting on 1 January 1995...
broadcast the ceremony.
In Brazil, only
SportvSporTV is a Brazilian cable television network that has its programming based on all sports, launched in 1991 by Globosat. It's the most watched sports channel in Brazil.- Auto Racing :*Formula One *Stock Car Brasil...
broadcast the ceremony live.
Rede RecordRede Record de Televisão is a Brazilian television network, founded in 1953 by Paulo Machado de Carvalho, also founder of Rádio Record. Currently it is owned by businessman Edir Macedo, founder and bishop of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God. Since 2007 it is Brazil's second largest...
and
Record NewsRecord News is the first 24-hour free-to-air terrestrial news channel in Brazil. It is owned by Rede Record.-History:In 1953, Rede Record de Televisão started as the second Brazilian TV channel . As the network completes 54 years, a new channel has been started by it. This is the first Brazilian...
broadcast the ceremony 90 minutes after its conclusion, in order not to interfere with its prime-time schedule.
In Germany,
ZDFZweites Deutsches Fernsehen , ZDF, is a public-service German television broadcaster based in Mainz . It is run as an independent non-profit institution, which was founded by the German federal states . The ZDF is financed by television licence fees called GEZ and advertising revenues...
carried the closing ceremony. Because of the time difference, it was 3:30 clock in the morning.
In Hong Kong,
Cable TV Hong KongCable TV Hong Kong , previously known as Wharf Cable before October 1998, is owned and operated by i-CABLE Communications Limited...
broadcast the Closing Ceremony.
In Mexico,
XEIMT-TVXEIMT-TV channel 22, also known as "Canal 22", is a cultural and educational television station owned and operated by Televisión Metropolitana S.A...
Canal 22 broadcast the ceremony live.
In Norway, NRK broadcast the ceremony live.
In Russia, Russia 1 broadcast the ceremony live.
In the UK and Ireland, the BBC and British Eurosport broadcast the Closing Ceremony.
In the United States,
NBCNBC Sports' coverage of the Olympic Games consists of broadcasts on the various networks of NBC Universal in the United States, including the NBC broadcast network, Spanish language network Telemundo, and many of the company's cable networks....
broadcast the Closing Ceremony with coverage starting at 7:00 pm EST. NBC abruptly ended Olympic coverage at 10:30 pm EST, to broadcast the debut of
The Marriage RefThe Marriage Ref is a TV reality show and panel game hosted by comedian Tom Papa and produced by Jerry Seinfeld, in which a rotating group of celebrities decides the winners of real-life marital disputes. The show premiered on NBC on Sunday, February 28, 2010 on the final night of the Olympics...
, and resumed at 11:35 pm EST after late local news. This spawned outbursts from upset viewers, especially on
TwitterTwitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
.
Soundtrack
Sounds of Vancouver 2010: Closing Ceremony Commemorative Album , the soundtrack for the closing ceremony, was released on the
iTunes StoreThe iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
on March 1, 2010. It charted at #17 on the
Canadian Albums ChartThe Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS...
. "Un peu plus haut, un peu plus loin", performed by
GarouGarou , from the French expression "loup-garou", which means "werewolf" and is a transformation of "Garand", his last name; is a Canadian singer from Sherbrooke, Quebec. He is known for his work in the musical Notre-Dame de Paris and the #1 hits "Belle", "Seul", "Sous le vent", and "La Rivière de...
is the only track from the opening ceremony included.
| Charts (2010) |
Peak
position |
| Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS...
|
17 |
See also
- 2010 Winter Olympics opening ceremony
The Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics was held on February 12, 2010 beginning at 6:00 pm PST at BC Place Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This was the first Olympic opening ceremony to be held indoors...
- 2006 Winter Olympics closing ceremony
The Closing Ceremony of the 2006 Winter Olympics took place on February 26, 2006 beginning at 20:00 CET at the Stadio Olimpico in Turin, Italy.-Program:...