VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP)—British Columbia says it spent $895 million to host the Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic Games.
That’s $155 million more than the official Olympic budget of $740 million.
The release Friday of the new number is the first time the province has acknowledged that expenses such as pavilions at the 2006 Turin and 2008 Beijing Olympics were part of the costs that British Columbia paid to host to the world.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP)—A group of Vancouver business leaders has given $10,000 to the family of the luger killed on the first day of the Olympics.
Nodar Kumaritashvili of Georgia died in a training run on Feb. 12.
The Vancouver Board of Trade made the donation Friday in honor of John Furlong, head of the 2010 Games.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP)—Hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games cost Vancouver only slightly less than it takes to run the city itself for an entire year.
A report going before the city council next week estimates the city spent $727.6 million on infrastructure and operations to host the world for the 27 days of the games.
It recouped $174.5 million of it from the provincial and the federal governments, leaving a bill of $553.1 million.
GENEVA (AP)—An official investigation into the death of Nodar Kumaritashvili at the Vancouver Olympics will find no single cause for his fatal luge accident.
Svein Romstad, secretary general of the International Luge Federation, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the FIL report is set to describe the 21-year-old Georgian’s crash at 90 mph on Whistler’s sliding track as something that could not have been foreseen.
“Everybody wants a scapegoat and to say, ‘It was that person’ (to blame),” Romstad, the report’s lead writer, said.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP)—A jersey worn by Sidney Crosby during a Team Canada game against Switzerland at the Vancouver Olympics has sold at auction for $35,034.
A puck from the overtime period of the gold-medal hockey game is in an Ohio resident’s hands at the cost of $13,088. A tray that held the medals presented to the gold-medal winning women’s hockey team sold for $4,990.
That’s according to Dennis Kim, director of merchandising for the Vancouver Olympic organizing committee.
WHISTLER ' The 2010 Paralympics, breaking new records in attendance and visibility around the world, closed out in a flash of colour and patriotism Sunday night as athletes from around the world gathered under a basketball court-sized Canadian flag and wished the Games goodbye.
WHISTLER, British Columbia (AP)—The 2010 Winter Paralympics have been declared closed by the president of the International Paralympic Committee.
Sir Phillip Craven officially ended Canada’s first Paralympic Games before a crowd of thousands gathered in rainy Whistler, British Columbia.
Canada’s golden girl at the Games, Lauren Woolstencroft, who won five gold medals, carried the flag into the ceremonies on behalf of the host team.
WHISTLER, British Columbia (AP)—Olympic executives will attend a memorial in Georgia for the luger who was killed on the first day of the Vancouver Games.
John Furlong, the head of the Vancouver organizers, was invited to Tuesday’s memorial by the family of Nodar Kumaritashvili.
The service is taking place 40 days after Kumaritashvili’s death, in accordance with Christian orthodox traditions.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP)—A Swedish curler at the Paralympics has been banned for two years after failing a doping test.
Wheelchair curling fourth Glenn Ikonen says he didn’t know the blood pressure medication he was taking was on the banned list.
Ikonen, who was to throw the rocks in Friday’s match against Italy, told a news conference he was disappointed his doctor gave him medication that was on the banned list.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP)—The United States sledge hockey team has struck gold with a 2-0 victory over Japan at the Vancouver Paralympics.
The U.S. didn’t give up a single goal in the tournament and jumped on Japan 4 minutes into Saturday’s gold medal game when Alexi Salamone scored on the power play.
Japan was awarded a penalty shot in the second period, but American netminder Steve Cash made a shoulder save to preserve the 1-0 lead.
