Passion and spirit lifts Vancouver games

The Vancouver Winter Olympics, marred by early tragedy but destined ultimately to be remembered as a Games embraced by its hosts like few before them, drew to a close amid an unprecedented, country-wide party last night.

Basking in the golden glow of an ice hockey triumph they would have swapped for any of the 13 other golds they claimed at these Olympics, Canadians thronged the stadiums and streets with celebration.

Its nightmare start, beginning with the tragic death of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili hours before the opening ceremony and followed by track controversy and weather concerns, had been beaten by the hosts’ passion and spirit.

Yet among all the pride and the glittering guest appearances by stars like William Shatner and Michael J Fox was a moment to pause and pay a moving tribute to Kumaritashvili, whose name was greeted by an impromptu standing ovation midway through the closing ceremony.

International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge said: “We have shared the grief of an Olympic dream cut short. The memory of Nodar Kumaritashvili will always be with us.”

Rogge paid tribute to Vancouver as “excellent and very friendly Games.”

Perhaps hinting at the way in which the Games recovered after its awful start, Rogge added: “You have done it – you have won.”

Vancouver chief executive John Furlong said: “We have seen first hand there is indeed a beautiful force that can unite, inspire and liberate, a force that can replace despair with hope, and ignite the human spirit. This force is sport.”

Furlong went to describe the last two weeks as “the most beautiful kind of patriotism” – though the hosts’ aggressively pursued ’Own The Podium’ programme had produced a negative perception among some rival nations.

Yet in the supreme efforts of the world’s best athletes on snow and ice, in the superbly appointed stadiums and in particular in the enthusiastic way in which the host city embraced the Games, Vancouver found some degree of redemption.

A metaphor for that recovery came in a clever start to the closing ceremony, when the fourth tower which had failed hydraulically 17 days ago was symbolically raised, allowing speed-skater Catriona Le May Doan to finally light her part of the flame.

The rest of the recovery was down to its athletes who thrilled capacity crowds in both Vancouver and in particular its co-host Whistler, whose charm captivated all those who pursued their Olympic memories in the mountains.

Kim Yu-Na’s flawless free skate to win women’s figure skating gold provided the Games with its seminal moment, destined to be linked to Vancouver in the same way Usain Bolt’s 100m dash will for ever be intertwined with the history of Beijing.

In the same competition, Joannie Rochette succeeded where no amount of macho medal-pushing ever could, skating her way to bronze less than a week after the death of her mother with a performance of such dignity there was hardly a dry eye in the house.

Tonight, the victorious Canadian team hailed Rochette’s courage by awarding her the honour of carrying the host flag into the stadium. It was a fitting tribute for a star whose bronze medal was, for once, worth its weight in gold.

Norwegian cross-country skier Petter Northug was awarded the final gold medal of the Games midway through the ceremony for his victory in winter sport’s ultimate endurance event, the men’s 50km cross-country.

And amid the procession of flag-bearing athletes there was also a reminder of what makes the Winter Games ever so slightly special: Ghanaian ’Snow Leopard’ Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, and Mexican prince Hubertus Von Hohenlohe.

Bearing the Union Jack as proudly as anyone was Amy Williams, whose skeleton exploits down a track feared with good reason by many whipped up a storm back home and gave Great Britain its first individual Winter Games gold for 30 years.

Despite the general failure of some other fancied British athletes to make the grade – chiefly reigning world champions David Murdoch and Nicola Minichiello - Williams’ remarkable triumph more than eased the disappointment.

The question now for the relevant funding authorities is whether to look beyond London and back the next generation aiming towards Sochi in four years’ time. The extraordinary success of the skeleton programme, at the very least, deserves rewarding.

Primarily, the huge impression from Vancouver was that the Winter Games has never been healthier, having integrated its newest elements, snowboard and freestyle skiing, to spectacularly successful effect.

On a broader scale, the Vancouver Games emerged from its troubled early days to provide plenty of examples for London to heed as it prepares to raise the Olympic flag itself in two years’ time.

Vancouver may not have had the budget of Beijing, but it showed how to guarantee a successful Games by engaging the public both in and out of venues. In that respect, it showed the world a passion no amount of Chinese Yuan could buy.