iPhone Apps for Vancouver 2010

It seems nowadays everyone has an iPhone app and that there truly is "an app for that!" The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games are no exception to that rule.

Vancouver 2010 :: This free app is the official Vancouver 2010 application put out by VANOC and is a location-aware schedule detailing more than 2,000 sport and cultural events taking place over the Olympic Games in Vancouver.

This FREE app is a location-aware schedule detailing more than 2,000 sport and cultural events taking place over 17 days between February 12 and 28, 2010.
Updated throughout the Games, the schedule adjusts to your time zone and works even without a data connection. Plan your Olympic experience by creating a personalized itinerary using Favourites. The app also includes real-time results for every sport as well as headlines, photos and twitter streams.

CTV Olympics :: The free app from the official Canadian broadcaster of the Olympic Winter Games is jam-packed with all sorts of useful features. Articles, athlete bios, photos, scheduling, blogging, and more. All features may not be available to those outside of Canada.

We cover up-to-the-minute headlines and news on every sport at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Stunning photo galleries with hundreds of spectacular photos, in-depth Canadian and International athlete profiles, venue information and the upcoming event schedule for the Games.

NBC Olympics :: The free app from the official US broadcaster of the Olympic Winter Games is stuffed with all sorts of useful features. Video, Articles, athlete bios, photos, scheduling, social media tie-ins, push notifications and more. All features may not be available to those outside of the United States. This app also requires the latest iPhone OS.

Experience the best of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games with the NBC Olympics app. Follow all the action with live real-time updates on every event from Vancouver. Check out NBC Olympics video clips and highlights, news stories for every sport, results & schedules, and updated medal counts. Plus, you can follow your favorite nations, sports and athletes on Facebook and Twitter -- all from your phone.

SportLogik :: Don't know the rules of all those winter Olympic games?! This app will tell you all the rules and regulations so you're in the know!

If you plan on watching the Winter Olympics and are not sure of the difference between Luge and Skeleton and maybe Curling is a total mystery, or you are having a friendly disagreement about the year the US Olympic Hockey team won the Olympic gold medal, we have the answers. For those more foreign sports, such as Australian Rules Football that you want to talk to your Aussie mates about, or its Cricket you want to talk over with all your Cricket following friends, we can help with these foreign relations problems as well.

Bonus :: Lonely Planet Guide to Vancouver :: This app, which would normally cost up to $15.99 to purchase, is free in honour of Vancouver 2010. It gives you a location-aware rundown of sights to see in Vancouver... when you're not cheering on your country

Get a bird’s eye view of ‘Vansterdam’ with Vancouver Travel Guide: The Sights. As this spectacular city gears up for the games there’s no better time to have all of its sights at your fingertips. From UBC Thunderbird Arena and the Pacific Coliseum, to the Vancouver Art Gallery and the Capilano Salmon Hatchery, we’ve listed over 70 things-to-see and where to see them. Zoom in on our location-aware maps to discover exactly where your next ‘must see spot’ is. Also included are our ‘landscape low-downs’ on just what makes this famously cool city, so hot right now.

Google Streetview on Whistler Mountains

The crazy video from the Google team shows you a whole new "street" view...

Here's one example of the Dave Murray Downhill, home of the 2010 Downhill Alpine events. More specific links on the Google Blog.

Vanoc Venue Video

New 2010 Map!

In order to help you to find what you want to find we've created a new Google Map that lists all of the competition venues, celebration sites, media centres, athletes' villages, and more!

We're going to be added many more "Olympic Locations" to the map as time goes on so check back often.

View the map here.

Vancouver's Athletes Village Claims First Victim

The Vancouver city official in charge of overseeing the Athletes Village has resigned, reports suggest.

Jody Andrew's departure has been abrupt and there is no word yet of who is in line to replace him.

Read more on his departure here.

More information on the beleaguered Olympic Village here.

First 2009 Olympic Wramp-Up Sporting Events in Whistler

Millions of European Nordic-sports fans are expected to tune in daily to the happenings at the Whistler Olympic Park where the first 3 of 16 sporting events that will happen this year are taking place this week.



The events will be cross-country skiing (January 16–18), Nordic combined (January 16–17) and ski jumping (January 23–25).

Over 700 volunteers and workers will take part in making this an event to remember.

Read more here.

Athletes village to get $100-million loan

The city of Vancouver is providing up to $100M to the developer of Millennium Water, what the world will know as the Athlete's Village during the 2010 Olympics.

The funds will be a loan to help cover cost overruns and other shortfalls.

Read more here.

Richmond Oval Officially Opening December 12-13

On December 12th the Richmond Oval will officially be open...

The Richmond Olympic Oval, home of speed skating for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, will officially open on Friday, December 12 and Saturday, December 13. An innovative and memorable community celebration will mark the opening and will showcase the Oval's unique design and include opportunities for members of the public to skate on the 400-metre track.

Read more here.

Vancouver's Olympic Village in Trouble?

Amid the current global financial credit crisis rumours are starting to swirl that the Vancouver Athletes Village being constructed by Millennium Development Corp. on the shores of South East False Creek could be in serious financial trouble.

Fortress Investment Group, a large private-equity establishment out of New York who provided much of the funds has apparently been monitoring the project and their reported cost overruns very closely.

The City of Vancouver also recently held an emergency review of the project since they are apparently on the hook to completely the $1B project should the current financing methods be recalled.

Read more on these major rumours here.

Whistler's Peak 2 Peak Launch December 12

It won't be long now until Whistler launches Peak 2 Peak, a massive gondola travelling from the Peak of Whistler Mountain 2 the Peak of Blackcomb Mountain.

The gondola will have the greatest length of freespan cable in the world! The journey will take nearly 12 minutes to cross the valley nearly 450m below. Take a "peak" at the video below...



Read more about the Peak2Peak Gondola here.

New Entry Court at Canada Place

Expo '86 saw a big infrastructure boom for Vancouver and the Lower Mainland including such notable fixtures as Sky Train, the Alex Fraser Bridge, Science World, and Canada Place which houses the Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre.

The expanded Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre (VTCC) will house the media for Vancouver 2010 and service countless conventions leading up to the Olymipcs and well after their departure.

To bridge the existing VTCC, Canada Place Corporation will develop a new Entry Court between the two sections. A dramatic face lift will be performed on the current public plaza housing one of Vancouver's least inspiring fountains and will be replaced allowing for a link between the East and West sections of the VTCC.

The Welcome Centre will be a place where staff and displays will provide information about Canada Place, events at the facilities, and Canada.

Pieces of the existing fountain will be re-used in the lobby of the Convention Centre as a nod the Expo '86 legacy.

VANOC Updates Continue Virtually Without Hiccups

Despite having several incredibly ambitious aspects to the VANOC plan for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games the planning, preparations, and construction continue on-pace and largely on budget and without any significant hiccups.

The VANOC plans include several ambitious projects. A nearly $1B improvement of the Sea to Sky highway that travels from Vancouver to Whistler should drastically increase the safety of the route and also decrease the travel time during the games from nearly 2 hours to less than 90 minutes. This will be achieved in part by only allowing 'local' traffic, buses, and emergency personnel on the route.

The Athletes Village in Vancouver is probably the most ambitious constructions projects Vancouver has ever seen. Some 20 buildings are being constructed as a part of the sustainable community striving for LEED Gold or Platinum certification. The Village also has the new Canada Line LRT at it's doorstep allowing easy connections between Downtown Vancouver, Richmond Centre, the Vancouver International Airport and everything in between.

The new Vancouver Convention Centre which will house the International Media during the Olympics is probably the most ambitious single building every constructed in Vancouver. Months were spent pile driving in Burrard Inlet during the creation of the new land that the centre would sit on. The sleek design showcases the stunning views of Coal Harbour, Stanley Park and the North Shore Mountains. This beautiful building also features a green roof.

In addition to these projects there are many other venues being constructed and of course the Canada Line bringing rapid transit from the Airport to Richmond and Vancouver.

In many ways one could say that the progress that VANOC is making is quite boring. In this case, boring is good.

More from The Globe and Mail.

Venue : GM Place to Not Be GM Place

That's a strange title but hopefully you understood it.

John Furlong, the chief 2010 organizer, announced today in Beijing that GM Place will undergo a quick name-change for the 2010 Olympics in light of IOC policy that states that no venue can bare the name of a corporation.

The name to be finalized, may be Canada Hockey Place, as most of the ice hockey games of the Olympics will be held there.

What do you think they should re-name General Motors Place? I guess they could officially re-name it 'The Garage' for the period required.

Completed Venue : UBC Winter Sports Centre

The first indoor venue to be completed is officially the UBC Winter Sports Centre. Finished 4 months ahead of schedule and at a cost of just under $49M the new 3-rink centre replaces an aging 4 rink venue. Most of the cost was bore by VANOC.

The facility which can seat 7500 persons will play host to sledge hockey, most women's ice hockey, and some men's hockey during the Paralympic and Olympic Winter Games in 2010.

Venue : BC Place Stadium Roof Should be Replaced (after 2010)

The British Columbia government was advised by PavCo, the crown corporation in charge of managing BC Place Stadium, that the Teflon-coated roof should be replaced with a retractable dome top but not until after the 2010 Olympics.

No decision has been made to this point, but the briefing was carried out Wednesday by the head of PavCo, David Podmore. Key points mentioned include the requirement of the venue for the 2010 Opening & Closing Ceremonies, the challenge in finding a suitable builder, rising building costs, and the tight time line.

Possible plans for the dome replacement continue to be worked on.

More info here.

Venue : BC Place Could Still be Retrofitted

News continues to flow regarding the potential retrofitting of BC Place Stadium with a new, retractable roof.

It was reported last week by 1040 that the retrofit had all but been confirmed. Then a team was spotted attaining core samples of the building's concrete inside and out and also of the surrounding area. It has now been speculated that the proposal, which needs to be passed by the BC Provincial Legislature may go before the house today.

One things for certain, with only 20 months remaining this could be a very risky gamble.

The current roof will need to be replaced shortly after the 2010 Olympics but a new fabric dome top would only cost approx. $20M vs. the $150-250M potential costs for a retractable roof.

Venue : BC Place - Vancouver's Big Gamble

So it turns out that media reports blogged about here 'confirming' that the retrofit of BC Place Stadium to be fitted with a retractable roof in place of it's current air-supported fabric domed top in time for the 2010 Winter Olympic games are not yet true.

What is true is that both BC Premier Gordon Campbell and David Podmore, the construction exec in charge of revamping the stadium want it done.

The scary thing is that upon entry of this blog there are only 654 days left until the opening ceremonies. In construction terms that is a pretty short time-line, especially when talking about major projects involving extensive engineering, fabrication, etc.

VANOC has been well ahead of schedule with every other venue. Most venues are scheduled to be completed sometime this year! Although a retrofit of BC Place was not a part of the original 2010 bid any renovations could cause serious concerns for VANOC, the IOC, and the entire world.

Athen's showed us that poor planning and late starts on construction, including stadium retrofits, are NOT a good idea. The possible BC Place stadium retrofit would be incredible for the opening ceremonies (if it wasn't raining), and would be a welcome addition to BC Lion's games (when it isn't raining), MLS soccer matches perhaps (when it's not raining), etc. But seeing as it normally rains in February & March anyways, and the timeline is getting VERY tight the drive to retrofit the stadium could be Vancouver's biggest gamble of the games!

More from Miro Cernetig, Vancouver Sun.

Official Supplier: Molson, eh!

Their official name isn't Molson, eh! it's Molson Coors Brewing Company and if you attend a 2010 Olympic venue and plan to enjoy a beverage of the fermented variety you'll be enjoying one of their products.

Molson, who merged a couple of years ago with Coors, is the oldest brewing company in Canada. Their brands include Molson Canadian, Molson Export, Molson Dry, Coors Light, Pilsner, Corona, Rickard's, and more.

The contract starts January 1, 2009, and Molson also gets sponsorship rights for the Canadian Olympic team in 2010, and the London 2012 Games.

Cheers!

Venue : BC Place Stadium Retrofit 'Confirmed'

Team 1040, a local sports radio station, is reporting that the retractable roof retrofit of BC Place Stadium has been confirmed. Stay tuned for more firm confirmation on this major news piece.

Recently crews from Mud Bay Drilling were seen taking core samples around the stadium in what was believed to be an effort to further determine the structural integrity of the building since a retractable roof would no doubt weigh considerably more than the current air-supported fabric dome.

Interestingly, in a report from 24 Hours Bob Mackin a roof engineering specialist from Texas noted that he considered it an impossibility to commence and complete construction of a new retractable roof for BC Place in time for the 2010 Olympic Games.

It should also be noted that a retrofit of BC Place Stadium was not a part of the VANOC 2010 Olympic bid.

Venue : Skating Oval Roof Membrane Fungus

Unless your talking about mushrooms fungus is normally not the most desired topic of conversation. This is one of those times as apparent fungi and algae have been discovered on one of the layers of insulation of the roof at the Richmond Oval which will be used for long track speed skating during the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

The roof membrane will have to be replaced at a cost of approximately $2M. Fortunately this is within the project's contingency and should not affect the overall timeline.

More from NEWS1130.com.