General

And the Finger-Pointing Gold goes to….

images-1SIDESHOW SAM: The story of the City of Vancouver’s controversial and no-longer-secret $100 million loan to the builders of the 2010 Olympic Village just keeps getting better. Mayor Sam Sullivan yesterday called in the local police to determine who exactly purloined confidential documents about the deal, shared them with the media, and then returned them. The potential suspects are denying any sort of involvement. And as the Vancouver Sun reports, all 10 incumbent councillors, plus the mayor, have agreed to take a lie detector test to dispel any doubts.

Confused? Saturday in municipal election day in Vancouver.

PAY NO ATTENTION TO THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN: Meanwhile, you’ll all be relieved to know that the global financial meltdown will have no effect whatsoever on the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi Russia. Dmitry Chernyshenko, head of the Sochi organizing committee, told the AP that Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is taking personal responsibility to ensure the success of Russia’s first Winter Olympics and that funding for the US$12-billion project is secure. “Considering that the overall price for construction is tens of billions of dollars, it’s nothing for a country like Russia. So there is no risk of under-financing of this project.”

INJURY UPDATE: Hayley Wickenheiser will be out at least 6 weeks with a knee injury, but doesn’t need surgery, she says. However, she is wondering if her Swedish men’s pro team Eskilstuna will cut her loose.

LOOKING AHEAD: Canmore’s Thomas Grandi, a two-time World Cup winner officially starts his comeback this weekend in the first World Cup slalom race in Levi, Finland. The 35-year-old announced this past summer that he was coming out of retirement to vie for a place on the 2010 team. Other Canadians racing this weekend: Michael Janyk (Whistler, BC), who was on the podium in a World Cup slalom event in Beaver Creek in 2006, along with Patrick Biggs (Orleans, ON), Julien Cousineau (Lachute, QC), Scott Barrett (Toronto, ON) and Trevor White ( Calgary, AB). And on the women’s side, Anna Goodman (Pointe Claire, QC), Brigitte Acton (Mont-Tremblant, QC) and Shona Rubens (Canmore, AB) are competing.

DRINKING WITH WEASELS: And should you find yourself in Whistler this evening, why not drop by Dusty’s bar. Vanoc is sponsoring a little shindig to give the public a chance to the “famed” Weasel Workers, reports the Whistler Question. The Weasels are local ski fans who built the tracks in Whistler for NorAm races, Canadian Championships and travellied the ski racing world volunteering at World Cups, World Championships and Olympics.

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