Chinese President Xi Jinping declared the Olympic Winter Games open on Friday, during a subdued opening ceremony that followed less than six months after the end of the pandemic-delayed Tokyo Summer Games.
Before Xi declared the Games open, International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach wished those in attendance and those watching at home a happy new year, as those celebrating the Lunar New Year are in the midst of that celebration, which began earlier this week.
“This year of the tiger is also an Olympic year,” Bach said. “Both the year of the tiger and the Olympic year stand for ambition, courage and strength. Today, thanks to this ambition, China is a winter sport country.”
Indeed, Bach noted that some 300 million Chinese residents are now participating in winter sports, at more than 2,000 ice rinks and ski resorts.
“Now your moment has come: the moment you have been longing for, the moment we all have been longing for,” Bach told the more than 2,400 athletes who will be competing at these Games. “Now your Olympic dream is coming true in magnificent venues supported by hundreds of millions of new Chinese winter sport fans.”
Bach noted that athletes living together in the Olympic Athlete’s Village show the world how rivals can live together in harmony.
“There, there will be no discrimination for any reason whatsoever. In our fragile world, where division, conflict and mistrust are on the rise, we show the world that yes it is possible to be fierce rivals, while at the same time living peacefully and respectfully together.”
After the Games were declared open, six former Olympic medallists from China carried the Olympic flag into the National Stadium as a children’s choir sang the Olympic anthem in Greek, having practiced for three months.
To close the opening ceremony, seven torch-bearers carried the Olympic flame in a final relay into the stadium. One male and one female torch-bearer shared the last torch in a display of gender equality. All of the final torch-bearers are winter-sport athletes who were born sequentially in the 1950s, ’60s, ’70s, ’80s, ’90s and 2000s.
The torch was then placed inside a giant snowflake that hung over the stadium, before a massive fireworks display erupted.
‘We are cheering for everyone’
Athletes from more than 90 countries settled into Beijing’s National Stadium, a.k.a. the “Bird’s Nest,” for the opening ceremony of these Games — a familiar scene as the city is the first to host both a Summer and Winter Olympics, with many venues repurposed for winter use after the 2008 Summer Games.
Canada’s flag-bearers, short track speed skater Charles Hamelin and hockey star Marie-Philip Poulin, led Team Canada into the 80,000-seat National Stadium 27th out of more than 90 countries that have sent teams to these Games.
Hamelin said he had “chills” when he received the flag, and while athletes are following COVID-19 protocols, Team Canada is still banding together to support one another.
“We are limited in our contact, but we are cheering for everyone,” he said right before marching into the stadium.
The Canadian Olympic Committee announced the selection of Poulin and Hamelin on Wednesday, the day competition began with the opening round of the mixed curling round robin tournament.
WATCH | Poulin and Hamelin lead Team Canada into the opening ceremony:
Poulin and Hamelin lead Canada into opening ceremony of Olympic Winter Games
3 hours ago
Duration 3:48
Canadian hockey great Marie-Philip Poulin and Olympic champion Charles Hamelin led Canada’s contingent into the opening ceremony in Beijing. 3:48
Also returning this year is opening ceremony director Zhang Yimou, the Chinese filmmaker whose movies include House of Flying Daggers and Raise the Red Lantern, who served in the same role in 2008.
The departure for this opening ceremony, the theme of which is “One World, One Family,” is the fact that not a single performer is a professional. All singers, dancers and actors in the show are students from primary and secondary schools, and universities, as well as ordinary citizens from Beijing and across Hebei province. Unlike in 2008, there are no big-name stars set to take the stage.
“Chinese culture believes that a truly wise person sees the whole world as a family,” the media guide for the opening ceremony reads. “We hope that Beijing 2022 will be a reunion of people from all over the world, and that we will all spend an unforgettable Chinese New Year together in Beijing as one family.”
The Lunar New Year period began on Feb. 1.
Fans take their seats inside the stadium prior to the opening ceremony of the Olympic Winter Games at the Beijing National Stadium on Friday in Beijing, China. (Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)
The official program began with a countdown of sorts, with a video marking the 24 Jie Qi, or solar terms, of the Chinese lunar calendar. In the Chinese lunar calendar, each month is divided into two solar terms, with were formed generations ago and are based on the changing patterns of animal behaviour, plant growth and weather. To this day, they still guide agricultural production and daily life.
The number 24 is also symbolic for these Games, as they are the 24th Olympic Winter Games.
The Chinese flag was then brought into the National Stadium by a group of Chinese citizens from all walks of life, which included representatives from 56 different ethnic groups in China.
Not long after, the Olympic rings, which are always on display for an opening ceremony, appeared. A drop of blue “ink” dropped from the sky and turned into a river, and the waves undulated until they froze, with a giant cube emerging from the floor.
Twenty-four laser beams carved the names of the 24 host cities of the Winter Games into the cube as hockey players shot around a puck. Every time the puck hit the cube, laser beams shot at it until it broke apart to reveal the Olympic rings. This “ice-breaking” was designed to evoke the ice-breakers we experience as we get to know others.
Indeed, the stage at the centre of the stadium is composed of HD LED screens, which together resemble a giant ice surface. On that surface also rests the Chinese character for happiness, which people put in their windows and doors during Lunar New Year. They often put it upside down, which then makes it the Chinese symbol for “arrival,” meaning the happiness will arrive home.
Snowflake motif
If spectators at home notice a lot of snowflake motifs throughout the ceremony, indeed it’s a theme that runs throughout the event. The snowflake imagery brings together East and West. As a 1,300-year-old line from Chinese poet Li Bai goes, “The snowflakes in the Yan Mountains are as big as a mattress,” while the Western proverb reminds us that “no two snowflakes are alike.” All are different, but come together to make a beautiful winter, just like different people come together at the Olympics.
The snowflake-like motif can be seen on the placards on which each country’s name is written as the athletes march in to the stadium. The design of the placards is also inspired by the “Chinese knot,” an ancient Chinese craft of hand-knitting with one single thread throughout. The placard-bearers also have a snow and snowflake motif in their costumes, as well as tiger motifs in their hats, for the Year of the Tiger.
After the parade of nations, all placard-holders came together to form a larger snowflake made up of the placards of each country, and the large snowflake was framed by olive branches — a symbol of peace — done in calligraphy.
Team Canada fielding 215 athletes
WATCH | Canada’s flag-bearers discuss life in the Athlete’s Village with tight COVID-19 restrictions:
How have COVID-19 restrictions affected athletes at Beijing 2022?
2 days ago
Duration 1:10
Team Canada’s flag-bearers Charles Hamelin and Marie-Philip Poulin respond to a question about the Beijing 2022 experience in the athlete’s village, with tight restrictions around COVID-19. 1:10
Team Canada is fielding 215 athletes — third-most for a Winter Olympics and the most athletes who identify as female, with 106 — at Beijing 2022, which runs until Feb. 20.
Beijing is the first city to host both a Summer and Winter Olympics, and has incorporated some of the venues from the 2008 Summer Games.
International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach said that, as of Thursday, some 2,740 athletes from around the world are in Beijing for the Games. As with the Olympic Summer Games in Tokyo last year, no tickets were sold for the opening ceremony, but Beijing organizers gave tickets to select groups of people.
The Beijing Games are being run with strict COVID-19-prevention protocols, including what’s being called a “closed loop” system, in which athletes, media and other officials confined to a bubble, away from the public.
In the lead up to the Games, a number of countries — including Canada — announced diplomatic boycotts in protest of human rights abuses in China, particularly reports of forced labour of Uyghur workers.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, an ally of China, is one of the few foreign leaders at the opening ceremony despite growing international concern about a potential Russian invasion of Ukraine.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
Inter Milan winger Tajon Buchanan, recovered from a broken leg suffered in training at this summer’s Copa America, is back in Jesse Marsch’s Canada squad for the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal against Suriname.
The 25-year-old from Brampton, Ont., underwent surgery July 3 to repair a fractured tibia in Texas.
Canada, ranked 35th in the world, plays No. 136 Suriname on Nov. 15 in Paramaribo. The second leg of the aggregate series is four days later at Toronto’s BMO Field.
There is also a return for veteran winger Junior Hoilett, who last played for Canada in June in a 4-0 loss to the Netherlands in Marsch’s debut at the Canadian helm. The 34-year-old from Brampton, now with Scotland’s Hibernian, has 15 goals in 63 senior appearances for Canada.
Midfielder Ismael Kone, recovered from an ankle injury sustained on club duty with France’s Marseille, also returns. He missed Canada’s last three matches since the fourth-place Copa America loss to Uruguay in July.
But Canada will be without centre back Derek Cornelius, who exited Marseille’s win Sunday over Nantes on a stretcher after suffering an apparent rib injury.
The Canadian men will prepare for Suriname next week at a camp in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
“We are looking forward to getting the group together again with the mindset that there is a trophy on the line,” Marsch said in a statement. “We want to end 2024 the right way with two excellent performances against a competitive Suriname squad and continue building on our tremendous growth this past summer.”
The quarterfinal winners advance to the Nations League Finals at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., with the two semifinals scheduled for March 20 and the final and third-place playoff March 23, and qualify for the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Thirteen of the 23 players on the Canadian roster are 25 or younger, with 19-year-old defender Jamie Knight-Lebel, currently playing for England’s Crewe Alexandra on loan from Bristol City, the youngest.
Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies captains the side with Stephen Eustaquio, Jonathan Osorio, Richie Laryea, Alistair Johnston and Kamal Miller adding veteran support.
Jonathan David, Cyle Larin and Theo Bair are joined in attack by Minnesota United’s Tani Oluwaseyi.
Niko Sigur, a 21-year-old midfielder with Croatia’s Hadjuk Split, continues in the squad after making his debut in the September friendly against Mexico.
Suriname made it to the Nations League quarterfinals by finishing second to Costa Rica in Group A of the Nations League, ahead of No. 104 Guatemala, No. 161 Guyana and unranked Martinique and Guadeloupe.
“A good team,” Osorio said of Suriname. “These games are always tricky and they’re not easy at all … Suriname is a (former) Dutch colony and they’ll have Dutch players playing at high levels.”
“They won’t be someone we overlook at all,” added the Toronto FC captain, who has 81 Canada caps to his credit.
Located on the northeast coast of South America between Guyana and French Guiana, Suriname was granted independence in 1975 by the Netherlands.
Canada has faced Suriname twice before, both in World Cup qualifying play, winning 4-0 in suburban Chicago in June 2021 and 2-1 in Mexico City in October 1977.
The Canadian men, along with Mexico, the United States and Panama, received a bye into the final eight of the CONCACAF Nations League.
Canada, No. 2 in the CONCACAF rankings, drew Suriname as the best-placed runner-up from League A play.
Canada lost to Jamaica in last year’s Nations League quarterfinal, ousted on the away-goals rule after the series ended in a 4-4 draw. The Canadians lost 2-0 to the U.S. in the final of the 2022-23 tournament and finished fifth in 2019-20.
Canada defeated Panama 2-1 last time out, in an Oct. 15 friendly in Toronto.
Goalkeepers Maxime Crepeau and Jonathan Sirois, defenders Joel Waterman, Laryea and Miller and Osorio took part in a pre-camp this week in Toronto for North America-based players.
Canada Roster
Goalkeepers: Maxime Crepeau, Portland Timbers (MLS); Jonathan Sirois, CF Montreal (MLS); Dayne St. Clair, Minnesota United FC (MLS).
Defenders: Moise Bombito, OGC Nice (France); Alphonso Davies, Bayern Munich (Germany); Richie Laryea, Toronto FC (MLS); Alistair Johnston, Celtic (Scotland); Jamie Knight-Lebel. Crewe Alexandra, on loan from Bristol City (England); Kamal Miller, Portland Timbers (MLS); Joel Waterman, CF Montreal (MLS).
Midfielders: Ali Ahmed. Vancouver Whitecaps (MLS); Tajon Buchanan, Inter Milan (Italy); Mathieu Choiniere, Grasshopper Zurich (Switzerland); Stephen Eustaquio, FC Porto (Portugal); Junior Hoilett, Hibernian FC (Scotland); Ismael Kone, Olympique Marseille (France); Jonathan Osorio, Toronto FC (MLS); Jacob Shaffelburg, Nashville SC (MLS); Niko Sigur, Hadjuk Split (Croatia).
Forwards: Theo Bair, AJ Auxerre (France); Jonathan David, LOSC Lille (France); Cyle Larin, RCD Mallorca (Spain); Tani Oluwaseyi, Minnesota United (MLS).
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
