Torchbearer misses out chance to light cauldron
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – The Olympic cauldron was lit Friday to open the XXI Winter Games, despite a technical glitch.
Canadian torchbearers lit the cauldron inside BC Place to culminate an opening ceremony dedicated to the Georgian luger killed in a training crash earlier in the day.
The final torchbearers were hockey great Wayne Gretzky, NBA star Steve Nash, skier Nancy Greene and speedskater Catriona LeMay Doan.
One of the four giant cauldron legs failed to extend, so only three of the four athletes actually lit the flame. LeMay Doan missed out.
A second Olympic cauldron was lit by Gretzky a few minutes later in Vancouver’s downtown waterfront area.
The Olympic sports competitions begin Saturday and run through Feb. 28.
The ceremony was marked by tributes to Nodar Kumaritashvili, who died after going off the track and hitting a steel pylon during a luge training run. (AP)
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