Team GB Day One Preview
Following many years of dedication, commitment and sacrifice, the Best of British winter athletes can finally look forward to competing on the greatest stage of all as the curtain has been drawn on the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.
Team GB consists of 52 athletes across 11 sport disciplines -- and athletes from four different sports are due to get their Olympic campaigns under way on the first day of competition, with three gold medals up for grabs.
First up is 24-year-old alpine skier
Ed Drake in the men’s downhill event, which begins at 11.45am in Whistler. The downhill is often referred to as one of the blue riband events of the Games and will provide Drake with an excellent opportunity to test himself against the best skiers in the world in Vancouver 2010’s first medal opportunity. Drake spent the final week prior to the Games preparing at the Team GB Preparation Camp in Calgary, where he trained at nearby Nakiska.
(Update: The men's downhill event has been postponed until 15th February due to adverse weather)
Later in the afternoon the luge competition featuring Team GB’s AJ Rosen begins at 17:00 with the first two runs.
The evening sees four of Team GB’s seven short track speed skaters take to the ice of the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver. Three-time Olympian
Sarah Lindsay will be competing in the women’s 500m heats at 17:42, alongside 19-year-old Olympic debutant
Elise Christie. This is preceded by recent World Junior bronze medallist
Jack Whelbourne and
Anthony Douglas who are due to race in the heats of the men’s 1500m at 17:00. Following the semi-finals at 18:18, the final of the men’s 1500m concludes the night of skating activity at 19:18.
At Wednesday’s Team GB press conference Lindsay claimed to be in the form of her life, having enjoyed a successful period of training at Team GB’s Preparation Camp in Calgary during which she broke a personal best record which had stood for eight years.
Over on Cypress Mountain 18-year-old Ellie Koyander will take on the ski moguls course for Team GB in the freestyle skiing discipline, which begins at 16:30 with the final taking place at 19:30. Koyander has been keen to give Team GB fans an insight into the world of a top moguls skier on her journey to Vancouver 2010 and you can watch her video diaries here -
http://vancouver2010.teamgb.com/Video/
Team GB In Action -- Saturday, February 13
Men's Luge; Whistler Sliding Centre
AJ Rosen
5:00 p.m.
Men's Short Track Speed Skating 1500 m; Pacific Coliseum
Jack Whelbourne and Anthony Douglas
5:00 p.m. - Qualification Heats
6:18 p.m. - Semifinals
7:18 p.m. - Finals
Women's Short Track Speed Skating 500 m; Pacific Coliseum
Sarah Lindsay and Elise Cristie
5:42 p.m. - Qualification Heats
Women's Freestyle Moguls; Cypress Mountain
Ellie Koyander
4:30 p.m. - Qualification Runs
7:30 p.m. - Finals
Click on the link to view the complete competition schedule and detailed timings for Saturday 13th February -
http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-schedule-results/
Notes to editors:
Team GB consists of 52 athletes from 6 sports and 11 disciplines at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Visit
www.teamgb.com for further information.
Team GB would like to thank the 26 official sponsors of Team GB and London 2012 including seven domestic Tier One Partners - adidas, BMW, BP, British Airways, BT, EDF and Lloyds TSB. There are six domestic Tier Two Supporters – Adecco, Cadbury, Cisco, Deloitte, Thomas Cook and UPS. There are twelve domestic Tier Three Suppliers and Providers – Airwave, Atkins, Boston Consulting Group, Crystal CG, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, GSK, Holiday Inn, John Lewis, McCann Worldgroup, The Nielsen Company, Populous, Ticketmaster and Trident. The Worldwide Olympic Partners signed up for London 2012 are Coca-Cola, Acer, Atos Origin, GE, McDonald’s, Omega, Panasonic, Samsung and Visa.
The British Olympic Association (BOA) is the National Olympic Committee for Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Its mission is to transform British lives through the power of the Olympic values and the success of Team GB. The BOA’s role is to prepare the ‘Best of British’ athletes for, and lead them at, the summer, winter and youth Olympic Games. The BOA delivers extensive support services to Britain’s Olympic athletes and their National Governing Bodies to enhance Olympic success and is responsible for championing the Olympic values and brand in the UK. For further information, go to:
www.olympics.org.uk
For more information, or for interview requests, please contact the BOA Communications Team:
Vancouver - darryl.seibel@boa.org.uk / +1 604 722 3554 +1 604 722 3554 or philip.wilkinson@boa.org.uk / +1 604 722 0046 +1 604 722 0046.
Whistler - adam.parsons@boa.org.uk / +1 604 721 6080 +1 604 721 6080
London - laura.meech@boa.org.uk / +44 (0) 207 842 5700 +44 (0) 207 842 5700 / +44 (0) 7553 355155 +44 (0) 7553 355155