Sport Shorts: Golden Start in Delhi
Delhi Welcomes the Commonwealth: The 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games are open in India. Sunday’s opening ceremonies featured an impressive display of song and dance, celebrating India’s rich culture. Prince Charles of England opened the Games after delivering a message from Queen Elizabeth II, the head of the Commonwealth.
Golden Start: Olympic bronze medallist Ryan Cochrane got the Commonwealth Games started in fine fashion, earning gold in the 400m freestyle event in Delhi. Cochrane, 21, made his first appearance at a major international Games at the last Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia in 2006. Julia Wilkinson (200m individual medley) and Stefan Hirniak (200m butterfly) added to the medal total with bronze medals.
Viva Pan Am!: The Toronto 2015 organizers launched their logo in Toronto. The red and green figure represents an athlete kicking a blue ball, while representing the letters T.O. Officials also unveiled the official slogan “United We Play.”
Up, Up and Away in 2011: The Federation Internationale de Ski (FIS) announced that it expects to organize a women’s ski jumping World Cup circuit for the 2011-2012 season. Events will be hosted by Norway, Germany, Japan and Turkey, among others. This is a key factor to strengthening the women’s bid for inclusion into the Olympic programme.
Play Ball in Puerto Rico: The boys of summer are competing this fall in Puerto Rico, with a berth in the baseball tournament at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara hanging in the balance. Canada is off to a 1-1 start with a win over Nicaragua and a loss to Venezuela. The team features Olympians David Davidson, Emerson Frostad, Steve Green, Mike Johnson, Peter Orr, Chris Robinson, Adam Stern, Scott Thorman and Jimmy Van Ostrand. The top eight teams qualify for the 2011 Pan Am Games, while the top six qualify for the 2011 IBAF World Cup.
Hoop It Down: The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) announced at the 2010 Women’s World Championships that they will examine lowering the height of the basket for women’s competition to make the sport more appealing to a wider audience. Canada finished 12th at the competition.
