I had a good time watching the Vancouver Winter Olympics. A lot of exciting competitions, many inspiring athletes, a thousand and one stories.

Often during the competitions, in the early morning hours when CTV was repeating the events of the day before, I would switch over to NBC’s American coverage. It was good to get another view of things, and I was frequently amazed with the attention being paid there to Canadian athletes. As was happening on Canadian television, the US reporters often related the human interest side of our athletes, such as the story of Moguls Gold winning Alex Bilodeau’s brother Frederic. Frederic is Alex’s strongest supporter and his inspiration, while living with a severe handicap of cerebral palsy. US reporters were enthralled with the story of Joannie Rochette, competing in figure skating and winning the Bronze Medal despite her mother’s unexpected death only days before. Despite NBC’s understandable desire for the American team to win the men’s hockey gold, they often spoke with great respect about the Canadian team and about the unbelievable way Canadians were behind them.
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