Vancouver 2010 B-roll footage of venue overlay construction now available on
FLAME at www.vancouver2010.com/flame

VANCOUVER , Jan. 6 /CNW/ - The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) is providing media with a behind-the-scenes package of high-definition B-roll footage of ongoing overlay construction at Olympic venues.

The seven minutes of footage is available on demand through FLAME, the torch relay digital asset management system. See below for details on how to access the footage.

The majority of the Vancouver 2010 venues are presently closed to the public and the media because they are active construction zones undergoing overlay, which includes the installation of additional seating, lighting and cables, as well as the construction of commentator booths, camera platforms and temporary tents. For example, approximately 90,000 square metres (one million square feet) of temporary tenting structures will be installed, as well as 1,000 trailers and wax cabins, 90 kilometres of fencing, 565 km of power cabling, and 37,000 bleachers.

The footage, shot in late December, contains interior and exterior shots of Cypress Mountain (snowboard and freestyle skiing); Richmond Olympic Oval (speed skating); Whistler Olympic Park/Whistler Paralympic Park (ski jumping, Nordic combined, biathlon); The Whistler Sliding Centre (bobsleigh, luge and skeleton); Whistler Creekside (alpine skiing); Whistler Celebration Plaza (site of nightly Victory Ceremonies); Main Ticket Centre in Whistler; and Olympic and Paralympic Village Whistler. The materials, available in both English and French, include a pre-recorded interview with Guy Lodge , VANOC's vice president of services and overlay, as well as a detailed shot list.

VANOC's main operational focus during this pre-Games period is to ensure the venues are ready with optimum fields of play where the world's best winter athletes can shine in February 2010 . In addition to overlay, work continues to prepare the outdoor venues for all weather scenarios. This work includes: ongoing ice maintenance and state-of-the-art snow making, snow pushing and stockpiling. Depending on weather conditions, VANOC may also need to further restrict or close competition venues to the public.

Video Coordinates: High-definition B-roll footage of the ongoing overlay construction at Olympic venues is available to media on FLAME, the torch relay digital asset management system. To register for FLAME, visit www.vancouver2010.com/flame, click 'Visit FLAME' and then 'Register now.' From the FLAME home page, click on VIDEO, then from the "Category" drop down box choose "Overlay Venue B-roll".

For further information: Media Contact: Darlene Small, VANOC Communications, Tel: [phone], E-mail: [email protected]; Géraldine Serreqi, VANOC Communications, Tel: [phone], E-mail: [email protected]