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b. 27. 2010. 8 Can Canadians retain a piece of the podium? say in the matter. Hey, all those foreign athletes didn’t travel here simply for the seepery. One thing 01?, with its bold pie-Games enthusiasm, cannot predict is actual game- day intangibles. It can't foresee the athlete stn'cken with a cold or flu. It cannot predict a skier travelling at breakneck speed down the side of a mountain locating a rut left "consummate! ORS DAN 0 SALES and SERVICE to ALL MAKES OF HEARING AIDS - TInnItus Therapy 0 ADP. WSID. DVA AUTHORIZED DISPENSERS - H0 CHARGE AII IncluoIvo Loss and Damage Insurance - 1 yoar - Hoarlnu Assortments - Hubom to GarlatrIc - H0 CHARGE All lnoluam Manutacturora Warranty - 2 year: - Hoarlng AId Evaluatlona - 34 Day Full SatIatactIon Guarantoo 0 DattorIoa and HoarIno AIII Acoonorlos - AuooIatad Vltttr EHT (Ear, Nose and Throat) Doctor 0 AsaIaIIvo LIatonIno Dulce: FM Systoms 0 Full TIrno ExporIoncod CortIIIotI AudIoIooIst: 0 Custom Hoarlno Protoctlon - Muslctan and Swlm Plugs On Hand To Sum You by another’s ski. A technical glitch. Or the death of an athlete - Georgian luger Nodar RIP -â€" altering mindsets, courage and even track layouts. And also forgotten, it seems, is any num- ber of athletes on any given day are quite capable and certainly bidding for the same prize. Only one winner is allowed per event. It’s not always a Canadian. Or an American. Or Swiss. Or Austn'an. And so on. It is inevi- tably the individual for whom everything breaks perfectly on the day of competition. if you are unable to attend one of our PICS, you can view the presentation at yrt.caZfacilitieslstreetfurniture.asg. For further info or to provide feedback, email us at transitinfotaxorkxa PARK Athletes don’t strive for 35th place. Or even fourth or third or second place. The whole point is to strive to be the best and that has been the role of OF P all along -â€" to help Canadian athletes be in position to compete through more than MOO-million in funding generated by the Vancouver Olym- pic Committee, its sponsors and various levels of government. As Sharon’s Veronica Brenner, a former silver medallist in ski aerials noted prior to the Games, OTP provided Canadian athletes with everything they could possibly need for the Olympics except an excuse for not winning. In the end, it comes down to the athlete who seizes the opportunity at the precise moment. It is, obviously, much easier said -â€" and predicted â€"- than done. ,,_ Ms Brenner, herself, is aware of that truth, nailing the jump she needed on a mountainside in Salt Lake City, Utah in 2002 to capture silver. Somewhere in the world, another ath- lete was disappointed. Four years earlier, in Nagano, she was ninth and very much agi- tated with herself. But as she pointed out so succinctly dur- lng her TV analysis earlier in these Games, often there is no second chance, no seven- game series. Sometimes it is a split-second result. As these Games wind down, the concern soon becomes for the future. W111 01'? be dismantled as a source of funding for future athletes? Let's hope not. Yet it may indeed be naive to expect government funding to continue to support amateur sports in future years without a homeland Olympics to feed. Surely, some funds will be diverted to the 2015 Pan Am Games in Ontario, a sum- mer enterprise, but that remains to be seen. O’I'P's website claims it has a vision in mind for the 2012 Games in London, so that's good. But consider this: what would be so illogo ical with continued funding for the sports Canadians are watching in record-setting numbers on TV. Surely the federal govem- - ment can understand young Canadians will be inspired to take up some of these sports, thereby becoming active and getting off the couch. A healthier generation of Canadians would seem a worthwhile investment. Maybe we can at least retain a portion of the podium, too. Surely the federal government can understand young Canadians will be inspired to take up some of these sports, thereby becoming active and getting ofl the couch. Established 1986 1333 Sheppard Ave. E.. Suite# 340 1243 lslington Ave.. Suite# 711 ETOIIOOKE 41 6-233-8581 West End Hearing Established 1991