Executive Council
Tourism, Culture and Recreation
November 21, 2008

The light of the Olympic Flame will shine on the East Coast next fall when the historic torch relay for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games arrives in Newfoundland and Labrador on day 13 of its 106-day Canadian journey. The national event will spend five days in the province, involve 330 torchbearers and visit 41 communities and places of interest. The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay is presented by Coca-Cola and RBC and proudly supported by the Government of Canada. The 2010 Olympic Torch Relay route is available at vancouver2010.com. Information on how residents can apply to be torchbearers can be found at iCoke.ca, sogoactive.com or rbc.com/carrythetorch.

The Olympic Flame, which arrives in Wabush/Labrador City on Remembrance Day 2009, will travel 3,120 kilometres by land, water and air, and will be within a one-hour drive of 67 per cent of the province�s population. Sheshatshui, only one of two Innu communities in Labrador, will play host to the flame, as will Cupids, the oldest English colony in Canada which, in 2010 will celebrate its 400th anniversary. The relay will also stop in the provincial capital St. John�s as well as L�Anse aux Meadows, where Leif Erickson and his crew of Viking explorers briefly lived along the rugged coastline more than 1,000 years ago. The torch relay will then move on to Nova Scotia by ferry across the Cabot Strait.

"The Olympic Torch Relay is a tremendous opportunity to unite the country and make the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games Canada�s Games," said the Honourable Gary Lunn, Minister of State (Sport). "This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to bring together millions of Canadians, in every province and territory, as we celebrate and welcome the passing of the Olympic Flame. As it makes its way across Canada, it will touch the soul of this great nation and inspire the world."

Newfoundlanders and Labradorians interested in applying for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to carry the Olympic Flame can apply at iCoke.ca, sogoactive.com or rbc.com/carrythetorch. Canadians who commit to live more active lives or are inspired to create a better Canada could win the chance to carry the flame through 2010 Olympic Torchbearer programs run by Coca-Cola and RBC. Coca-Cola and RBC, the relay�s presenting partners, have the exclusive rights for the public to enter the Olympic Torchbearer program. There will be several opportunities to apply for torchbearer spots beginning today.

"Newfoundland and Labrador is proud to have been among the first provinces to sign on as a contributing province to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games," said the Honourable Danny Williams, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador. "Newfoundland and Labrador is culturally rich and diverse and we have much to contribute to Canada�s Games. In 2006, we experienced first-hand the excitement of the Olympic Winter Games with the gold medal victory of our own Team Gushue. We look forward to bringing the Olympic Spirit to communities throughout the province once again as a part of this nationwide event."

The 2010 Olympic Torch Relay will begin in Victoria, British Columbia on October 30, 2009 before heading to the Far North, becoming the first relay to bring the Olympic Flame within 900 kilometres of the North Pole through its stop in Alert. The relay will then head to North America�s easternmost tip, historic Cape Spear in St. John�s before making a cross-Canada journey west to Vancouver.

Designed to reach the greatest number of Canadians, the relay will begin the countdown to the XXI Olympic Winter Games, spanning Canada to engage and inspire through the power of the Olympic Flame.

"When designing this route, we wanted to include as many Canadians as possible," said John Furlong, Chief Executive Officer, Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC). "It is our hope and dream to unite this country and bring Canadians closer together to discover the many cultures and perspectives that make up our nation. We will share the Olympic Flame with young and old, northern and southern, eastern and western � and everyone in between � in order to make these truly Canada�s Games and ones where everyone can celebrate with glowing hearts."

The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay route will be the longest domestic torch relay in Olympic history, stretching 45,000 kilometres within Canada. Upon its conclusion, the Olympic Flame will have been welcomed in 1,020 communities and places of interest or passed within a one-hour drive from nearby cities and towns, making it accessible to more than 90 per cent of the Canadian population.

The Government of Canada is a major contributor to the Olympic Torch Relay helping to bring the Olympic Flame to as many Canadians as possible. The torch, designed and manufactured by Bombardier, and the torchbearer uniform, designed by Hbc, will be unveiled later this winter.

Extensive additional torch relay media materials, including maps, videos, audio files and backgrounders are available in the media centre at vancouver2010.com.

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VANOC is responsible for the planning, organizing, financing and staging of the XXI Olympic Winter Games and the X Paralympic Winter Games in 2010. The 2010 Olympic Winter Games will be staged in Vancouver and Whistler from February 12 to 28, 2010. Vancouver and Whistler will host the Paralympic Winter Games from March 12 to 21, 2010. Visit vancouver2010.com for further details on programs and schedules.

The Coca-Cola Co. has been associated with the Olympic Games since 1928 and is the longest continuous corporate supporter of the Olympic Movement. Through the Olympic Games, Coca-Cola encourages people to create their own path of "positivity" in everyday life by believing that anything is possible. The company's sponsorship supports national Olympic committees in more than 200 countries to help athletes train and compete. The Coca-Cola Co. is the exclusive non-alcoholic beverage provider to the Olympic Games through 2020. For information on Coca-Cola's Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torchbearer programs go to iCoke.ca or sogoactive.com.

As part of our commitment to helping create a better Canada, RBC sponsors amateur sport, from grassroots programs in local communities to national sport associations that support the development of amateur athletes who compete at home and abroad. Canada�s longest-standing supporter of the Canadian Olympic Team since 1947, RBC continues its sponsorship through the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and is proud to bring the Olympic Spirit to communities across Canada as co-presenting sponsor of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay. RBC is also a premier sponsor of Hockey Canada, the Canadian Snowboard Team, the Canadian Freestyle Ski Team, Athletics Canada and the Canadian Paralympic Committee. Visit rbc.com/sponsorship.