2010 VANCOUVER OLYMPIC GAMES

British Columbia

A feature by Giovanni Simeone / Solomango

2010 Vancouver Olympic Games

Whistler

The Peak 2 Peak Gondola.

A Skeleton race at the Whistler Sliding Centre.

T

he 2010 Winter Olympic Games will take place in Vancouver, Canada in February but for many people the real excitement will be found some 3 hours drive to the north at the ski resort of Whistler Blackcomb.

This is where the thrills and spills of the Alpine Skiing events will take place along with the Bobsleigh, Luge and Skeleton.

Photographer Giovanni Simeone travelled to Whistler last winter to shoot this exclusive feature for Solomango.

The two mountains of Blackcomb and Whistler together form North America's number one ski resort. Since December 2008 they have been connected by the extraordinary Peak 2 Peak Gondola - a cable car that carries guests the 4.4 kilometres between Whistler's Roundhouse Lodge and Blackcomb's Rendezvous Lodge in just 11 minutes.

The 28 sky cabins offer breathtaking 360 degree views of Whistler's unique high alpine terrain. Everything is ready

for the start of the Games: the slopes of Whistler and Blackcomb await the Downhill, Super-G, Giant Slalom and Slalom skiing events; the Nintendo snowpark, family ski area, Alpine huts, luxury hotels and car-free centre of Whistler Village look forward to welcoming visitors from all over the world; and the Whistler Sliding Centre prepares to host the extremes of the Bob, Luge and Skeleton.

And finally, at the top of Whistler Mountain, we come to the symbol of the Winter Games, the Inukshuk

statue that dominates the Garibaldi ski arena. Inuksuit are man-made stone landmarks, created by the native peoples of the North American Arctic.

They were originally used for navigation, as a point of reference in a landscape with few natural landmarks but may also have marked hunting grounds or the site of a food cache. Now, thanks to the logo of the 2010 Winter Games, they are recognised around the world as an iconic Canadian symbol.

The Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre

Indigenous arts and crafts.

The Inukshuk statue is the symbol of the 2010 Olympics.

Whistler Mountain peak lookout.

Skiing the 7th Heaven Express slope with the Garibaldi Provincial Park in the background.

View to Garibaldi Provincial Park

Snowboarding in the Symphony Amphitheatre with a view over to Garibaldi Provincial Park.

Picking up the local wildlife on the 7th Heaven Express slope with the Garibaldi Provincial Park in the background.

Skiing the 7th Heaven Express slope with the

Garibaldi Provincial Park in the background.

Snowboarding in the Symphony Amphitheatre with a view over to Garibaldi Provincial Park.

Skiing in Symphony Amphitheatre.

View to Garibaldi Provincial Park

The Nintendo terrain park for snowboarders in the Blackcomb ski area.

The Coca Cola Tube Park.

Skiing in the 7th Heaven Express slope.

Skiing in the Symphony Amphitheatre.

In background the Garibaldi Provincial Park.

The Roundhouse Lodge in the Whistler Mountain ski area.

The Christal Hut in the Blackcomb M

Mountain ski area.

The Roundhouse Lodge in the Whistler Mountain ski area.

View to Garibaldi Provincial Park

People enjoying apres-ski at the Garibaldi Lift Company pub

The glass floor of the Peak 2 Peak gondola

Ocean-going canoe built by Squamish carver Ray Natrall.

Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre

Whistler Village at dusk.

The spa and wellness area of the Four Seasons Hotel in Blackcomb Village.

The Blackcomb Upper Village at dusk.

British Columbia

A feature by Giovanni Simeone / Solomango

2010 Vancouver Olympic Games

Whistler