Olympics

  • Posted: February 12th, 2010 - 8:35am by Doug Powell

    Sarah Mclachlan was soulfully sensuous when she burst on the Canadian music scene in 1991.

    Now she’s just boring.

    As noted in the South Park movie, Canada has already apologized many times for Bryan Adams.

    Just awful.

    Maybe Bryan and Sarah had babies and that’s where Nickelback came from.

    But, with the Olympic games opening in Vancouver tonight, expect to hear lots of Bryan and Sarah and crap, at least according to the adverts on NBC.

    No Sloan, Tragically Hip, Neil Young or even a reformed Guess Who – all decent Canadian contributions to the soundtracks of our lives.

    Nope, you’ll hear the tired and true, just like from the Service Employees International Union who sent out a press release yesterday playing the food safety card.

    The Service Employees International Union, the nation's largest healthcare union, is raising questions about the safety of food being provided to athletes at the Vancouver Winter Olympics by Sodexo, a global food service contractor based in France who served contaminated meat at a camp in Virginia sickening more than two dozen boy scouts.

    The union is calling on Sodexo to provide greater transparency about the origin of the food they will be serving athletes, including: disclosing the primary supplier of the food that they will serve to athletes and whether those companies have had problems with contaminated food; whether the food will come from a "cook and chill" facility or will be cooked and served on-site; and to make the steps they are taking to ensure food safety easily available to the public.

    Sure, Sodexo should be able to answer any questions about the origins of its food and safety measures taken, just like the union should clearly state its concerns which seem based on employment rather than microbial food safety.

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  • Posted: August 20th, 2008 - 9:15pm by Doug Powell

    The Press Association reports that Michael Rimmer overcame a bout of food poisoning to book his place in the semi-finals of the 800 metres at the Olympic Games in Beijing.

    Rimmer said,

    "I felt quite rough. I think it was a mix between the food poisoning and nerves. I am over it but I felt a little flat out there. The thought of going out in a heat is horrible. I want to feel the plane ticket was worth the money and show I am worthy of being here."
     

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  • Posted: February 9th, 2008 - 7:47am by Doug Powell

    Olympic food has come a long way since the little chocolate donuts favored by John Belushi.

    The N.Y. Times reports that in preparing to take a delegation of more than 600 athletes to the Summer Games in Beijing this year, the United States Olympic Committee faces numerous food issues. In recent years, some foods in China have been found to be tainted with insecticides and illegal veterinary drugs, and the standards applied to meat there are lower than those in the United States, raising fears of food-borne illnesses.

    USOC has made arrangements with sponsors like Kellogg’s and Tyson Foods, which will ship 25,000 pounds of lean protein to China about two months before the opening ceremony, but will hire local vendors and importers to secure other foods and cooking equipment at the Games.

    Why? Frank Puleo, a caterer from Staten Island who has traveled to China to handle food-related issues, went to a supermarket in China last year, and encountered a piece of chicken — half of a breast — that measured 14 inches.

    "Enough to feed a family of eight. We had it tested and it was so full of steroids that we never could have given it to athletes. They all would have tested positive.”

    The protein from Tyson is one of the few food products that will be shipped from the United States. Kellogg’s has been asked to supply cereals like Frosted Flakes and Mini-Wheats, as well as Nutri-Grain bars, because those products are not readily available in China.

    Frosted Flakes and little chocolate donuts. Breakfast of champions.


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