Canada's women ski jumpers haven't given up their fight to compete in the 2010 Olympic Games. On Friday, their supporters put up billboards in Greater Vancouver that highlight the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) decision to keep women's ski jumping out of the 2010 games is a glaring contradiction.
The billboards quote the Olympic Charter's belief in gender equality: "Just imagine -- implementing the principle of equality of men and women. Let women ski jump in 2010," reads one of the signs.
...To make sure Olympic officials don't miss the point, one of the billboards was put up right opposite the Vancouver Organizing Committee's (VANOC) headquarters. The signs went up at the same time that the federal minister in charge of the Olympics was giving $20 million taxpayer dollars to the games.
The women have also set up an online petition, which has already collected 6,400 names. VANOC officials say the decision to include women's ski jumping at the Games is up to the IOC.
Opposition politicians in Canada also plan to table motions in Parliament and the B.C. legislature this week to push the IOC to change its mind and add women's ski jumping to the Games that Canada is hosting.
Sources:
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080222/ski_jump_080222/20080222?hub=TopStories and
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5juk2QyQmEE9GP0ZkKjEb-r2DMrmA