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In honour of the Olympic torch landing in British Columbia last week, I went to CIBC, withdrew some money, went to CN Centre and purchased a Diet Pepsi.

Omigod (as an editor I hate using acronyms, so OMG is out of the question), I’ve run afoul of the Olympic sponsorship police.

In case you missed it … RBC is the Olympic bank sponsor, CP is the rail company sponsor, and Coke is the drink sponsor. We can criticize the Olympics all we want, but show the wrong logo at an Olympic event and we’re in big trouble.

Remember that foofaraw a couple of months ago about giving police powers to go into your house and rip out that anti-Olympics poster?

Turns out the law was actually designed to police copyright infringements … a much more heinous crime.

So, when the torch rolls through Prince George in just less than three months’ time, don’t wear that Pepsi toque, you’ll give organizers a coronary.

However, now that the torch is in Canada, we can start getting excited about the games.

When the torch goes through Prince George, just a couple of weeks before the games get underway, it will be pretty exciting.

There will be lots of fun events and, even for those of us who are critical of the games and the ever-escalating costs, it’s hard not to get excited about the games themselves.

Who doesn’t want to be in the stands during a gold medal hockey game? Who doesn’t want to get misty-eyed when the Maple Leaf is hoisted to the rafters and O Canada is played. Who doesn’t want to be part of a global event?

It’s too bad that the Olympics seem to have become more about politics than athletics. We tend to forget what it is really about … athletic achievement.

We can be as critical as we want about the event, but who doesn’t want to be the best in the world at something, and be recognized globally for that accomplishment?

The big question now is who will be the last torchbearer?

It is the last torchbearer who lights the Olympic flame during the opening ceremonies.

There is a push for it to be Betty Fox, Terry Fox’s mother. She would be a good choice.

As much as Terry Fox is one of my idols, if it were up to me, I’d pick Rick Hansen.

Hansen won a gold medal at the Paralympics Games and, with all due respect to Betty Fox, I feel the final torchbearer should be an athlete.

If you’re an athlete, Rick Hansen is certainly someone to aspire to.

And, for all British Columbians, Rick Hansen is certainly someone who inspires us all.

Bill Phillips is the winner of the British Columbia/Yukon Community Newspaper Association’s 2009 Ma Murray award for editorial writing.

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