Urban Mixer Blog

“With Glowing Hearts” the Olympic Rendezvous @ Samsung (OR@S) for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games was formally opened February 10, 2010.

The event was attended by company bigwigs led by Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd President and CEO Geesung Choi together with Canadian ice hockey superstar and Samsung Athlete Ambassador Wayne Gretzky. They were joined by Gerhard Heiberg, Chairman of Marketing Commission of the IOC, John Furlong, CEO of VANOC, Gordon Campbell, Premier of British Columbia, and Tewanee Joseph, CEO and Executive Director, Four Host Nations.

The theme of the opening event was a celebration of the talking stick and a hugely botched homage to Canada’s First Nations. As part of the entertainment of the event, a largely unknown dance troupe bearing Samsung’s name and wearing tight-fitting costumes pranced around stage waving their rendition of the talking stick. The dance choreography, certainly didn’t match the calibre of people in the room and resembled a show one might catch in a Las Vegas strip joint. When asked for commentary, the Four Host Nations CEO Tewanee Joseph appeared too appalled to comment.

The OR@S is a 7,500-square feet, two-storey facility that exhibits the leading edge wireless communications technology from Samsung at the same time it offered  Olympic Games fans the opportunity to “Discover Your Every WOW Moment.”

Located in Vancouver’s David Lam Park, the OR@S showcased Samsung’s industry leading wireless communications technology and provide athletes and fans with the opportunity to discover their every WOW moment. The venue was  a relaxing retreat for athletes and spectators, and featured Samsung’s latest mobile phone technologies, interactive displays and live entertainment.

The Athlete Centre, which was found on the upper level of the OR@S, was also known as the “Official Meeting Place for Athletes and Their Families.” A lounge was available for the athletes and their family members for get-togethers and a place to enjoy the celebrations. The Samsung OMNIA II touchscreen smartphone – The Official Mobile Device of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games – was available for athletes to make free phone calls to the family and friends back home.

The features of the OR@S, which debuted at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, included a special performance by DubArtist Chris Casillan and music by the cell-phone orchestra as well as daily performances from the Cirque des Communications of Canada as they match the well-known Vancouver image of “the integration of nature with urban life” with a spectacular light display.  There was also a musical performance by Canadian singer and songwriter Jenny Galt, and  daily ambient music and lighting effects from Vancouver’s own DJ Jon O’Neal.