Right to Play

Most Canadians will remember that when Olympian Clara Hughes won speed skating gold for Canada in 2006 she announced that the cash bonus that went with it would be going to support the Right to Play program.

Now the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has decided that they will sever ties with Right to Play. It is all about General Motors getting their knickers in a knot about the fact that the car manufacturer Mitsubishi is sponsoring Right to Play. GM is a major sponsor of the 2010 Olympics and thinks that if Right to Play goes ahead, affiliated to the Olympics, it will dilute their advertising hit. Shame on GM!

Many of the Olympians who give time and money to this fine cause are decidedly annoyed. Clara Hughes makes a point of linking articles about this shameful decision in her blog.

Rick Mercer takes the issue in this rant.

I urge everyone to write to the IOC and tell them that they are wrong. While you are at it, boycott GM and let them know why.

It is more difficult to contact the IOC than one might think. The links on some of their pages don`t work but, if in doubt, try this:

Congress Secretariat
International Olympic Committee
Château de Vidy
1007 Lausanne
Switzerland

2009congress@olympic.org