Olympians May Be In Italy, But Their Spirit Lives in Toronto

True, you can get an idea of what the Olympic Games are all about in the United States—at, for example, the Utah Olympic Park near Salt Lake City or the Olympic Visitor Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

But if you want to really immerse yourself in the world of the Olympics and vicariously participate in the Olympic Games, then visit Olympic Spirit Toronto. It is the world's first permanent entertainment complex themed around the Olympic Games.

For example, the initial thrust that starts a bobsled can mean the difference between victory and defeat. So one of the exhibits features a bobsled on tracks where you can experience the challenge of starting a fully weighted bobsled in a race against the clock.

In another exhibit, you can try to recreate the record-setting Olympic long jump of nearly 30 feet. It was achieved by an American Olympian at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. Here, you grasp what the Canadians call a“ flying fox.” It is a bar suspended from the ceiling like a trapeze, but is capable of moving forward. You grab the bar, take a few running strides, and then, while still holding the bar, leap forward. Whether you and the bar will be able to move forward 30 feet depends on your height and weight. Most adults can manage it. Of course, the Olympian who made the gargantuan leap of 30 feet did so without a mechanical aid such as the flying fox.

In yet a third exhibit, a sprint simulator allows you to test your speed against an Olympic record in the 100-meter sprint. Before you take your mark, a virtual Olympic sprinter will offer you tips.

You can also challenge yourself on a cycling-training simulator, a rowing-training simulator, or a cross-country-skiing simulator. You can pit yourself against a virtual ice hockey goalie. And thanks to another simulator, you can even experience the visual and tactile thrill of ski jumping—a discipline that requires power, rapidity, sensitivity, precision, equilibrium, and concentration, and one where even the most minuscule of errors can compromise the entire jump.

The center, however, is not just about exercise and entertainment, but also about learning. For example, one display compares ancient and modern Olympic sports and shows how Olympia in Greece looks today. Another display informs visitors about what kinds of nutrition various sports require. Athletes have likewise been hired by the center to answer visitors' questions.

And the center is about inspiration as well. Visitors can watch emotionally charged films capturing the passion, pride, and spirit of Olympic contenders. You can see whether the Olympic creed, introduced at the Olympic Games a century ago, may have an impact on your own life. The creed states: “The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win, but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph, but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered, but to have fought well.”

Olympic Spirit Toronto is in downtown Toronto at Dundas and Victoria streets. More information is available by phone at (888) 466-9991 or online at<www.OlympicSpirit.ca>.▪