Obama may not attend Vancouver opening ceremony

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Stephan K

24 January, 2010

President Barack Obama may not attend the Vancouver Olympics 2010 opening ceremony. The event may become low profile with reports of British Prime Gordon Brown and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi also not attending.

AS PREPARATIONS for the Vancouver Olympics 2010 continue in full swing, reports are coming in that President Barack Obama will not be attending the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics event.

The February 12 opening ceremony of the Vancouver Olympics 2010 may see vice president Joe Biden attending as the official face of the United States in place of President Barack Obama. Till now, though many kings, queens and government have said that they would attend the opening ceremony, the list remains low profile.

Even British Prime Gordon Brown or Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi may not attend the event. Instead their sports ministers have confirmed their attendence. London 2010 games incharge Tessa Jowell would also attend the opening ceremony.

Russia on the other hand, which will host the 2014 Winter Games, is expected to have full official attendence. President Dmitry Anatolyevich and Vice President Dmitry Kozak, who will also be in charge of the Olympics games in the country would be there for the event, while Prime Minister Vladimir Putin may also be at the Vancouver Olympics 2010.

The list of who will attend and who won't attend the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics is still not clear as confirmations or rejections for all the state dignitaries who were invited months ago, have still not come in.

Vice President of the Vancouver Organising Committee Taleeb Noormohamed expects that about 25 to 35 heads of state would
be attending the ceremony - including monarchs, Presidents and Prime ministers. Some reason that this may be due to the absence of red carpet treatment for the event, even though these dignitaries would get a security detail including bodyguards, motorcades and varying levels of around the clock protection.