Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

1988 CALGARY WINTER OLYMPIC GAMES RELAY TORCH

Date

1988

Materials

WOOD, ALUMINUM

No. Pieces

1

Length

59

Diameter

13.5

Description

CYLINDRICAL, METAL TORCH HEAD ATTACHED TO A MAPLE WOODEN HANDLE. ENGRAVED METAL READS: “PRESENTED TO THE CITY OF LETHBRIDGE BY CANADIAN WESTERN NATURAL GAS FEBRUARY 5, 1988.” COTTON ON TOP OF TORCH IS CHARRED. DIVIT AROUND BOTTOM OF WOODEN HANDLE.

Subjects

LIGHTING DEVICE

CEREMONIAL ARTIFACT

Historical Association

SPORTS

COMMEMORATIVE

History

ON SEPTEMBER 8, 2021, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN KEVIN MACLEAN, INTERVIEWED LEN OVERBEEKE, REGARDING AN ASSORTMENT OF SPORTS EVENTS AWARDS AND MEMORABILIA FROM THE ENMAX CENTRE THAT WERE DONATED TO THE MUSEUM. LEN JOINED THE ENMAX CENTRE IN 1988 AS AN OPERATOR, WORKING ON THE DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS OF THE BUILDING, SCHEDULING, AND ATTENDING TO THE FACILITIES. LEN’S POSITION PROGRESSED FROM OPERATOR TO COORDINATOR TO FOREMAN AND SHORTLY AFTER, OPERATIONS MANAGER, WHERE HE CONTINUES TO WORK AT THE TIME OF THE INTERVIEW (2021). LEE RECALLS THAT THIS TORCH WAS USED BY TORCH-BEARERS AND CARRIED THROUGH THE CITY: “… 1988 I BELIEVE WAS PART OF THE TORCH RUN THROUGH LETHBRIDGE AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN PRESENTED AFTER THE FACT OF THE TORCH RUN GOING THROUGH BECAUSE OF THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE [OLYMPIC] GAMES, IT CAME THROUGH THE ENMAX CENTRE. IT WAS DECIDED AT THE TIME THAT IT WOULD GO INTO OUR TROPHY CASES FOR DISPLAY SIMILAR TO ALL OF THE OTHER ITEMS THAT WE HOSTED PRE-SPORTS HALL OF FAME…THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN FEBRUARY…” FOR THE 1988 OLYMPICS, THE TORCH WAS RUN ACROSS THE COUNTRY, ENDING IN CALGARY. ACCORDING TO OLYMPICS.COM: “THE SHAPE OF THE TORCH WAS DESIGNED AS A REPLICA OF THE CALGARY TOWER. IT FEATURED THE INSCRIPTIONS “XV OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES CALGARY ALBERTA CANADA 1988” AND THE OLYMPIC MOTTO “CITIUS, ALTIUS, FORTIUS” (FASTER, HIGHER, STRONGER)… THE RELAY IN CANADA WAS DESIGNED SO THAT THE TIME SPENT IN EACH PROVINCE AND TERRITORY WAS PROPORTIONAL TO THE RESIDENT POPULATION. AN ARTICLE FROM THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD ON FEBRUARY 4, 1988 STATES: “A SPECIAL TORCH, DEVELOPED BY CANADIAN WESTERN NATURAL GAS, WILL BE LIT FROM THE OLYMPIC TORCH AND WILL BE TRANSPORTED TO THE SPORTSPLEX FOLLOWING THE DOWNTOWN CEREMONY.” AN ARTICLE FROM THE LETHBRIDGE HERALD ON FEBRUARY 5, 1988 CONTINUES: “LETHBRIDGE RESIDENTS ARE BRAVING COLD TEMPERATURES TODAY, TAKING PART IN CELEBRATIONS WELCOMING THE OLYMPIC TORCH TO THE CITY. A PARADE FROM SCENIC DRIVE SOUTH DOWN 4TH AVENUE WILL BEGIN AT 5:10 P.M., EXPECTED TO REACH THE CEREMONY SIGHT AT 4 AVENUE SOUTH AND 10TH STREET AT 5:35. FORMER CANADIAN SKI TEAM MEMBER JIM HUNTER, MANGER OF THE RELAY, WILL LEAD THE CEREMONY…FOLLOWING THE CEREMONY, A SECOND FLAME, LIT FROM THE OLYMPIC TORCH, WILL BE TAKEN TO THE SPORTSPLEX, WHERE AN OFFICIAL CEREMONY TO LIGHT THE CANADIAN WINTER GAMES CAULDRON WILL TAKE PLACE.” LEN EXPLAINS HIS TIME WORKING AT THE ENMAX, SAYING, "IN ’96 I STILL WOULD HAVE BEEN BASICALLY ACTING AS AN OPERATOR SO MAKING SURE WHEN I WAS THERE FOR MY SHIFT …WAS MAKING SURE THE ACTIVITY WENT OFF AND EVERYTHING WAS SET UP – EVERYTHING WAS DONE THAT WAS ASKED FOR, WHETHER IT BE THE ROOMS, WHETHER IT BE TABLES AND CHAIRS, WHETHER IT BE ICE, WHETHER IT BE THE BASKETBALL FLOOR. WE STILL HAVE THE ORIGINAL 1974 FLOOR THAT WAS BUILT FOR THE ’75 GAMES. HARDWOOD FLOOR THAT WAS A LITTLE BIT OF WORK TO LAY DOWN ‘CAUSE IT IS QUITE OLD BUT, DOING THINGS OF THAT NATURE, INTRICATELY KNOWING HOW TO DO THAT IS A HUGE THING, AS WELL…EVERYTHING THAT TAKES PLACE AT THE ENMAX CENTRE HAS IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY AND SOUTHERN ALBERTA …IT’S ONE OF THE REASONS THE BUILDING IS THERE, IS TO PROVIDE THAT OPPORTUNITY, TO HAVE THOSE IMPACTS AND TO BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER AND PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES WHETHER IT BE FOR SPORTS OR CONCERTS OR WHATEVER THAT HAPPENS TO BE. SO, FROM A SPORTING WORLD, IT BRINGS MORE PEOPLE TOGETHER BECAUSE OF THE BUY-IN BY THE PEOPLE OF SOUTHERN ALBERTA AND LETHBRIDGE. YOU’RE TALKING HUNDREDS, IF NOT THOUSANDS, OF VOLUNTEERS, TENS OF THOUSANDS OF HOURS FROM THOSE VOLUNTEERS AND FROM THE VARIOUS COMMITTEES ASSOCIATED WITH IT. AND THAT’S WHERE, WHEN YOU LOOKED AT THE MURAL, FOR EXAMPLE, IT WASN’T JUST THE ATHLETES THAT GOT TO SIGN, IT WAS PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THE ACTUAL RUNNING OF THE GAMES AND THAT WHICH – THEY CAN’T HAPPEN WITHOUT THOSE PEOPLE...IF YOU DON’T HAVE THE RIGHT PEOPLE TO HAVE THE FORESIGHT TO LOOK AT THE EVENT, TO KNOW WHAT THE POTENTIAL ARE, TO KNOW WHO THEY WOULD REACH OUT IN THEIR HEADS TO HELP RUN THE EVENT - THOSE EVENTS WON’T HAPPEN. THERE HAS TO BE A DRIVING FORCE; SOMEBODY’S WILLING TO STEP OUT AND TAKE THAT ON IN ADDITION TO THEIR OWN POSITIONS OF WHEREVER THEY HAPPEN TO BE WORKING. AND WE SEE THAT ALL OF THE TIME WITH THE MAJOR FIGURE SKATING COMPETITIONS THAT THE ENMAX CENTRE HOLDS, THE MAJOR CURLING COMPETITIONS. THERE’S A GROUP OF PEOPLE OUT THERE THAT TAKE THAT ON AND MAKE SURE THAT THOSE EVENTS ARE BROUGHT HERE SO THAT SOUTHERN ALBERTA AND LETHBRIDGE CAN ENJOY THEM. AND THAT’S A HUGE PART OF EVERY SPORTING EVENT THAT TAKES PLACE WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, NOT JUST AT THE ENMAX CENTRE.” FOR MORE INFORMATION INCLUDING THE FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTION, LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLES AND PHOTOS REFERENCED, PLEASE SEE THE PERMANENT FILE P20190033001-GA.

Catalogue Number

P20190033003

Acquisition Date

2019-05

Collection

Museum

Less detail