El Nino weakening doesn't mean cooler temperatures this summer, forecasters say
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
A sunburst at the overcast birthplace of the ancient Olympic Games in Greece was too short-lived to light the backup flame for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at Sunday's dress rehearsal.
It was the second blip of the day, after two protesters were detained on the Acropolis in Athens trying to raise a banner to draw attention to human-rights abuses in China.
There has been widespread international criticism of China's treatment of Uyghur Muslims in the northwest region of Xinjiang, as well as its crackdown on protesters in Hong Kong and its policies toward Tibet and Taiwan.
But the International Olympic Committee has shied away from the issue, saying it's out of its remit.
The question of the weather over Olympia is simpler. Greek organizers have another backup flame lit in advance if the traditional way, using a bowl-shaped mirror to focus the sun's rays on a torch, fails again due to clouds disrupting the ceremony on Monday.
Health measures for the second pandemic flame-lighting at Ancient Olympia, in the southern Peloponnese region, mean that much of the normal pageantry is being trimmed back.
There will be no spectators Monday, and only three runners will take part in a symbolic relay that would normally have lasted days.
The first torchbearer, Greek alpine ski racer Ioannis Antoniou, said his part in the ceremony is "one of the greatest honors an athlete can have."
"And much more as it's the Olympics that I'm trying to qualify for," he added.
Sunday's dress rehearsal didn't even have the costumes, for fear of them getting soaked by rain. Instead, young actresses and dancers playing the part of pagan priestesses went through their routine looking incongruous in sportswear and sandals, to save their flowing tunics for Monday when better weather is forecast.
The flame will be taken to Athens and handed over to Beijing organizers on Tuesday at the renovated ancient stadium where the first modern Olympics were held in 1896.
Earlier Sunday, two activists attempted to hang a banner from the scaffolding on the Acropolis before being detained.
Human rights activists had also staged protests during the flame-lighting ceremony for the 2008 Beijing Summer Games, and disrupted the international torch relay.
The women, 18-year-old Tibetan student Tsela Zoksang and 22-year-old exiled Hong Kong activist Joey Siu, both American citizens, are members of the "No Beijing 2022" campaign, the New York-based organization Students for a Free Tibet said.
A security officer took the banner away, but the activists remained on the scaffolding and deployed a Tibetan flag and a smaller banner proclaiming, "Free Hong Kong Revolution."
They also chanted slogans including "Free Tibet," "Boycott Beijing 2022" and "No freedom, no Games," before police arrived and detained them.
Protests are not allowed on the Acropolis -- which has not stopped several from being held over the years by groups ranging from Communist unionists to soccer fans.
The Beijing Winter Games will run from Feb. 4-20. Only spectators from mainland China will be allowed to attend. Everyone at the Olympics -- including athletes -- will be expected to be vaccinated, or else have to spend 21 days in quarantine.
The Paralympics are set to follow from March 4-13.
------
Demetris Nellas in Athens and Srdjan Nedeljkovic in Ancient Olympia contributed to this report.
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
A 15-year old boy who was critically injured after a stabbing in Nepean on Thursday has died of his injuries, Ottawa's English public school board said Sunday.
Police say it’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in a collision at North Vancouver’s Park and Tilford shopping centre Saturday evening that sent one vehicle careening into a flower shop and another into a set of concrete barriers outside a Winners store.
The Maple Leafs battled back from a 3-1 series deficit against the Boston Bruins with consecutive 2-1 victories - including one that required extra time - in their first-round playoff series to push the club's Original Six rival to the limit before suffering a devastating Game 7 overtime loss.
Amid scientists' warnings that nations need to transition away from fossil fuels to limit climate change, Canadians are still lukewarm on electric vehicles, according to a study conducted by Nanos Research for CTV News.
Three people have died and two have been hospitalized after a speeding car struck a tree and landed on another vehicle in Fredericton Sunday morning.
A Montreal man is warning Tesla drivers about using the Smart Summon feature after his vehicle hit another in a parking lot.
Madonna put on a free concert on Copacabana beach Saturday night, turning Rio de Janeiro's vast stretch of sand into an enormous dance floor teeming with a multitude of her fans.
Thieves killed two Australians and an American on a surfing trip to Mexico in order to steal their truck, particularly because they wanted the tires, authorities said Sunday.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.