Can’t we stay… just a little bit longer?

On a purely surface level, the Olympic Games are an international event of summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes compete in a variety of games.

 

So for sports fanatics like myself, the Olympics are always special.

 

However, unlike the Stanley Cup Finals, the World Series, or even the Super Bowl, the intrigue of the Olympics is not limited to sports fans.

 

As I was constantly reminded in my Canadian studies course this past year, Canadians don’t necessarily have one distinct national consciousness.

 

 Canadians are a diverse group of people who come from countless different backgrounds and cultures, so it’s understandably difficult to identify one specific thing that unites us all.

 

This may in fact be the case, but the Olympics have the unique ability to bring us together unlike anything else.

 

The much-anticipated 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver are now less than nine months away, and I know I can’t wait.

 

Being from British Columbia, it would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to return home to soak it all in.

 

Not only would I like to watch all the different sports with my family and friends, I’d also like to gain some experience volunteering at the games. As a journalism major, this experience would be invaluable.

 

But there’s one thing standing in my way: school.

 

I know many post-secondary institutions in B.C. have already decided to shut down all operations during this two-week period in February, and I suggest our very own Carleton University does the same. In fact, it would be even easier for

 

Eastern universities, who enjoy a reading week period, to accommodate.

 

The Olympics run from February 12 to 24, and according to Carleton University president Roseann Runte, next year’s

reading week is slated to run from February 15 to 19. Essentially, all the school would have to do is extend the existing reading week to, well, two weeks.

 

I know I would have no problem staying in school one extra week in April if meant that our reading week was extended to accommodate students hoping to experience the Olympics entirely.

 

I want to enjoy this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to the fullest extent, not having to worry about having a midterm the next morning or a 10-page paper to write.

 

When I’m out there in the real world after I graduate, I’m not going to remember one week of school in February during the seemingly never-ending Ottawa winter — and I say that with all due respect to Carleton University and the beautiful city that is our nation’s capital.

 

I would, however, remember and cherish the atmosphere of being in my hometown during such a momentous and rare occasion.

 

I sincerely hope the Carleton University administration will take a step back and simply think about the students’ perspective in this matter. With due consideration, I think they’ll realize that what I’m asking really isn’t that unreasonable.

 

The 2010 Olympics were not simply awarded to Vancouver or the province of British Columbia, they were awarded to Canada as a whole.