Olympic flame to reach Whistler on Friday
By James Keller, Canadian Press
SQUAMISH, British Columbia — One of four First Nations communities that have been given an official role in the Winter Games welcomed the Olympic torch to their traditional territory on Thursday, blessing the “sacred” flame as it entered a region that has been waiting for this moment for nearly a decade.
Hundreds of residents of the Squamish First Nation packed a hall in Stawamus, just south of the town of Squamish, as the brightly burning flame was carried in to the beat of aboriginal drumming.
Skier's Square at Whistler Village will welcome the Olympic Flame on Feb. 5.
“Thank you for blessing this sacred fire that has been shared throughout the world,” Laverne Baker, a Squamish elder, told the crowd, during a traditional blessing ceremony.