I think that the real lesson to be learned from the Olympic Games, as a nation, is that the standards for bilingualism in other countries are not the same as those in Canada. I believe that VANOC made a commendable effort with regard to all aspects of the Olympic Games, including the sporting events, buildings, translation and signage. All of that was completely bilingual. In that regard, I feel that it was a resounding success.
As for the opening ceremony, we were disappointed, as I have said.
I think VANOC, with all the best intention, wanted to make sure that these games were inclusive of all Canadians. I think that was very clear for the entirety of the games and the entirety of the effort.
But what Canada needs to recognize going forward is that the Canadian standard for official languages is not necessarily the same as the IOC standard for official languages, for example. We need to continue to assert that and make sure that's an expectation that's understood, not only by organizations like VANOC but also by all of our partners in the private sector, public sector, and different levels of government. That's what we need to do.
There were clearly many success stories and overall everything went very well. Unfortunately, in the case of the opening ceremony, the message was less than a complete success.