BC Place Stadium got a little closer to becoming a stop on the wildly successful International Rugby Board (IRB) Hong Kong Sevens World Series.
The IRB’s executive council, on a rare foray outside its Dublin, Ireland, headquarters, took a break from Westin Bayshore meetings to tour the stadium on Oct. 8.
“We’re in the process now of defining what will be the next cycle, the ’15-’16 season,” said IRB CEO Brett Gosper. “We’ll probably go through a tender process. We’ll try to include all the regions in that.”
Gosper said the IRB is considering expanding the nine-country tour, which packs stadiums from Dubai to Hong Kong and comes as close to Vancouver as Las Vegas. The seven-a-side version of the sport will debut at the Rio 2016 Olympics. A two- or three-day sevens event in Vancouver would have the potential to rival the Grey Cup as a hotel magnet and do more to increase international tourism than Canada’s annual fall football festival.
“We know [BC Place] is a great stadium,” Gosper said. “There’s been some issues about the artificial surface and its adaptability to rugby. We get the sense if there was some certainty and some big game here each year they’d be willing to make the change out for artificial turf that would be good for all sports.”
Gosper said the IRB is in talks with several other federations, including FIFA, about harmonizing standards. Gosper said there are some concerns about synthetic surfaces and whether they would stand up to heavy scrummaging.
The Polytan Ligaturf at BC Place, a FIFA-endorsed surface, must get FIFA’s thumbs up or thumbs down in time for the 2015 Women’s World Cup.
Arthur’s new adventure
Lobbyists come in all shapes and sizes. Some are lawyers, some are former cabinet ministers. But only one owned a National Hockey League team, built a new arena in downtown Vancouver and successfully campaigned for Vancouver to be Canada’s 2010 Olympic bid city.
Such is ex-Vancouver Canucks’ owner Arthur Griffiths, whose new two-man shop Arthur Griffiths and Associates represents the Vancouver Taxi Association (VTA) and BC Craft Brewers’ Guild. His vice-president is Craig Jangula, a former aide to Liberal MLAs Mary McNeil and Lorne Mayencourt.
Griffiths returned to Vancouver earlier this year after more than two years in London, where he spearheaded Olympic sponsorship activation for Russian sportswear company Bosco. Griffiths’ provincial registration to lobby for the VTA says the group is “seeking a clear and predictable regulatory regime that ensures safe conditions for passengers and maintains a level playing field for all operators to ensure the long-term health of the industry.” Suburban competitors want to pick up and drop off in Vancouver on weekends, but the four-company VTA has already felt the pinch from passengers lost to the Canada Line and car-sharing services.
Griffiths is certain to be grinning ear to ear on November 2 when Pavel Bure’s number 10 is hoisted to the rafters at Rogers Arena. Under father Frank Griffiths’ ownership, Pat Quinn drafted Bure in 1989. The Russian Rocket debuted two years later and the rest is history.
Rink drinks
Today’s proprietor of the Canucks and the rink, Aquilini Investment Group, delivered its wish list to the provincial liquor review on October 2. Canucks Sports and Entertainment (CSE) wants regulations relaxed so it can sell two full pints at a time and spirit-based drinks in general public seating, plus double serving time to two hours before and after events and allow hawkers to sell beer in the concourse during intermissions.
CSE escaped any consequences of the 2011 Stanley Cup riot. The provincial government report made a vague reference to several people being ejected from the arena during the third period of the Game 7 loss, without explaining whether they joined the melee just a block away. •
