Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: Celebrity and athlete sightings from Steven Colbert to Wayne Gretzky

Olympic rings in Vanouver's Coal harbour. Sue Fruase photo

Although the only celebrity type that I saw in Vancouver during the 2010 Winter Olympics was NBC’s Lester Holt, there were plenty in this British Columbia city. While enjoying a glass of BC’s Quail’s Gate wine at The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver’s 900 West one afternoon, I found out that Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban were in the hotel, although nobody had spotted them. Turns out they attended the ice dancing event and also visited the Vancouver Aquarium.

Kidman is an Omega Ambassador, along with Cindy Crawford and Michael Phelps, who were also guests at The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. The trio were on site at the Omega Boutique located in the iconic hotel; George Clooney was scheduled to appear, but apparently was a no-show.

Here are some other celebrity/athlete sightings in Vancouver:

* Stephen Colbert enjoyed moule frites at Chambar Restaurant and also dinner at Yaletown’s Blue Water Cafe (where fellow diners sang along with the comedian to O Canada)
* Gold medal-winning ice dancers Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir celebrated their win with friends and family at Il Giardino
* Wayne and Janet Gretzky brunched at MARKET by Jean-Georges in the Shangri-La Hotel. Gretzy also had lunch at CinCin, where he offered to sign bottles of his new wine, along with the table cloth from his table.
* U.S. snowboarding god Shaun White and NBA star Steve Nash partied at Republic nightclub on Granville Street
* The Canadian men’s hockey team ate at DB Bistro Moderne, the Vancouver satellite of Daniel Boulud’s New York restaurant.
* Former Olympic gold medal skaters Jamie Salé and David Pelletier partied at Opus Hotel
* The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver also hosted U.S. VP Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper