在第21届温哥华冬季奥运会(Winter Olympics)上，中国运动健儿大放异彩，囊括了多项赛事的奖牌。回顾过去的17天，我们欣赏了气势磅礴的开幕式，领略了赛场上各国运动健将拼搏驰骋的身姿。作为东道主，温哥华也为奥运精神注入了新的活力。

　　下面，我们来回顾一下，温哥华为本届冬奥会所作出的努力。

　　距冬奥会开幕只有一个月的时间了，温哥华终于开始悬挂各种宣传条幅，很快这个城市将敞开怀抱，热情迎接奥运会以及来自世界各地的人们。

　　With the Winter Games just over a month away, promotional banners finally began going up in Vancouver, which will soon play host to the Olympics and the world。

　　将于2月12日开幕的冬奥会将很快吸引成千上万的游客、记者和运动员来到这座位于加拿大太平洋海岸上的城市，报纸广告也呼吁当地居民拿出最佳表现，热情招待各界来宾。   

　　Newspaper ads have also advised residents to be on their best behavior for the thousands of visitors, reporters and athletes who will soon begin arriving on Canada’s Pacific Coast for the Games。

　　“我们希望为奥运创造一些惊喜。”温哥华城市发言人Lesli Boldt表示。与此同时，工作人员们也开始在城市主要路段悬挂首批6000幅彩旗和标语。

　　"We want to create some excitement for the Games," said Vancouver city spokeswoman Lesli Boldt as crews began to hang the first of 6,000 banners that will adorn major roadways around the city。

　　自2003年获得主办权时起，温哥华就协同联合主办方惠斯勒度假村积极筹办该届赛事。但在奥运场馆以及比赛场地区域外，游客们很难找到一场大型国际体育赛事即将举办的迹象。

　　Vancouver and the co-host resort community of Whistler have been busy preparing for the event since being awarded the Games in 2003. But away from the immediate Olympic venues and sites, visitors would be hard-pressed to find evidence that a big international sporting event was about to take place。

　　温哥华机场外悬挂了大幅的奥运五环标志，而除此之外最为醒目的标志就是张贴的数百个告示，用于警示当地居民，2月4日起不得在各大交通要道停车。

　　Aside from the large Olympic rings outside Vancouver’s airport, the most prominent signs of what is coming have been hundreds of notices warning residents they will not be able to park along major transportation routes as of Feb. 4.

　　对于工作进程迟缓，未能适时营造奥运氛围，使公众目睹并感受到奥运主办城市的风采等质疑，温哥华市政府官员和当地奥组委负责人予以否认。

　　Vancouver city officials and local Games organizers deny they have been slow in trying to pump up the pizazz and give the community the look and feel of an Olympic host city。

　　Lesli Boldt表示：“我并不这样认为。近来，人们都在忙于过圣诞节。现在还有一个月的时间，我们原本就计划在这段时间内开始筹备工作。”

　　"I don’t think so. People were busy with the Christmas holidays ... we’ve got a month to go and this is when the preparations are happening," Boldt said。

　　The blue, green and white banners featuring Olympic and Paralympic sports, along with abstract images of local mountains and the waterfront, are designed to show "Vancouver’s flair and Winter Games spirit," according to the city。

　　专为冬奥会和冬季残奥会而设计的彩旗和条幅由蓝、绿、白三色构成，上面附带当地山脉和海滨的抽象图形，据该市负责人介绍：“本设计旨在展现温哥华独特的天然景观和冬奥会的精神。”

　　但在条幅悬挂过程中，一位路过的居民表示，如果不是看到成群的记者聚在路边，她根本意识不到这些条幅和奥运会有关。

　　But a resident walking past the banner-hanging event admitted she would not have realized the banners were related to the Olympics had it not been for the gaggle of reporters gathered on the sidewalk。

　　“这些条幅很漂亮。并不会令人生厌。但它们真的让我感觉到更加浓郁的奥运味道了吗？我认为不，确实没有，” Kim Donaldson在接受路透社记者采访时表示。

　　"They’re pretty. Not offensive in any way. But do they make me feel more Olympic? No, not really," Kim Donaldson told Reuters。

　　一份温哥华报纸在周三刊登了4页的大幅宣传广告，专门向当地居民提供有关奥运会的关键信息，同时也向公众传授迎接游客的技巧。

　　A Vancouver newspaper carried a four-page advertisement from the city on Wednesday giving local residents key information about the Games and offering tips on how to welcome visitors。

　　其中一条建议是：了解各比赛场馆位置，帮助迷路游客指路。

　　Among the items of advice: learn where the competition venues are located, and help visitors who appear to be lost。

　　曲棍球、冰壶、滑冰和雪板比赛将在温哥华附近区域举行，而北欧滑雪、高山滑雪和雪橇比赛则被安排在125公里(80英里)以外的惠斯勒地区举行。

　　Competitions for hockey, curling, skating and snowboarding will be held in the immediate Vancouver area, while those for nordic skiing, alpine skiing and bobsled will be held in Whistler, about 125 km (80 miles) away。