2010 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony

The 2010 Winter Olympics began with Nodar Kumaritashvili's fatal luge crash, and after a spectacular opening ceremony, the Olympic Torch Malfunction occurred, marring an almost perfect evening. Everything went without a hitch until it came time to light the Olympic cauldron.

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20 Slideshow Photos Below - Don't miss them!

Wayne Gretzky

As Wayne Gretzky and three other Olympic torchbearers - Catriona LeMay Doan, Nancy Greene and Steve Nash - waited for the four pillars to rise from the floor of the stadium, something went wrong. For what seemed like an eternity, the four Canadian sports heroes stood awkwardly looking at each other, looking at the floor, looking at the crowd. All eyes and cameras were on Wayne Gretzky - the "Great One" - as he was visibly sweating, nervously wondering whether or not the Olympic Torch Lighting would happen at all.

David Atkins

"Fortunately the cauldron functions with three arms, as you saw," Vancouver Olympics executive producer David Atkins said at a news conference late Friday night. "The team did an extraordinary job at the last minute recovering from that and reprogramming the cauldron to still be delivered to the central girder."

Catriona LeMay Doan

Speedskater Catriona LeMay Doan never got to light the torch. As she stood by helplessly watching as the trap door refused to open and release the pillar she was about to light. Because the 2010 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony is produced and filmed live, there is no way of telling what types of malfunctions might occur. Everyone remembers one of the most famous malfunctions of all – the Janet Jackson "Wardrobe Malfunction" during the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show which was broadcast live on February 1, 2004.

Olympic Torch Malfunction

Three of the pillars finally came up, and they were lit by three torchbearers to oohs and aahs of the crowd. Wayne Gretzky then took off in a pick up truck to light the final torch that will be displayed throughout the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

Kelly Clark, Gold Medal Winning Snowboarder

Rhode Island has its share of athletes competing in the 2010 Winter Olympics. One to watch during the 2010 Olympic games is Kelly Clark, a Gold Medal winning snowboarder. Originally born in Newport, Rhode Island on July 26, 1983, Kelly's family moved to Vermont when she was 2 years old. She has been snowboarding since she was 8 years old, and began competing in 1999. Kelly became a member of the US Snowboard team in 2000, and her Olympic Gold Medal win in 2002 made her the first American to win a gold medal in the sport.

For More 2010 Winter Olympic Photos See:

• Bode Miller: Pictures of Olympic gold medal winner's winning streak
• Canada's Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir Olympic gold medal winners ice dancing
• Evan Lysacek wins gold men's figure skating, Plushenko wins silver
• Halfpipe Hannah Teter wins silver, Kelly Clark wins bronze medal in women's snowboard
• 2010 Olympics current medal count: Get widget to track gold medals
• Shaun White wins Gold 2010 Olympics Halfpipe with Double McTwist
• Slideshow: Lindsey Vonn makes America proud with Olympic downhill gold medal
• Slideshow Pictures: Snowboarder Lindsey Jacobellis hands gold medal to Canada's Ricker
• Slideshow: US Women's hockey team beats China 12-1: Kelli Stack, Jenny Potter, Meghan Duggan score
• Slideshow: 2010 Winter Olympics opening ceremony, Olympic torch malfunction

Want This Widget? Click Here for 2010 Olympics Current Medal Count: Get Widget to Track Gold, Silver, Bronze Medals

Sources: associatedpress.com; wikipedia.com

Photo: The Olympic flame burns after the opening ceremony of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Friday, Feb. 12, 2010. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)