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Wednesday, September 15, 2010
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Cyclist seriously hurt in race to Whistler James Weldon
jweldon@nsnews.com
A cyclist is in hospital in serious condition after crashing on the Upper Levels Highway during Saturday’s RBC GranFondo Whistler bike race.
Hands sandwich
NEWS photo Paul McGrath
HANDSWORTH receiver Kyle Kawamoto (centre) meets Carson Graham’s Steve Pruner (left) and Amrit Mahal at the same time during the annual Buchanan Bowl game between the two schools held at Carson Graham Saturday. Handsworth pulled off a thrilling comefrom-behind win in the fourth quarter. See story page 41. For more game action photos, go to www.nsnews.com.
The man, identified in media reports as John Botelho, 49, of Victoria, was moving at high speed in the early stages of the 120-kilometre ride through West Vancouver at about 7:30 a.m. when he apparently lost control of his bike and toppled off, hitting his head. Race personnel rushed to the scene, followed by police and B.C. Ambulance Service paramedics, who treated the victim before rushing him to Lions Gate Hospital. He remains in stable condition. “We have heavy hearts . . . because of what happened,” said Shaun Poole, a spokesman for GranFondo Canada, which put on the event and is See Inaugural page 5
HST to go to provincial referendum Jane Seyd
jseyd@nsnews.com
NORTH Shore organizers fighting against the province’s Harmonized Sales Tax say they’re happy that Premier Gordon Campbell has committed to scrapping the tax if a majority of voters cast their ballots against it in a referendum next September. But they would have preferred to see the decision on axing the tax go straight to the legislature for a vote, said anti-HST campaigner Eddie Petrossian.
Fight-HST organizers vow to go ahead with recall campaigns
He vowed the change in Campbell’s position won’t stop antiHST forces from going ahead with recall campaigns against Liberal MLAs around the province — potentially including seats on the North Shore. Petrossian made his comments a day after a legislative committee considering the anti-HST petition voted to send the issue to a public referendum next fall rather than directly to a debate in the legislature. Under the rules for a referendum, more than half of all registered
voters would have to vote in favour of it to pass. Critics pointed to that as an almost insurmountable threshold, given that few voters usually vote at all in referendums. But just a few hours later, Campbell said if the majority of people who show up to the polls vote against the HST, the province will have to back down. Petrossian called the change in position very important and said it’s clear the pressure of the anti-HST campaign is causing the government to change its approach. But he said he’d like a referendum held sooner. “We would propose to do it as soon as possible,” he said. See Sultan page 3