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LONDON — Canada's diving team has captured a second medal at the London Olympics.

Roseline Filion of Laval, Que., and Meaghan Benfeito of Montreal won bronze in the women's 10-metre synchronized event.

China continued to dominate the competition, with Chen Ruolin and Wang Hao earning 368.40 points to win gold.

Paola Espinosa Sanchez and Alejandra Orozco Loza of Mexico took the silver with 343.32.

Filion and Benfeito, who were diving last in the eight-team field, scored 337.62.

The medal comes two days after Emilie Heymans and Jennifer Abel gave Canada its first medal of the Games with a third-place finish in the women's three-metre synchro.

Filion and Benfeito, who are best friends outside the pool, were seventh in the same event four years ago in Beijing.



Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/2012-summer-games/Canada+wins+second+Olympic+bronze+medal/7017381/story.html#ixzz22EJTAL76



Go Canada Go!

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"Brittany was the ideal realtor for myself. As a first time homebuyer buying new development, Brittany ensured nothing was over looked. Her organizational skills, knowledge, and attention to detail were incredible. Each step of the process Brittany made sure I was content with the decisions being made; I always felt supported and never pressured when it was time to finally pick my first home. Brittany has a passion for real estate and working with people, this was so evident while working with her! I would recommend Brittany to any of my family and friends!"

 

Thanks, Brittany!

 

 

-Brittany W.

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  One week from now, athletes from around the world will march in the opening ceremonies for the 2012 London   Olympic Games. Tens of thousands will be in attendance while roughly a billion more will watch the festivities on television sets around the globe.

One of those who will be glued to the tube is Cloverdale realtor Brittany Reimer, who will be experiencing a major case of déjà vu as the fortnight in London unfolds.

Eight years ago, at the tender age of 16, Reimer was one those athletes competing for Canada at the 2004 Games in the birthplace of the Olympic movement, Athens, Greece. Reimer acknowledges the latest edition of the Games will bring back a flood of memories

She was the youngest member of the Canadian swim team in Athens by three years, a young phenom competing against the best swimmers in the world. She swam in the 200-metre, 400m, and 800m freestyle events as well as the 4x100m medley relay. She did not reach the finals in any of her events and remembers being disappointed with her results.

"The Olympics only happen every four years and you have to try to be at your best in that year and at that time," she recalls.

"It's so hard to time that peak and for those who can do it, that's amazing. If I had the year I had in 2005 a year earlier, the times I had at the (2005) world championships would have medaled in Athens. It's a timing thing and you never know when that timing is right until the day of the race."

As the biggest sporting spectacle on the planet, the Olympics are much more than just a sporting event. In addition to the racing, Reimer's memories include things that escaped the attention of most broadcast crews, such as:

- Athletes from Third World nations lined up for McDonalds - a restaurant unavailable to them in their homelands - in the massive Olympic Village complex.

- A sandstorm that swept through Athens one night just before she was about to race, causing the overhead cameras to sway in the breeze.

- Eating in the cafeteria next to such stars as Michael Phelps, Ian Thorpe, Andy Roddick and Yao Ming.

- Dressed in her track suit and swim cap and waiting in the stuffy, overheated ready room - a tunnel beneath the stands - with sweat pouring off of her.

- A little stray dog that was adopted by the Canadian swimmers during a two-week pre-Olympic training camp on the Greek island of Kos prior to the games.

The year after Athens, Reimer had a breakout summer highlighted by a memorable showing at the 2005 World Aquatics Championships Montreal. In front of Canadian fans, Reimer won a silver medal in the 800m freestyle and a bronze in the 1,500m freestyle events. She also placed placed fourth in the women's 400m freestyle final and broke three Canadian records.

The following year at the 2006 Commonwealth games in Australia, Reimer won a bronze medal in the women's 800m freestyle.

And that was it. With the 2008 Olympic Games in China looming, Reimer decided the fire was no longer burning strong enough inside her to continue to train and compete at an elite level.

"I retired right before 2008 and I was ready to retire and move on to the next chapter in my life," she says. "Everyone told me I could have kept going but it's a big commitment. I loved the life of an athlete but I started my athletic life so young, at age six.

- "I made my first national team when I was 15 and most people don't do that until they're in their 20s. I started young and I was fortunate enough to win medals at the world championships and the Commonwealth Games and I swam in the Olympics. I had experienced everything I thought I needed to experience in that world and I was just ready to move on with my life."

While she no longer hits the pool every day, she is still involved in the sport. As an Olympian, she understands the exclusive club she belongs to and what it means to youngsters. She volunteers with her former clubs, the Cloverdale Tritons and Surrey Knights, as well as Holyburn in West Vancouver. When she meets with kids, she brings her medals as a source of inspiration for the next generation of Canadian swimmers, recalling her first brush with Olympic stardom when she met Canadian Olympian Jessica Deglau at a swim meet at UBC at the age of 12. She later learned Deglau had a similar experience with another Canadian swim star when she was a young girl.

"It's funny how the cycle goes," Reimer says. "For me, I meet so many young kids in swim clubs and at least one of those kids has to keep that cycle going. It has to happen and I never know which kid will be the one who goes on to be an Olympian. When I talk to kids, I always tell them that they can do it. I'm just like every other kid and I did it so you can do it."

twitter@boothnow



Read more: http://www.thenownewspaper.com/sports/2012-summer-games/London+Games+spark+memories/6956641/story.html#ixzz218ziVN2E

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For the second year in a row I had the pleasure of helping out with the Surrey Knights 2012 summer camps. I had a great night talking to the kids and ended with an hour of working on backstroke technique. Thank you again to coach Nici and the Surrey Knights Swim Club for having me there!!!

 

Hoping to get out to another session later in the summer.

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On Saturday night I attended my second Cloverdale Tritons fundraiser being held at the Townhall Public House in Langley. The food was fantastic and I highly recommend this pub for lunch/dinner to anyone who hasn't been. I donated a "Mojito" theme gift basket (if you received my post card you will know why) as well as a signed Brittany Reimer swim cap.

 

Thank you, Cloverdale Tritons for having me! :)

 

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Check out the latest Fraser Valley Real Estate Board's stats for July.

 

News Release: July 4, 2012

 

(Surrey, BC) – For the fifth consecutive month, the ratio of property sales in the Fraser Valley compared to the number of listings on the market has remained stable. In June, it was 14 per cent – the same as it was in February and April of this year. In March and May of 2012, it was 15 per cent.

Scott Olson, President of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board explains, “Our market last month remained consistent. Our sales were down compared to May, however the number of new listings we received dropped as well, which seasonally is typical for June in the Fraser Valley.”

Last month, the Board posted 1,463 sales, a decrease of 9 per cent compared to May and 8 per cent fewer than the 1,588 sales processed on the Board’s Multiple Listing Service (MLS®) during June of 2011. At the same time, the Board received 2,898 new listings, a decrease of 12 per cent compared to May and an increase of 5 per cent compared to those received during the same month last year. The decrease in new listings pushed the number of active listings down slightly in June – by 1 per cent – compared to the previous month, however still 9 per cent more than were available in June of 2011. 

“Although our inventory is trending at historically high levels, sales have remained steady so we’re not seeing significant downward pressure on residential prices overall.

“There are individual property types and areas with their unique trends, which consumers can ask their local REALTOR® about directly, however across the Fraser Valley in June, both average and benchmark prices, the price of a ‘typical’ home, for detached properties remained on par month-over-month and showed positive gains year-over-year.” 

The composite benchmark price as determined by the MLS® Home Price Index (MLS®HPI) of a single family detached home in Fraser Valley increased 3.6 per cent in one year. It went from $548,000 in June 2011 to $551,000 last month.  

In June, the MLS®HPI composite benchmark price of a Fraser Valley townhouse was $305,000, on par with 2011 and the composite benchmark price of an apartment increased by 0.7 per cent year-over-year; going from $202,100 in June of last year to $203,600 last month. 

Olson adds, “Another market gauge we monitor closely is the average number of days it’s taking to sell properties. In June, it took on average 44 days to sell a detached home in the Fraser Valley and give or take a day this has stayed the same for four months, another sign of stability.”

—30 —

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board is an association of 2,908 real estate professionals who live and work in the BC communities of North Delta, Surrey, White Rock, Langley, Abbotsford, and Mission. The FVREB marked its 90-year anniversary in 2011.

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At-grade light rail is coming to Surrey – at least for Canada Day.

 

 

The City of Surrey will have a 60-foot scale model of Bombarier's Flexity Freedom, an at-grade rail car described as transit built in North America, for North America.

 

 

It boasts zero emissions and reduced noise.

 

 

Mayor Dianne Watts says it's time at-grade rail was brought here.

 

 

“Surrey’s population is expected to increase by 50 per cent over the next 30 years, so we need efficient transit service now in order to help shape and connect our growing communities,” Watts said in a release.  “Light rail is cost-effective and will allow us to create billions of dollars in new economic activity.”

 

 

Watts said cities such as Portland, Oregon experienced an $8-billion boost in new development after implementing the system there.

 

 

The City’s vision includes three light rail lines:

 

 

· City Centre to Guildford, along 104 Avenue, with a connection to Highway 1

 

 

· City Centre to Newton, along King George Boulevard, with the opportunity for extensions further south in the future

 

 

· City Centre to Langley, passing through Fleetwood along Fraser Highway

 

 

For more information on Surrey’s light rail plans, visit: www.surrey.ca/RapidTransitNow

 

 

The rail car will be on display Sunday, July 1 at the Cloverdale Millennium Amphitheatre, 176 Street and 64 Avenue.

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