The decade tag was particularly appropriate, given that Furlong led the largest sports festival in the history of the city and the province from bid phase to organizing committee to the Games themselves -- executive staying power that is atypical among Olympic event management marathons.
Whereas most Olympic host cities go through two or more CEOs -- either through the natural pairing of skill sets with the requisites of different phases of the multi-year campaign, politics associated with the process or sometimes sheer burnout -- Furlong defied early skeptics to go the distance and help make Vancouver 2010 one of the best Winter Games in history.
He did so as the epitome of personal character and professional leadership.
Furlong built his leadership of Vancouver 2010 around a strategic vision, one which he articulated clearly, championed passionately and defended smartly. These were to be Canada's Games. That vision, manifested in the Olympic Torch Relay presented by RBC and Coca-Cola, drove record levels of domestic sponsorship, ticket sales, merchandising and television audiences.
Furlong was Presidential in style, using the royal "we" instead of the self-centered "I". That made him well-respected internally and well-liked externally. It broadened coalitions of support when he needed them most, both domestically and at the level of the International Olympic Committee.
Finally, Furlong showed a remarkable human touch, especially in the way he handled the inevitable challenges he and VANOC faced along the way; none more impressive than how he respectfully managed the tragic training run death of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvilli on the day of the Vancouver 2010 opening ceremonies.
That podium of leadership attributes made Furlong a highly-effective front man for the Games. Adhering to strategic vision, consistently deferring to the larger body of staff and volunteers behind him and simply being John Furlong the person gave him significant political capital.
That capital helped keep things together whenever VANOC was particularly challenged, made mistakes or was otherwise subject to the intense public pressure or media criticism that is part of the territory of staging the Olympic showcase.
Even among critics, he was always one of the most reliable and likable things about Vancouver 2010 and VANOC.
Furlong was all about consistency and personal follow-through. In attending a memorial in Kumaritashvilli's home town -- well after the Games had ended -- he brought together the personal and professional characteristics that defined his leadership in particular and the Games in general.
Visionary. Inclusive. Human.
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