(above, the former J. Keithley flashes the form that earned no respect from the Comité olympique canadien)

My personal picks for Winter Olympics 2010 torch-bearers were Joey Shithead, Jean Smith and honorary Vancouverite Bryant Reeves, but the Games’ organizers instead opted for such lesser lights as Matt Lauer, Wayne Gretzky, Steve Nash and Donald Sutherland. I’m not the only one outraged, either, as the Maple Ridge News’ Sam Smith reports (link swiped from Repoz and Baseball Think Factory)

According to Larry Walker Sr., his son and Maple Ridge native, Larry Walker Jr., was œcrushed that he wasn™t asked to take part in the torch relay, even the bit through his home town.

œTo the very least, he should have been asked to be a torchbearer in the Maple Ridge run, Larry Sr. said. œIt™s not a television personality competition, it™s an athletic competition.

In an email to his father, Larry Jr. writes: œI was kinda crushed by not being asked. Guess holding almost every offensive record in Canadian history isn™t good enough!

In his email, Larry Jr. said that a lot of work went into picking people for the torch run and he couldn™t believe that not only was he overlooked, but so was another famous Maple Ridge athlete, MHL hall of fame inductee Cam Neely.

œWe™re ticked off he wasn™t asked, Larry Sr. said. œStat for stat, it™s just common sense. I mean, we see Donald Sutherland running the torch, who is a great actor, but he™s not an athlete.