White hats, naked protestors and sweaty leaders in the gym: Headlines from the 2002 G8 summit in Kananaskis

As Alberta gears up to big leaders from immoderate of the world's astir almighty nations astatine the upcoming G7 summit, we're looking backmost astatine the astir newsworthy headlines from the past time the high-profile lawsuit was held successful Kananaskis, 23 years ago.

Former premier minister Jean Chrétien met with satellite leaders astatine the 2002 G8 summit, erstwhile the radical inactive included Russia. The leaders met to sermon a assortment of topics, including the cardinal docket point of African aid, portion besides squeezing successful beers, play and souvenir shopping.

Despite the recent Sept. 11, 2001 attacks successful the U.S. looming implicit the event, and the caller representation of out-of-control protests astatine the acme successful Italy a twelvemonth prior, Canada managed to present a harmless and secluded lawsuit successful the mountains, said John Kirton, manager of the G7 probe radical astatine the University of Toronto.

The determination distant from metropolitan big cities marked a instrumentality to what the gathering betwixt the starring concern nations was primitively intended to be: a "fireside chat" betwixt satellite leaders.

"At the worst imaginable times, erstwhile the United States was truly astatine its astir vulnerable… Jean Chrétien and Canada's Kananaskis acme delivered," said Kirton.

"Yes for security, yes against terrorism, but [also] for Africa and the Global South, and for Canadians and its economical docket and successful advancing the Canadian interest for protecting the world's earthy situation each astatine the aforesaid time, and [Canada] proved it could each beryllium done successful implicit peace."

Kirton described it arsenic "a mark for consequent summits to meet."

Calgary achromatic hats satellite leaders

Upon accomplishment successful Calgary, then-mayor Dave Bronconnier greeted the satellite leaders with a achromatic Smithbilt hat, a contented symbolizing the city's hospitality.

U.S. president George W. Bush donned his cowboy chapeau for a speedy infinitesimal and past held it to his heart. The Ottawa Citizen reported him saying to Bronconnier, "You don't look aged capable to beryllium a mayor."

According to the Globe and Mail's reporting, French president Jacques Chirac refused to enactment connected his hat.

Russian President Vladimir Putin besides shied distant from modelling his gift, but did amusement curiosity, inspecting it closer.

The Globe and Mail besides reported fewer leaders did the ceremonial "yahoo" cheer aft receiving their achromatic hat.

All eyes connected Canada

A Calgary Herald communicative from April 24, 2002 teed up however the G8 acme looked to alteration the world's cognition of Canada with a "high-tech" showcase of non-stereotypical Canadiana successful the signifier of a CD-ROM to beryllium fixed to planetary delegates and journalists.

"Before they arrive, they'll beryllium reasoning of beavers, igloos, red-coated constabulary connected horseback and toothless hockey goons," wrote Kerry Williamson of the Herald.

"When they leave, they'll beryllium speechmaking Mordecai Richler and Will Ferguson, admiring Robert Bateman's paintings, talking of teepees and listening to David Foster's music."

Besides the nation's ambitions for recrafting its representation to the world, the precise beingness of the U.S. president astatine the acme conveyed a motion of spot successful Canada, said Kirton, arsenic determination were doubts astir whether Bush would marque the trip after the events of 9/11.

At the Delta Lodge successful Kananaskis, cook Jeff O'Neill served up a determination cuisine with nutrient that was "uniquely Canadian," helium told the Calgary Herald.

"He says it is safest to enactment existent to what he's champion astatine and helium is making definite to steer wide of thing similar Borscht for Russian dignitaries," wrote the paper's Maureen DePatie.

Later, the Herald confirmed leaders and delegates dined connected smoked Bow River trout, Yukon Gold murphy and charbroiled High Plains buffalo tenderloin during their stay.

Clashing agendas, engaged leaders

During the two-day summit, leaders stayed engaged with a packed docket tackling issues of atomic disarmament, the Middle East, terrorism and, astir centrally, African aid.

With al-Qaeda and different panic threats apical of mind, Bush insisted that information beryllium a much salient taxable connected the docket, portion Chrétien was committed to the docket that was acceptable astatine the past acme successful Italy, which centred on African issues.

"Mr. Chrétien said yesterday that helium would not fto the Middle East treatment sideline his program for a full-day treatment connected Africa tomorrow," the Globe and Mail reported astatine the time.

Bush and Putin had immoderate akin interests according to their profiles successful the Ottawa Citizen. Russia seemed successful statement with the U.S. to propulsion for discussions connected coercion successful Kananaskis. 

Four African leaders – Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal and Abdelaziz Bouteflika of Algeria — arsenic good arsenic UN caput wide Kofi Annan joined the G8 heads, participating successful a associated gathering connected the Africa Action Plan.

The leaders would yet motion what Chrétien called a "landmark papers for Africa," focused connected reducing African nations' debt, helping to extremity determination wars, opening occidental markets and supporting education.

The leaders' motorboat of the Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction was different large takeaway from the summit. The concern made a $20 cardinal US committedness to dismantle aging atomic weapons successful Russia and different countries of the erstwhile Soviet Union.

WATCH | CBC News sum of the 2002 G8 Summit: 

"Vladimir Putin agreed to fto inspectors from his aged Cold War rivals – the different G7 countries – participate Russia's astir concealed atomic facilities, chemic weapons, biological, radiological ones, to inspect them to spot what was determination and past to dismantle them truthful they could not beryllium used," said Kirton.

Squeezing galore discussions into the two-day summit, Chrétien explained to reporters however engaged the leaders were keeping.

"You each ticker maine having a brew with [Jacques] Chirac successful beforehand of the edifice for 10 minutes," Chrétien told reporters. "And I didn't person the clip to decorativeness the beer."

World leaders aft hours

While leaders were mostly occupied with concern during their abbreviated foray into K-country, quality stories amusement their docket wasn't each business.

The Calgary Herald reported Chrétien snuck successful 4 holes of play conscionable hours earlier the archetypal authoritative G8 gathering got underway. The connection was helium deed a birdie connected the par-4 3rd hole, wrote Williamson.

Chirac was reportedly drawn to buying respective souvenir Canada T-shirts, and "in 1 store purchased a child's sweater with a moose embroidered connected the beforehand – worthy $23 – and a Kananaskis play cap."

Putin besides near with a portion of Canada: a ample $150 dreamcatcher made adjacent Vancouver.

Bush and U.K. premier curate Tony Blair "shared 20 sweaty minutes astatine the gym successful what aides dubbed the archetypal ever 'aerobic bilat,'" wrote Reuters.

After walking successful connected Blair's workout, Bush remarked connected his "impressive regime." Blair said Bush "looked successful beauteous bully shape" himself.

Naked protests and muddy demonstrations

While satellite leaders received achromatic hats on the eve of the summit, earlier that aforesaid morning, protestors were baring it each extracurricular a Gap store connected Stephen Avenue to protestation the company's exploitation of workers.

The 2002 G8 acme ushered successful a much peaceful protesting format, said Kirton. The erstwhile acme successful Italy was marked by clashes betwixt constabulary and protestors that resulted successful a demonstrator being changeable and killed by police.

Designated protestation areas successful Calgary contained overmuch of the demonstrations, which included anti-globalization protests successful the signifier of much accepted marches, arsenic good arsenic the much unsocial mud creation and knit-in demonstrations.

"Defence successful depth," is however Kirton remembered it.

"Yes, you did person to person dense police, right? They looked similar imperial stormtroopers… with their masks and their clubs and their shields. But they were kept hidden wrong adjacent buildings," helium said.

WATCH | Protests astatine the 2002 G8 summit:

"On the beforehand lines, they enactment section Calgary constabulary officers. They were connected bikes… not successful tanks oregon constabulary cars."

Ultimately, Kirton said, the comparatively peaceful 2002 G8 successful Kananaskis "certainly enactment Canada connected the satellite stage, successful a mode – much centrally, much prominently – than it had ever done before."