2010 Winter Olympics

The 2010 Winter Olympics, known formally as the XXI Olympic Winter Games, will be held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Several venues will also be featured in the resort community of Whistler. The games, the first in North America since Salt Lake City hosted the games in 2002, are expected to be officially opened by either the Governor General of Canada on behalf of the Monarch of Canada, or by the Monarch in person, on February 12 and will be declared closed on February 28 by International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge.

Construction

The initial challenge Vancouver faced in winning the bid for the 2010 Winter Olympics was fundraising for construction of venues. The committee charged with planning the games received commitments of investment by the federal and provincial governments as well as donations from private corporations and institutions. Such commitments were made enthusiastically as a chance to build on the world prestige Vancouver already gained as host of the 1986 World's Fair and to improve on the technological advances made during that event, like the expansion of the SkyTrain transit system.

Related Topics:
1986 World's Fair - SkyTrain - Transit system

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As of 2004, the cost of the 2010 Winter Olympics is estimated to be in the range of C$1.4 billion. C$620 million is the approximate cost to construct venues throughout Vancouver and Whistler, C$200 million is expected to be spent for security, and C$600 million will be used to refit the Sea-to-Sky Highway to accommodate increased traffic between Vancouver and Whistler, although this highway upgrade has been over due for more than a decade and will still not meet the basic needs of the corridor. Vancouver and Whistler will maintain an operating budget of about C$2 billion from the provincial and federal governments.

Related Topics:
C$ - Sea-to-Sky Highway

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