Oregon Public Broadcasting

This Thursday is a big day in Vancouver and Whistler, B.C.

February twelfth marks exactly one year to go to the 2010 Winter Olympics. 

Organizers are justifiably proud of completing the competition venues well in advance.  But now the world economic crisis threatens the corporate sponsorships which underpin the sports extravaganza. 

Correspondent Tom Banse has this status check from Vancouver.

We’ve come to the heart of downtown Vancouver where in a plaza in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery is a towering digital clock. 

It’s counting down the seconds, hours and days to the Opening Ceremonies in 2010. 

The idea is to build excitement but in the plaza here there’s decidedly mixed feelings about the coming games.

Spectators watch a ski jumping test event at Whistler Olympic Park.

Arthur Wersdale: “I wish the Olympics would go away.”

That’s retiree Arthur Wersdale.

Arthur Wersdale: “These Olympics have moved so far away from the original concept of sport and what it’s meant to do that they’re not worth having anymore.  They’re just a means for celebrities to indulge themselves.”

Moments later, I met lawyer Jill Corraini.  She was lucky to get coveted tickets for Olympic hockey.

Jill Corraini:  “I am excited to have the Olympics here.  I think there has been a lot of controversy over having it, but I think it will be great to have people coming to Vancouver and being able to showcase our city.”

A recent survey asked a cross-section of Canadians whether the Olympics bring more benefits or more drawbacks.  In British Columbia, the enthusiasts have only a slight edge over the pessimists. 

Opposition lawmaker Harry Baines has become a prominent critic.  He says the mood is darkening with a year to go.

Harry Baines: “The taxpayers are excited to have these games. You know, I am as well. But I think the financial worries are basically overcoming that enthusiasm, especially because of the hidden cost.  Especially because the government isn’t coming clean with the true cost of the Olympics.  People are worried whether they will be left with a huge debt, whether their children will be asked to pay the debt that is left behind here.”

Baines notes several domestic sponsors of the 2010 Games are now on shaky ground.

Telecom firm Nortel Networks is under bankruptcy protection.  Automaker General Motors teeters on edge of insolvency.

Vancouver games organizers respond that all sponsors are current on their pledges.  However, the host committee recently trimmed its budget and delayed some hiring to cushion against “what might lie ahead.”

John Furlong: “What we tried to do was to prepare ourselves for pretty well anything that might happen.”

Vancouver Olympics chief John Furlong says the multi-billion dollar budget remains in balance.

John Furlong: “We are committed to staging spectacular games.  Every line of the budget has been examined and reexamined.  You know, so we are as I said committed at the highest level to make sure for the athletes of the world who come here next year that they have a remarkable experience, that they have everything they need on the field of play and in the villages to perform at their best.”

The recession doesn’t seem to have affected ticket sales. Organizers are counting on pretty much every event to sell out. 

More than half of the U.S. orders have come from Washington State and California.  The host committee is also in the happy position to have its competition venues completed a year or more ahead of time.

 This winter, penny-pinching fans can watch Olympic test events for a fraction of what tickets to the actual Olympics cost. 

The proposed regional pavilion at the Winter Games occupies a prime downtown Vancouver location between stadiums and the Athletes Village (under construction at lower right).

Athletes too are eager for practice on the Olympic courses.  It added up to a big crowd for World Cup ski jumping for example at the new Whistler Olympic Park.

The recession is also affecting preparations on our side of the border. 

A Seattle-based association of Northwest states and provinces is having trouble raising money for a regional tourism and media pavilion. 

It would sit on a prime spot near the main stadiums during the Games. 

Coordinator Ian Burkheimer says the idea is to let visitors know what more there is to see around the Northwest.

Ian Burkheimer: “A lot of people will come to the Olympics. So they will think they have done Vancouver. They may want to come back but they will probably be more interested in going to places outside of Vancouver when they come back the second time.”

Burkheimer says Oregon is in on the regional pavilion.  But Idaho and Washington are a tougher sell because of budget deficits. 

Washington’s Governor vetoed funding for the pavilion the first time it came to her.

Online:

Pacific NW Economic Region – Cascadia Commons pavilion

Vancouver 2010 Organizing Committee

Upcoming test events include:

•    FIS Snowboard World CupDate: February 12-15, 2009Location: Cypress Mountain, West Vancouver •    FIL Luge World CupDate: February 16-21, 2009Location: The Whistler Sliding Centre, Whistler •    WCF World Wheelchair Curling ChampionshipDate: February 21-28, 2009Location: Vancouver Paralympic Centre (Hillcrest/Nat Bailey Stadium Park), Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games Watch

Poll: Canada and B.C. divided on Olympic benefits