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FINAL
PRESENTATION TO THE IOC
BY THE VANCOUVER 2010 BID CORP.
JULY 2, 2003
PRAGUE
(Wednesday, July 2, 2003) - Thousands of Canadians
worked for five years on our Olympic bid. Early
this morning, eight of them were given 60 minutes
to make it all pay off. Here is the prepared text
of their presentations.
CHARMAINE CROOKS
President Rogge, President Samaranch, my dear
colleagues of the
International Olympic Committee.
I could not be more thrilled than to stand before
you today to represent my
country's Bid of which I am so very proud. My
family came to Canada from Jamaica 30 years ago.
We immediately found our place in the cultural
diversity which embraced us. Canada truly is a
mosaic. It weaves different cultures and traditions
naturally into a social fabric that reflects all
of humanity. To visit our inspired land is to
discover an extraordinary cultural treasure. We
reflect the Olympic movement because we believe
in, value and protect our differences.
PRIME MINISTER JEAN CHRETIEN
President Rogge, members of the International
Olympic Committee.
I am here on behalf of all Canadians to give unconditional
support to the
Vancouver 2010 bid and to assure you that my commitment,
and that of my
country, to the Olympic Movement has never been
stronger.
We Canadians believe in the Olympic ideal. We
embrace its values. We believe
sport promotes harmony, excellence, fair play
and inclusion in all walks of
life.
We believe that sport leads to a rewarding lifestyle
and can help overcome
social barriers. My government supports sport
nationally and
internationally. We recognize that through sport
we live happier, healthier
lives.
SPEAKER #1
John Furlong
President of the Bid Committee
President Rogge, President Samaranch, Members
of the Executive Board, and
Members of the International Olympic Committee.
Good Morning.
It is a great honour and privilege for us to present
Canada's bid for the
2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games to you
this morning.
We are so excited.
I am John Furlong, the President of Vancouver
2010.
I will be introducing our team to you in a moment.
Our Olympic journey began five years ago when
the Canadian Olympic Committee
selected Vancouver as its Candidate City for the
2010 Olympic Winter Games.
The magic of The Sea to Sky Games has been told
to millions of Canadians in
person or through the media.
Today, more than 80 per cent of Canadians share
the dream ... of putting the
magnificent natural environment of Vancouver and
Whistler at the service of
the Olympic Movement.
The unity and spirit of Canada is reflected in
the strong partnerships we
have formed with government, with business and
with sport.
The people on our panel symbolize the strength
of those partnerships.
It is my pleasure to introduce them to you now.
* The Prime Minister of Canada, The Right Honorable
Jean Chretien.
* IOC Member and five time Olympian, Charmaine
Crooks.
* The Premier of British Columbia, The Honourable
Gordon Campbell
* The Chairman of Vancouver 2010, Jack Poole
* Two time Olympic speedskating gold medalist,
Catriona Le May Doan.
* Canadian ice hockey legend and Olympian, Wayne
Gretzky
* Squamish Nation Chief, Gibby Jacob.
* The president of the Canadian Olympic Committee,
Michael Chambers.
* The mayor of the City of Vancouver, His Worship
Larry Campbell.
* Downhill ski champion and Olympian, Steve Podborski.
There are thousands more men and women who have
spent countless hours in
pursuit of this dream.
Some of them who were fundamental to our bid are
in this room and deserve
our thanks.
For each of them and for us, the bid has been
one of the most inspiring and
rewarding challenges of our lives.
All of us feel so honoured to have taken this
journey.
For the knowledge and insights we have obtained
we wish to thank:
* The IOC members and staff.
* The International Federations.
* National Olympic Committees.
* Past organizers.
* IOC Transfer of Knowledge program.
* The Evaluation Commission, from whom we learned
so much.
* And, above all, the athletes, who shared their
vision, their experiences
and their dreams with us.
What a journey this has been.
Over the next 45 minutes we will share the special
character of The Sea to
Sky Games with you.
You will hear about a remarkable sport concept
brought to life in a
spectacular natural setting that links the oceanfront
skyline of one of the
world's most liveable cities with the alpine charm
of North America's No. 1
ski resort.
Vancouver 2010 is ready to provide the IOC with
a stunning stage for the
world's greatest athletes.
And now ... I would like to turn it over to a
sportsman and one of Canada's
most trusted businessmen, our chairman and the
man who built the
partnerships backing this bid, Jack Poole.
SPEAKER #2
Jack Poole
Chairman and CEO
President Rogge, Distinguished Members of the
Olympic Family.
>From the beginning, we wanted Vancouver's
bid to be Canada's bid -- it is!
Canada is a vast country. Over six time zones
from the Atlantic to the
Pacific to the Arctic Oceans.
As chairman, my first priority was to deliver
the total support of the
people of this great country and our governments.
Our people overwhelmingly
stand behind our bid. Over 50,000 have already
signed up as potential
volunteers for 2010.
We also have that support, from every level of
government.
And their commitments are binding.
Be assured. The money required to build our new
venues, and to enhance our
existing ones, is in place, and guaranteed.
If we are invited to organize the Games of 2010,
we could start construction
tomorrow.
This means new sports facilities finished, and
operating years before the
Games begin.
Equally important, this financing includes an
endowment to cover the
operating costs of these new facilities far into
the future . . .
guaranteeing long-term use for our athletes.
Already the bid has been the catalyst for civic
action:
* To double the size of Vancouver's convention
centre, which will house the
Main Press Centre,
* To significantly improve the provincial highway
system, including the
scenic Sea to Sky highway, already under construction.
All of this will be finished and operating well
before 2010.
Through your bid process, you've provided us with
an extraordinary
opportunity to take our country's passion for
winter sport to a new high.
We have drawn on a very talented team of men and
women.
And, you can rest assured that the people who
have created Canada's Bid,
will be there to deliver on the promises we've
made.
We offer you a welcoming home for your Games and
a safe, low-risk business
plan.
If you choose to trust us with your Olympic Winter
Games, we will nurture
them, and return them to you in 2010 strong and
healthy, and ready for the
next host city.
We will be a good partner.
May I now introduce to you the Premier of the
Province of British Columbia,
a leader who believes in the power of sport to
shape a better world, and a
better country.
The Honourable Gordon Campbell.
SPEAKER #3
Honourable Gordon Campbell
Premier of British Columbia
President Rogge, distinguished members of the
Olympic family.
The Province of British Columbia is Canada's crossroads
between Asia and
Europe.
Our four million residents live in communities
large and small dispersed
over an area the size of Western Europe. The Olympics
dream unites everyone
in our province in a common purpose.
Everywhere I go in British Columbia I encounter
the same dream--to host the
world and to celebrate the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic
Winter Games in
Vancouver.
I am proud to give you my commitment: We will
make the 2010 Games an
unqualified success.
We have provided the full financial guarantees
for the operation of the
Games in the form required by the IOC.
In partnership with the Government of Canada,
we have guaranteed and
provided the full capital construction budget
for the competition
venues--and guaranteed further endowments to ensure
their continuing
operation.
As Jack mentioned, we have already begun major
improvements in the
transportation infrastructure in the Sea to Sky
corridor.
And we have entrusted management control of transportation
in the region to
the Organizing Committee, for the period of the
Games.
We are completely committed to the Games.
The promise of the Olympics has captured our hearts
and imaginations.
It is already energizing and inspiring people
to stretch beyond the past, to
reach for new heights in the future.
Our Olympic dream is all about striving for excellence
in all we do.
Its about creating legacies we can leave to future
generations, not just as
a province or as a people but as citizens of a
world that's ours to build
together.
You have my word that our commitment to the Olympics--and
to sport--will not
waver.
I would like to leave you with this:
I am committed to the Games.
It is important to all of us that the games in
Vancouver make each of you
and the whole Olympic movement proud.
We will be there every step of the way to 2010
to ensure every commitment is
fulfilled and to ensure that the Olympic torch
burns brightly in the hearts
of all who participate and all who share the Olympic
spirit.
I now have the pleasure of introducing Canada's
number one Olympic fan, the
Prime Minister of Canada, The Right Honourable
Jean Chretien.
SPEAKER #4
Right Honourable Jean Chretien
Prime Minister of Canada
But for me there is one Olympic concept that supersedes
all others. That is
Baron de Coubertin's commitment to peace through
sport.
Perhaps now more than ever this is an idea whose
time has come.
Canadians certainly think so. And Canadians see
the Olympic movement as an
agent of this virtue.
Now I can assure you of several things if Vancouver
should succeed.
The games will be fully funded and guaranteed
Canadian governments
The games would be secure. Security will be led
by the reknowned Royal
Canadian Mounted Police with the full support
of all national and provincial
policing agencies.
They will guarantee safety and peace of mind.
The partnerships formed will be strong and permanent
-- there will be no
interruptions, delays or diversions
The athletes, Olympic family, media, spectators
and officials will have the
best of environments in which to shape these games
And you know, everybody will have a great time.
That is my guarantee, that is the wish of all
Canadians and that is what
this partnership will provide.
I am very proud of what my colleagues here are
presenting to you today. It
is a sincere expression of the aspirations of
all Canadians.
I hope you will agree.
Thank you, Merci Beaucoup
SPEAKER #5
Charmaine Crooks
IOC Member
Every Olympic nation will discover its language
spoken and its culture
represented in Canada.
In fact, the mother tongue of one out of every
six Canadians is a language
other than English or French.
Canada has benefited greatly from the contributions
of all these cultures,
beginning with our First Nations.
This is apparent in our vibrant visual and performing
arts community which
overflows with vitality and innovation.
Vancouver is the western capital of Canadian creativity.
It's also one of the leading international centres
for television and film
production.
So you can count on our creativity to produce
a brilliant spectacle of
culture.
To offer new experiences and challenges in the
arts, we will launch a
National Team Artists program, in full cooperation
with the National Olympic
Committees. This will attract the best national
artists from your countries
into our Cultural Olympiad.
These artists will be invited to come and experience
the Games, and record
in their chosen art form the feats of their athletes
and then share their
creations with their home communities and the
world.
For the first time in history, Vancouver would
stage the opening and closing
ceremonies indoors, under the enormous dome of
the 55,000-seat BC Place
Stadium.
This will offer athletes a new Olympic experience
in a warm and comfortable
environment.
Having competed in several Olympic Games, I know
how magical those moments
can be.
I can assure the Olympians of 2010 and you, my
dear colleagues, that the
warm welcome which awaits you in Canada will be
genuine and unforgettable in
every way.
And now I would like to turn it back to our Bid
Committee President, John
Furlong who himself came to Canada 30 years ago
and found a better life
through sport.
SPEAKER #6
John Furlong
President of the Bid Committee
Thank you, Charmaine.
Although my accent might lead you to believe that
I am an Irishman, I stand
up here today a proud Canadian.
The day I arrived in Canada a customs and immigration
officer looked me in
the eye-and as he handed my passport back, he
said to me, quite simply:
"Welcome to Canada -- make us better."
He challenged me to contribute to the greater
good of Canada. And for the
last three decades, while I built a career in
sport, this national culture
of giving became a real force in my life.
I came to realize that to give is the Canadian
way... and is expected from
every one of us.
In my heart I believe, like everyone else at Vancouver
2010, that the
Olympic Winter Games will make us all better.
This is why we have worked so hard for the past
five years to build an
Olympic Plan that is based on true technical excellence.
A plan designed to create the best possible conditions
for the athletes of
2010.
The Sea to Sky Games connect Vancouver and Whistler
with two full service
Olympic Villages, one on Vancouver's inner harbour,
the other in a
spectacular valley in Whistler, where the Paralympics
will also be staged.
Every athlete will have the chance to enjoy a
full and unforgettable Olympic
experience.
It will be all about them.
The average distance from each Village to its
venues is 15 minutes.
There will be no temporary venues.
Every sport will have a permanent legacy.
There will be wonderful facilities for athletes
with disabilities. Their
sport legacy will also be a permanent one.
In all of our planning, protection of the environment
has been a top
priority.
For the National Olympic Committees, both Villages
feature adjacent
accommodation for extra team officials.
Conditions will also be excellent for the Olympic
family, the media, the
sponsors and the spectators.
Most of the infrastructure required for the Games
--from transportation to
accommodation, telecommunications to venues --
is already in place. So, too,
are the management systems.
The Vancouver International Airport is ranked
No. 1 in North America, and
handles over 15 million passengers each year.
The Olympic family will be given absolute priority
upon arrival, and on
departure will enjoy airline check in at their
hotels and villages, avoiding
long waits at the airport.
Vancouver's hotel infrastructure is already world-class.
You can expect
remarkable hospitality.
Thiry-five thousand hotel rooms are available
in our Olympic plan.
The media will enjoy two state-of-the-art facilities.
The Main Press Centre
will occupy the Vancouver Convention & Exhibition
Centre -- rated the best
in the world this year by the International Association
of Congress Centres.
The
IBC will be housed minutes from a cluster of over
4,500 hotel rooms and
close to downtown.
Canada has an impressive record of delivering
high quality, low risk, sport
and entertainment events.
A central focus of our bid has been to present
you with a plan you could
trust.
A worry free plan based on stability and reliability.
Let us now take you on a brief tour inside our
plan. . .
SPEAKER #7
Steve Podborski
Former Olympian
Distinguished IOC Members, Fellow Olympians
Good morning.
As a resident of Whistler -- and a 30-year veteran
of its slopes -- I know
every square centimetre of its peaks and valleys.
At 16, I won a race at
glacier summer ski camp in Whistler and made the
national team as a result.
In 1980, I was the first Canadian man to bring
home an Olympic medal in
downhill skiing.
So for me, Whistler is all about Olympic sport,
and in Whistler, like
Vancouver, we're going to create an unforgettable
Olympic experience for the
athletes.
We will meet their every need, we will ensure
their comfort, and we will
deliver the best possible competitive conditions
for the World's best
athletes.
In their full service Olympic Villages athletes
will enjoy superb
accommodation, with training and competition venues
very close by.
They'll have their own private winter world for
rest, relaxation, dining,
therapy -- most importantly preparing for their
competition.
Our venues will leave a legacy that will turn
the continent's number one ski
resort into its number one winter sports resort.
Winter and summer athletes from all over the world
will also have access to
the Whistler Athlete Centre, a permanent 400 bed
training facility, a legacy
of the 2010 Games.
This is our dream and this is our commitment...
to prepare Whistler and
Vancouver to serve global sport even better in
the future.
In both Whistler and Vancouver, the athletes of
2010 will find something
unique--a chance to live, compete at their best
and enjoy the Olympics in
two distinct but equally beautiful environments.
And after their competition, athletes will be
welcome to move to and live in
the other village, so that they can completely
experience the Sea to Sky
Games.
And now I have the pleasure of introducing a man
who has inspired millions
of young people around the world, Olympian Wayne
Gretzky, known by all
Canadians as "The Great One."
SPEAKER #8
Wayne Gretzky
Former Olympian
Distinguished Members of the IOC, Ladies and Gentlemen.
You know that ice hockey is Canada's national
sport. Like so many Canadian
children learning to play ice hockey, I had only
one dream: To win the
Stanley Cup--the biggest prize of the National
Hockey League. This I have
done four times.
However, little did I know that these victories
could not match the honour
and exhiliration I felt when I stepped on the
ice in Nagano, Japan in 1998,
as part of my country's Olympic team.
There is no greater honour than the Olympics,
because there is no greater
movement than the Olympic movement.
And the emotions that one feels are unforgettable
for the athlete and the
fan.
I had the privilege of managing Canada's men's'
ice hockey team in the last
Winter Games.
The impact the final game had on my country was
amazing. But what the
Olympic movement has done for my country is invaluable
and irreplaceable.
It has inspired us to reach for the greatest heights
in sport.
It has taught us to embrace universal ethics of
fair play and respect for
each other.
It has taught us to push the limits of human performance
as far as they can
go.
It has shown us the possibilities of a world living
in peace through sport.
For that, we will always be grateful. And we will
do everything in our power
to convey that gratitude to the athletes of 2010.
Entrust us with your Games and we will make you
proud. As a country, we will
say thank you in the best way possible--by organizing
the greatest games we
can.
And now I have another privilege... to introduce
the first Canadian woman to
successfully defend her Olympic gold medal in
speed skating. Ladies and
gentlemen, the very inspired and very fast, Catriona
Le May Doan.
SPEAKER #9
Catriona Le May Doan
Former Olympian
Members of the Olympic Family:
I am a living example of what Wayne was talking
about--I am one of those who
was caught up by the Olympic dream as a child.
And my life was transformed.
Beyond the venues and the events, the Vancouver
plan is all about spreading
the Olympic spirit--and making the Olympic dream
available--and
accessible--to as many people as possible.
We want the Olympic dream to come alive in a new
way in Canada--and around
the world. We want it to be a dream of forever.
We will provide a team acclimatization program
starting two years before the
Games, giving access to our venues to as many
aspiring athletes as possible.
We
will create a Family Host Program in Vancouver
and Whistler to ensure
that the families of all international athletes
have a chance to share the
dream directly--by staying with families in our
communities and enjoying the
true spirit of Canadian hospitality.
We will ensure that the dream touches children
by setting aside 50,000 event
tickets for our Olympic Access program, giving
free tickets to kids who
couldn't afford to buy them.
Our nightly Medal Ceremonies in Vancouver and
Whistler will offer more seats
than ever--over 60,000 combined--to the pure and
glorious celebration of
Olympic victory.
We will continue the grand tradition of inspiring
dreams through an
International Youth Camp at the Games, inviting
two young people from every
NOC to share 18 days of friendship and peace.
Our dream is a dream of forever, a desire to ensure
that everything we build
and develop for the Games leaves a lasting legacy
for future generations.
That's why three years ago we launched our Legacies
Now program--to ensure
that Vancouver's Bid helped to change the lives
of children in our community
through sport development ... now !
Thousands of children across British Columbia
have been engaged in Olympic
sports through Legacies Now.
They're already dreaming of competing in the Olympic
venues and, several
have already qualified for our national youth
teams.
When I see the inspiration that they're drawing
from the Olympic dream, I am
reminded of my own dreams. Because I had access
to an ice skating oval at an
early age -- and because I saw women from my country
competing in the Games
-- I took my dream to the ice.
And that dream took me to the top of the podium
in the last two Olympic
Winter Games.
La vision des Jeux entre mer et ciel m'impressionne
beaucoup. Je crois que
Vancouver n'a pas simplement prepare un plan extraordinaire,
mais a cree une
vision au dela des stades et l'organisation, et
a trouve les moyens de
transformer le reve Olympique en quelque chose
de reel pour les athletes,
notre pays et le monde.
Ultimately, Vancouver 2010 is about reaching for
the sky and providing the
athletes with the greatest possible Olympic experience
-- in the arena, in
the Village and in the world beyond.
This bid is all about ensuring that the greatest
Olympic dream is
available--and accessible--for all of us.
If in your wisdom you decide that our city is
the right choice for 2010, we
will not disappoint you in any way. We will make
your dream our dream.
Thank you
And now back to John, the man who has inspired
us all to follow this dream!
SPEAKER # 10
John Furlong,
President of the Bid Committee
As a boy, I dreamed of becoming an Olympian. It
was all I could think about.
While
I never made it to the Olympics, this bid has
given me, and my
colleagues, a chance to be Olympians of a different
kind.
We share the values of the Olympic ideal as a
powerful platform for building
a better world through sport.
And we very much want to be your partners in building
that better world.
I want to leave you with a few simple messages.
First, we are thankful.
We are thankful for the opportunity you have given
us to compete on a fair
and level playing field with two great communities
-- Salzburg and
Pyeongchang.
One of your Celebrate Humanity messages talks
about opponents.
It says, "Although you are my adversary,
you are not my enemy."
It ends by saying, "Because of you, I am
a better man."
There can be no doubt we are a better team because
of our opponents.
We are thankful because the bid pushed us to visualize
a better future for
our city and for our country.
It is such a privilege to stand up here before
you and the world
representing Vancouver and Canada.
In 10 lifetimes I cannot imagine a greater honour
than this.
For all of this, we offer our sincere gratitude
My second message is this:
If awarded the Games I promise you we will be
the best partners we can
possibly be.
Where you point to opportunities for excellence,
we will pursue them.
Where you see deficiencies, we will correct them.
We will strive to learn, to improve and to explore
new and different ways to
do things.
We were asked to consider hosting final events
for ice hockey and for figure
skating in BC Place, which would be the Olympic
Stadium.
Imagine the spectacle of 55,000 people cheering
the athletes at the largest
ice events ever hosted at the Olympic Winter Games
...
Imagine the impact of the world's largest cauldron--burning
around the rim
of the massive roofline of the Olympic Stadium,
lighting up the night sky
for the entire Games.
Imagine the torch relay arriving in Canada above
the Arctic Circle, further
north than it has ever been.
And then traveling over 15,000 kilometres from
sea to sea to sea, unifying
our vast country.
We are now at the end of the first stage of our
journey, hopeful that we may
have earned your trust.
You have received our guarantees.
You have learned of our vision.
You have heard the story of the Sea to Sky Games.
And you have felt our passion.
Now we give you our promise.
And we also give you our hearts.
We are ready to be an Olympic city.
We at Vancouver 2010 are joined by a common purpose.
We believe in the Olympic Games.
We believe that there will be extraordinary benefits
for all of our
children.
We believe that for generations to come, these
Games will be a catalyst for
immense promise for Vancouver.
That for sport and athletes in Canada and around
the world there will be new
hope and greater opportunity, and that the reach
of Olympism will be greater
than ever.
We believe that through sport there can be a chance
for peace
That we might distinguish ourselves in the greater
cause of sport and
humanity
In the end we hope that you might look back on
the Vancouver Olympic and
Paralympic Winter Games with great pride and affection.
Our Olympic dream has transformed us and captivated
our nation.
Our dream is embedded in the heart of every Canadian
athlete.
Every Canadian family.
Every Canadian child.
Our dream, like your dream, is a dream of forever!
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