Support For 2010 Olympic Games Rises In British Columbia

Vancouver, BC -- A new Ipsos-Reid survey conducted on behalf of 2010 LegaciesNow shows that nearly seven-in-ten (68%) British Columbians currently support Vancouver hosting the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. This is the highest level of support recorded for the Games since August 2002, and a 10-point increase in support from the last Ipsos-Reid survey taken in March 2003 (58%).

Supporters believe the Games will provide an economic boost to British Columbia. The number one reason for supporting the Games is a belief that "it will provide a positive boost to the economy", as mentioned by a majority (58%) of supporters.

British Columbians believe the Games need to leave a legacy beyond simple bricks and mortar. Seven-in-ten (68%) residents say it is important that the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games leave a legacy in their community that goes beyond additional buildings or infrastructure.

These are the findings of an Ipsos-Reid telephone poll conducted January 11th to 17th, 2005 with a randomly selected sample of 800 adult British Columbia residents. The results are considered accurate to within 1773.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire BC adult population been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were statistically weighted to ensure the sample's regional and age/sex composition reflects that of the actual BC population according to the 2001 Census.

Seven-in-Ten (68%, up 10 points) British Columbians Support Vancouver Hosting 2010 Olympic And Paralympic Winter Games

Support for the 2010 Games is up in British Columbia. Seven-in-ten (68%) British Columbians say they support Vancouver hosting the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. This is an increase of 10-points from our last measure (58% in March 2003) and the highest level of support recorded since August 2002 (68%).

Four-in-ten (42%) British Columbians say they "strongly" support the Games, while one-quarter (26%) say they "moderately" support the Games. Meanwhile, about one-in-four (27%, down 7 points from March 2003) BC residents say they "strongly" oppose (16%) or "moderately" oppose (11%) hosting the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

There is majority support for the Games across all regional and demographic groups.

• Support stands at 71% in the Lower Mainland (up 9 points from March 2003) and 63% in the rest of BC (up 10 points).
• Support is especially high among younger British Columbians (77% 18-34 years, 71% 35-54 years, 56% 55+ years).

Economic Boost Main Reason For Support

Supporters of the Games were asked to state the main reason for supporting the initiative. The top six explanations given for supporting the Games all relate to a theme of "boosting" Vancouver, British Columbia and Canada.

The top open-ended reasons given for supporting the Games are as follows:

• Will boost the economy - 58% mentioned
• Will boost Vancouver's reputation worldwide - 31% mentioned
• Will boost tourism - 22% mentioned
• Will boost job creation - 14% mentioned
• Will boost Canadian sport/Canadian athletes - 12% mentioned
• Will boost national pride - 9% mentioned

Seven-in-Ten (68%) Say It's Important For Legacies To Go Beyond Buildings And Infrastructure

Seven-in-ten (68%) residents think it is important that the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games leave a legacy in their community that goes beyond additional buildings or infrastructure. One-third (34%) say this type of a legacy is "very" important and one-third (34%) say it is "somewhat" important.

In contrast, three-in-ten (30%) residents say it is "not very" important (18%) or "not at all" important (12%) to them that the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games leave a legacy in their community that goes beyond additional buildings or infrastructure.

The results are consistent by region and most demographic groups.

• 70% of Lower Mainland residents and 65% of rest of BC residents say it is important to leave a legacy beyond buildings and infrastructure.
• This type of legacy is more important to younger and middle-aged British Columbians (73% 18-34 years, 70% 35-54 years, 61% 55+ years).

For more information on this news release, please contact:
Kyle Braid
Vice-President
Ipsos-Reid Corporation
Vancouver, BC
604.257.3200

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