afransen
Senior Member
The Winter Olympics are a whole other kettle of fish. The ACC is an arena. It likely could be used for some events, but it is not suitable as the main Olympic stadium.
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Hosting a summer Olympic games
- Thread starter micheal_can
- Start date
lenaitch
Senior Member
I tried in vain to find comprehensive standards or requirements document for Olympic venues. Minden and other existing venues might have been suitable for the Pan Am Games but I don't know if it would meet Olympic standards. In whitewater, and other similar sports, 'degree of difficulty' standards exist to maintain the integrity of performance standards and that's probably difficult to achieve using natural facilities. In addition, audience capacity is an issue; it's attendance and media rights that help pay for these things. I have no clue about hotel capacity in the GTA - maybe ghost hotels would make a killing. The significance of these depends on the sport, since some are more 'popular' than others. The 2021 Tokyo Olympics had 42 venues. The upcoming Paris games will have 32 sports. Obviously, some can share facilities but many cannot.
BC Place has a seating capacity of about 54,500. The Scotiabank Arena maxs out at 19800.
just east of the creek
Active Member
I have used the words ‘augment, adopted, upgraded’ in speaking of some of these sites. I think you would have to inventory what resources you have now, from the Skydome on down, what is needed, and then what exists now that could be adopted for use with investment. Say in the geographic area Kingston to the Niagara Penninsula, the Toronto Islands to Halliburton. The next two Olympics - Paris this year, and then L.A. will be very showy, especially L.A. However, Brisbane in 2032 appears to be charting a course, with OIC agreement, to a smaller Olympics. Smaller venue size, less capital investment (although with soaring construction costs, this is becoming an issue already), an Olympics that a smaller city or city group could qualify for. If this proves to be close to true, as we get closer to 2032, then perhaps it is something that could be looked at for the GTA. If you could avoid having to build another supersized stadium to fit 80,000 people, that would be a big plus (if you had an NFL franchise, then the story changes). Interesting to contemplate.
micheal_can
Senior Member
What about the Whitewater region of the Ottawa Valley? If we are talking about it not just hosted in Toronto area, this may be a good option.
Towered
Senior Member
I was all-in on Toronto's '96 bid, and was distraught that we somehow managed to lose to a C-list American city that has zero international appeal (Atlanta). I was still cautiously supportive of the '08 bid, but when those games were already widely believed to be awarded to Beijing in advance as a foregone conclusion (which obviously turned out to be true), my belief in the Olympic spirit and everything it's supposed to represent was harshly snuffed out forever. I never want Toronto to host the Olympics. Ever.
Admiral Beez
Superstar
Let’s hold the Olympics in Sudbury with a Maglev connection.
micheal_can
Senior Member
Is holing one in Toronto as realistic?
turini2
Active Member
I've always thought a GTHA bid for the Games has real potential - especially with the IOCs new approach of "if you don't need a venue, don't build one".
LA 2028 will have the canoe whitewater and softball at existing venues in Oklahoma City!
If LA approach of hosting the Games without recourse to taxpayer funds can be achieved... well, that sounds a much better deal than the World Cup...
In light of the IOCs new approach, you can find a reasonable venue in the GTHA (and probably in Ottawa and Montreal too, if needed) for every sport.
Realistically, the main hurdle for a Toronto bid would the main Olympic Stadium. In my mind, the best approach would be to go temporary, even leaving a modest regional athletics stadium as a legacy.
The Parisian approach is very good - they've only built two new venues - Aquatics Centre (artistic swimming, water polo and diving) and a climbing wall.
The new things they have built is what the communities actually need - new community centres and pools in one of the poorest regions of France, new affordable housing (well, after its the Olympic Village of course), and substantial new transit lines - Line 14 extensions opened today, actually!
LA 2028 will have the canoe whitewater and softball at existing venues in Oklahoma City!
If LA approach of hosting the Games without recourse to taxpayer funds can be achieved... well, that sounds a much better deal than the World Cup...
In light of the IOCs new approach, you can find a reasonable venue in the GTHA (and probably in Ottawa and Montreal too, if needed) for every sport.
Realistically, the main hurdle for a Toronto bid would the main Olympic Stadium. In my mind, the best approach would be to go temporary, even leaving a modest regional athletics stadium as a legacy.
The Parisian approach is very good - they've only built two new venues - Aquatics Centre (artistic swimming, water polo and diving) and a climbing wall.
The new things they have built is what the communities actually need - new community centres and pools in one of the poorest regions of France, new affordable housing (well, after its the Olympic Village of course), and substantial new transit lines - Line 14 extensions opened today, actually!
micheal_can
Senior Member
For the stadium, could they build anything temporary onto BMO Field to make it big enough?
christiesplits
Senior Member
I was going to ask the same for the Rogers Centre.
Typically the Olympic Stadium also hosts track events, and I don't think BMO is large enough for a track.
micheal_can
Senior Member
Within the area, is there an existing stadium that has a track that temporary seating could be installed on?
lenaitch
Senior Member
It's one thing to spread events around the area of a host, but to call Los Angeles the host when some of the venues are over 1300 miles and a couple of time zones away is a bit much. Why not simply say 'host country'. That would be like the London games having some venues in Berlin.
I suspect many of the existing facilities in the GGHA could be modified to do one of two things; have adequate athletic facilities or adequate spectator seating, but not both.
micheal_can
Senior Member
London and Berlin are not in the same country.... but I get it.
With tv and streaming and the internet, having it best for the athletes should be job 1.
lenaitch
Senior Member
If it were just about the athletes they could perform in their home country and simply mail in the results or have them compete is some kind of Soviet-esque warehouse. Without attendance, you are down to having the whole thing paid for by media rights. Part of the funding schtick for hosting a games is (supposed to be) to boost the local economy through tourism.
micheal_can
Senior Member
I meant that the focus should be to ensure the athletes have the best playing field they can have. Having spectators is obvious, but if we cannot have 10,000, but instead can only have 5000, it should not mean we build another facility.