2010 Winter Games

The resort of Whistler was in fact born on an Olympic dream. Franz Wilhelmsen, the man who opened Whistler for skiing in the 1960's, did so in the hopes of hosting the Games here. In the following years, some Whistlerites have been a part of the Games as athletes, spectators and organizers. Now, everyone in Whistler will have the unique chance to participate in this once in a lifetime opportunity.

2010 Olympic Questions and Answers

On July 2, 2003, Vancouver was named Host City of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games!

Together, Vancouver and Whistler will welcome countries from across the globe as they come together to compete on the world stage for the honour of representing their country in Olympic and Paralympic competition.

In 2007, VANOC is well into the strategic and detailed operational planning for the Games. This year Whistler Blackcomb, along with VANOC, will begin to move into the 'Games Readiness' phase of preparation. This year will be an exciting time as we start to see the completion of venue development in our valley and begin to conduct various 'test events' which will put us through practice drills so everything runs like clockwork in 2010.

The Resort of Whistler will have three major competition venues: Alpine Skiing events on Whistler Mountain; Bobsled, Luge and Skeleton events at the Sliding Centre on Blackcomb Mountain; and Nordic, Biathlon & Ski Jumping Competition events in the Callahan Valley.


Alpine Skiing

The Alpine Skiing events will take place on Whistler Mountain and include Downhill, Super G, Giant Slalom, Slalom, and Combined. The Men's events will be hosted entirely on the Dave Murray Downhill, widely considered as one of the top 3 courses in the world. The Women's and Paralympic Alpine course will begin on Wild Card, swing over to Lower Jimmie's Joker, and wind its way down a portion of Franz's to finally join up with the Men's course on the Lower Dave Murray Downhill.

The entire Creekside base will be transformed during game-time to accommodate facilities such as wax cabins, athlete's lounge, and security check posts. VANOC is working toward the installation of a cabriole lift at Creekside to carry eager onlookers from the base area to the Timing Flats. In all, this venue will be prepared to host a capacity crowd of 7600 people. After the Games, much of the overlay will be removed and Whistler Creekside will be a site for future international competitions and Canadian team training.


Nordic Events

   

The Nordic Competition Venue is on track for completion in the fall of 2007 and will host all Nordic events: cross country skiing, biathlon, ski jumping, and Nordic combined events.

The construction project involves the competition facilities (including two ski jumps), 14 km of competition trails and 8 km of training trails, as well as utility installation, access roads, parking lots, technical sport buildings, a day lodge and other related infrastructure. The final plan also includes 20-25 km of recreational trails to be built in the area. Three separate, temporary stadiums will be in place for the Olympic Games; each will house 12,000 fans.


Sliding Events

  

The Whistler Sliding Centre on Blackcomb Mountain will host the Sliding events: Bobsled, Luge, and Skeleton events. Construction of the track is well underway and can easily be seen by looking across Fitzsimmons Creek from the slopes of Whistler Mountain.

This 1,450 m refrigerated track, which will cost almost $105 million to build, will wind its way down 150m of vertical, allowing for three starting areas: Competitive Men's and Women's, and Recreational. It is anticipated this facility will reach completion before the end of 2007 and will then be ready to present the excitement of sliding sports to a crowd of 12,000 people. It is expected that the track will see some competitive action in preparation for the Games.


Paralympic Events

  

Whistler will host the following Paralympic events: all Alpine Skiing events, the Biathalon and Cross-Country events.

All Paralympic alpine skiing events will take place on Franz's Run on Whistler Mountain.

All the Paralympic cross-country skiing and biathlon events will start and finish from the Olympic cross-country stadium and will use parts of the Olympic cross-country competition trails. Competition courses include a 5-kilometre course for the standing classes and a 3.75-kilometre course for the sit-ski classes. Several kilometres of training trails will be available near the competition courses. A temporary and portable 10-metre biathlon range will be set up in the stadium for the biathlon events.

For more information regarding the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, please visit the official website at vancouver2010.com.

For more information about what's happening in Vancouver visit Vancouver.com.