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RICHMOND Richmond Olympic Oval Steveston Fisherman's Wharf Buddhist Temple Minoru Park and Arts Precinct Vancouver International Airport Garden City Lands City Centre SALISH SEA Olympic Review met with George Duncan, CAO City of Richmond and CEO Richmond Oval Corporation, to discuss how the city used the Olympic Winter Games Vancouver 2010 to create a lasting legacy for its inhabitants, inspire people to get active and attract elite athletes to train at its facilities. Q. What was Richmond’s unique approach to being a venue city for the Olympic Winter Games Vancouver 2010? A. The first question asked of the city was: what can your city do for the Olympic Winter Games? We took a different view and asked: what could the Olympic Winter Games do for our city, and how could we leverage the world’s biggest brand to help us? Throughout our preparations, we planned our post-Games legacy while at the same time seeking to accommodate the Olympic needs, requirements and expectations. The initial budget for the facility was CAD 60 million for a long track speed skating oval as laid out in VANOC’s (Vancouver 2010 Organising Committee) budget. We leveraged that into a CAD 178 million superb sports facility with no impact on the local tax base. We knew that Canada didn’t need two long track ovals within 1,000 kilometres, so it was always agreed that Calgary’s Oval would be the iconic venue for long track speed skating in Canada, while our Oval would serve our community needs. Q. What was the city’s vision for the Oval post-Games? A. Our Oval was designed to be a centre of excellence for sport and wellness with the added benefit of being a superb theatre for long track speed skating for the Olympic Winter Games Vancouver 2010. We planned the legacy as part of the original capital budget. This was key to our success. The conversion plan was not up for debate or funding post-Games. We opened the venue over a year before the Games and incorporated community programmes in the facility. We planned for every child in Richmond to skate on Olympic ice. We wanted these memories embedded in our community. We hired the post-Games staff 18 months before the Games took place. Their focus was on legacy. Q. Has the Olympic legacy been successful? A. There are those in our city who might have been pleased if the legacy of 2010 was simply a fine community centre in their midst. And in many respects, we have met that standard. The Oval produces an operating surplus each year. But we have decided to be more! We therefore worked on maintaining our Olympic relationships with different partners, including the IOC, to create in 2015 the Olympic Experience at the Richmond Olympic Oval to tell the story of Olympism to all visitors but also to become a beacon for the Olympic Movement through a strong partnership with the Canadian Olympic Committee, to celebrate volunteerism, and finally to attract aspiring Olympians to train at the Oval. Today, we attract national and international athletes and teams to train at the Oval. For example, Canada’s national women’s volleyball programme has made the Oval its training home. They are living, breathing, successful symbols that can teach our youth about the values of the Olympic Movement. Richmond’s Olympic legacy lives on, we are not finished. Legacy has become a part of our culture and community.■ ACTIVE CITIES 64 OLYMPIC REVIEW