Overview

In the years leading up to the Games and during the Games, residents had an opportunity to get involved with and shape Whistler's role, then to experience the energy and excitement of the Games, and to welcome the world. The Games provided us with an unprecedented opportunity to showcase our community's successes, sincerity and soul.

Planning for Success

For the first time in Olympic history, the International Olympic Committee bestowed the designation Host Mountain Resort upon a community - recognizing Whistler's significant role in staging and hosting the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Our approach to creating and developing the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Whistler was uniquely recognized with many historic firsts for the Olympic Games.

Firsts for the 2010 Winter Games:

• First with two official host communities: Vancouver - Host City, and Whistler - Host Mountain Resort
• First with two separate Celebration Sites programs: Vancouver and Whistler
• First to hold the Paralympic Games Closing Ceremony outside of the Host City
• First where the mountain venues were completed two years before the Games

The 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games - the biggest winter sporting and cultural events in the world - were a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Whistler. To take full advantage, we had to understand the opportunities, assess the risks, and develop and deliver plans that would allow us to leverage the Games.

For 27 days in 2010, Whistler showcased our community to the world and reached a larger audience than we had ever reached before through visitors, athletes, and media exposure. The Games created lasting legacies, which will ultimately accelerate our journey to a successful future.

Learn more about our Planning approach: 

• Delivering the Dream
• Investing in the Dream
• Living the Dream

2010 Winter Games Legacies

Did you know that the 2010 Olympic Winter Games has left Whistler with more than 25 different legacies for the benefit of the community? The effects of these Olympics will be felt for years to come.

Some of these legacies, will provide directs benefits; others will be indirect. Some are yet to be realized, while others are already providing tangible benefits. These legacies include everything from the Whistler Athletes Village to international media exposure.

The legacies are everywhere. For example; in advance of the 2010 Winter Games, Environment Canada set up three state-of-the-art weather stations to help improve mountain weather forecasts; at the 1,650- metre mark of Whistler Mountain; at the top of the Garbanzo Chair and on Mount Waddington on the British Columbia coast - upstream in the weather flow to the Whistler area.

After the 2010 Winter Games, many of Whistler's venues will directly benefit the community.  The Whistler Athletes' Village will be transformed post Games into a legacy resident neighbourhood and  the Whistler Medals Plaza will serve as an outdoor gathering and event space.

The Whistler Sliding Centre and Whistler Olympic Park will serve as the training ground for elite athletes and recreational users for years to come.

Other legacies include but are not limited to hydrogen buses, a new natural gas pipeline, more telecommunication services, increased public art, enhanced accessibility, financial tools, Whistler Conference Centre renovations and the Whistler Athletes' Centre.

Whether its resident housing or lasting partnerships, the legacies of the Games will remain in Whistler for generations thanks to the planning, energy, commitment and investment of thousands of people.