Skip to content | Skip to institutional links

Common menu bar links

Institutional links

Vancouver 2010 Winter Games… by the numbers

Vancouver 2010 mascot - Mukmuk Canada welcomes the world in 2010! The Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games are held in Vancouver and Whistler, British Columbia.

The Government of Canada’s official website for the 2010 Winter Games is canada2010.gc.ca/index-eng.cfm.

The official Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games website is www.vancouver2010.com.

Here are selected facts related to Canada, the host city and province, and winter sports.

(Last updated: March 10, 2010.)

Potential Paralympians

4,417,870 — The number of persons with disabilities in Canada in 2006.

2,652,890 — The number of adults aged 15 and over with disabilities in Canada who needed help with everyday activities in 2006.

Sources: Summary tables, Persons with disabilities, by age group and sex
(2006); The 2006 Participation and Activity Limitation Survey: Disability in Canada.

See also: articles on Caregiving and disabilities in Canadian Social Trends; Participation and Activity Limitation Survey (PALS).

Torch relay

The lighting of the Paralympic Cauldron on March 12 signals the start of the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. The Paralympic Winter Games end March 21.

The Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay began in Victoria, British Columbia, on October 30, 2009, and ended at the Opening Ceremony in Vancouver on February 12, 2010. The lighting of the Olympic Cauldron at the opening ceremony signalled the start of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

For data on communities on the route (including demographics, languages spoken, income, education and employment levels), see Community Profiles, Census tract profiles, Census maps (Atlas of Canada) or GeoSearch.

Host city

2,116,581 — The population of the census metropolitan area (CMA) of Vancouver, the host city for the 2010 Winter Games.

9,248 — The population of the district municipality of Whistler, the site of many of the 2010 Winter Games’ competitions.

Source: 2006 Community profiles. Data are also available at the city and health region level and for subprovincial areas.

4,479,934 — The population of the province of British Columbia as of October 1, 2009.

33,873,357 — The population of Canada as of October 1, 2009.

Source: “Canada's population estimates,” The Daily, Wednesday, December 23, 2009.

Vancouver is the third-largest CMA in Canada. It consists of municipalities such as the City of Vancouver, Burnaby, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Richmond, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, Port Moody, New Westminster, Delta and Surrey.

39.6% — The proportion of the population of the Vancouver CMA in 2006 who were not born in Canada. This proportion was second only to Toronto, where the foreign-born represented 45.7% of the population.

The proportion of foreign-born in Vancouver was also higher than that of Miami (36.5%), Los Angeles (34.7%), Sydney (31.7%) and Melbourne (28.9%).

831,300 — The number of foreign-born people in the Vancouver CMA in 2006.

Source: 2006 Census, Vancouver: Canada's immigrant gateway in the West.

41.7% — The proportion of people in the Vancouver CMA in 2006 who belonged to a visible minority group. This proportion was second only to the 42.9% in the CMA of Toronto.

875,300 — The number of people in the Vancouver CMA in 2006 who belonged to a visible minority group.

Source: 2006 Census, Vancouver: Four in 10 belonged to a visible minority group.

Most popular sports in Canada

Golf replaced ice hockey as the most popular sport in Canada in 1998. Almost 1.5 million Canadians were golfers in 2005, three-quarters of them men. Ice hockey drew 1.3 million. Other sports in order of popularity—swimming, soccer, basketball and baseball and volleyball—all drew between 500,000 and 800,000 participants.

Top 30

Vancouver 2010 mascots - Sumi, Quatchi, Miga

Golf
Ice hockey
Swimming
Soccer
Basketball
Baseball
Volleyball
Skiing (downhill/alpine)
Cycling
Tennis
Curling
Snowboarding
Badminton
Softball
Football
Skiing (cross-country/nordic)
Bowling (10 pin)
Mountain-boarding
Squash
Ball hockey
Bowling (5 pin)
Rugby
Canoeing/kayaking
Martial arts
Snowshoeing
Gymnastics
Karate
Equestrian
In-line hockey
In-line skating

7.3 million — The number of Canadians aged 15 and older in 2005 who participated in sports activities. This was down substantially from 8.3 million, or 34% of adults, in 1998, and 9.6 million, or 45%, in 1992.

9.2 million — The number of Canadians aged 15 and older in 2005 who were spectators at amateur sports competitions, a 20% increase from 1998.

Sources: “Study: Participation in sports,” The Daily, Thursday, February 7, 2008; “Sport Participation in Canada, 2005,” Culture, Tourism and the Centre for Education Statistics - Research Papers, February 7, 2008.

See also: "Who participates in active leisure?," Canadian Social Trends, February 17, 2009; "Kids’ Sports," Canadian Social Trends, June 3, 2008.

Winter sports equipment

$45 million — The value of ice skates imported to Canada in 2008. Ice skates were primarily imported from China, Thailand, Vietnam and the USA.

$66 million — The value of skis imported to Canada in 2008. Close to half this amount was imported from Europe (including $16 million worth of skis from Austria). Skis were also imported from China and the USA.

$22 million — The value of ski bindings imported to Canada in 2008. Nearly half came from China, followed by France, Austria, Czech Republic and Norway.

Source: International Trade Division.

English and French

English and French are the Official languages of the International Olympic Committee.

Canada, too, has two official languages, English and French. Their status is entrenched in the country's history, conferring rights and institutional support for speakers of English (Anglophones) and speakers of French (Francophones).

According to the 2006 Census, 98% of the population can speak one or both official languages. In addition, English or French is spoken at least regularly at home by 94% of Canadians. English or French is spoken most often at home for 89% of the population, sometimes in combination with a non-official language.

On the other hand, only 80% of the population report English and French as their mother tongue (58% and 22% respectively). The remaining 20% have a mother tongue other than English or French. The Chinese languages are the third largest mother tongue group, as 3% of the population reported a Chinese language as their mother tongue.

18,056,000 — The number of Anglophones in Canada in 2006.

6,892,000 — The number of Francophones in Canada in 2006.

58% — The percentage of the Canadian population in 2006 that was Anglophone.

22% — The percentage of the Canadian population in 2006 that was Francophone.

20% — The percentage of the Canadian population in 2006 that was Allophone (a mother tongue other than English or French, including Aboriginal languages).

Source: 2006 Census: The Evolving Linguistic Portrait, 2006 Census: Highlights.

See also: Data tables, figures, maps and animations and Summary tables, Tables by subject: Languages.

Canada’s Aboriginal peoples

The inukshuk, the official emblem of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, is a traditional stone sculpture used by Canada’s Inuit.

50,485 — The number of people in Canada who identified themselves as ‘Inuit’ in the 2006 Census.

389,785 — The number of people in Canada who identified themselves as ‘Métis’ in the 2006 Census.

698,025 — The number of people in Canada who identified themselves as ‘First Nations’ in the 2006 Census.

1,172,790 — The total number of people in Canada who reported an Aboriginal identity—including First Nations, Métis or Inuit—in the 2006 Census.

3.8% — The proportion of the total population of Canada who reported an Aboriginal identity.

Source: “Aboriginal Peoples in Canada in 2006: Inuit, Métis and First Nations, 2006 Census,” The Daily, Tuesday, January 15, 2008.

Economic data

For data on the census metropolitan area of Vancouver, see Tables by metropolitan area: Vancouver.

For data on the province of British Columbia, see Tables by province or territory: British Columbia.

For the latest economic indicators for Canada (labour force, gross domestic product and Consumer Price Index), see the following page in Summary tables: Selected economic indicators, Canada and United States (monthly and quarterly) (Canada).

For tips on finding all that Statistics Canada has to offer on economic indicators, see the Media Room’s page on Economic indicators.

The British Columbia Lower Mainland ecoregion

British Columbia’s Lower Mainland is Canada’s most densely populated ecoregion and the site of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.

Source: EnviroStats, Ecoregion profile: Lower Mainland of British Columbia.

Olympic medals: gold, silver and bronze

For updates on Olympic medals won by Canada’s competitors, see the page “Olympic Medals” on the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games website.

Gold

Note: Data presented here for gold include unwrought and semi-manufactured forms, including platinum plated.

$6.1 billion — The value of proven and probable gold reserves from gold mines in Canada in 2008.

95 tonnes — The quantity of gold produced in Canada in 2008.

282 tonnes — The quantity of gold (in unwrought and semi-manufactured form, including gold plated with platinum) exported from Canada in 2008, valued at $8.2 billion.

797 tonnes — The quantity of gold (in unwrought and semi-manufactured form, including gold plated with platinum) imported to Canada in 2008, valued at $3.5 billion.

Silver

Note: Data presented here for silver include unwrought and semi-manufactured forms, including gold/platinum plated.

670 tonnes — The quantity of silver produced in Canada in 2008.

1,692 tonnes — The quantity of silver (in unwrought and semi-manufactured form, including silver plated with gold/platinum) exported from Canada in 2008, valued at $724.3 million.

797 tonnes — The quantity of silver (in unwrought and semi-manufactured form, including silver plated with gold/platinum) imported to Canada in 2008, valued at $352.8 million.

Bronze

Note: Statistics Canada does not have specific data on bronze, but data are shown here for copper-tin alloys, which include bronze.

$3.5 billion — The value of “bronze”—Refined copper and copper-base alloys (including cathode and anode copper, ingots, wire bar, shot and powder)—produced in Canada in 2004. See the Annual Survey of Manufactures (ASM) - List of Goods for this classification.

2,264 tonnes — The quantity of copper-tin alloy (unwrought) exported from Canada in 2008, valued at $9.5 million.

1,007 tonnes — The quantity of copper-tin alloy (unwrought) imported to Canada in 2008, valued at $7.8 million.

Sources: CANSIM, table 153-0007 (Canadian System of Environmental and Resource Accounts - Natural Resource Stock Accounts); CANSIM, table 152-0001 (Natural Resources Canada); International Trade Division.

For information on the Government of Canada's participation in the 2010 Winter Games, contact Canadian Heritage Media Relations (819-994-9101; toll-free 1 866 569-6155; media@pch.gc.ca).

For information on this page or more data, contact Media Relations.