‘No’ side rallies support ahead of Games vote
Bid opponents cite lack of information and lack of trust in leaders and IOC
Just days before Calgary’s plebiscite on whether to host the 2026 Olympic Winter Games, opponents of the controversial bid made their final campaign push with a rally on Saturday.
Calgarians on the No side braved freezing temperatures and a brief blizzard to voice their opposition to the bid at Olympic Plaza.
The rally, organized by No Calgary Olympics and the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, was attended by about 200 people, including outspoken bid critics and city councillors Jeromy Farkas, Sean Chu and Joe Magliocca.
Farkas also hosted an Olympics town hall on Saturday afternoon, during which he called an 11thhour funding proposal from Ottawa and the province a “bait and switch,” negating the city ’s neutral public-engagement campaign, which wrapped before the details of a new potential deal was made public.
“We guaranteed Calgarians that we’d have the ( bid deal) information they would need a full 30 days before the vote and, unfortunately, that promise hasn’t held true,” Farkas told reporters ahead of the rally.
He said his town hall wasn’t intended to be a “Yes or No” event, but rather an opportunity to give Calgarians “the facts” about the new proposal.
“Obviously, I have my own opinion, but I take very seriously the fact that the city has fallen short in terms of getting that information out there,” he said.
As the crowd chanted “vote No” and “no trust,” councillors who attended the No rally each addressed the crowd, calling on all Calgarians to shut down the Olympic process by voting against the bid on Tuesday.
Magliocca repeated previous claims of the Games serving as a “legacy project” for Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi, while Chu, a former police officer, railed against cuts to the proposed security budget from $610 million to $495 million.
Andrew Williams attended the No Calgary Olympics rally and said his main concerns around a potential bid are unanswered questions about cost overruns and distrust of the International Olympic Committee.
“I think the IOC is pretty corrupt, so why bring them into a city like this?” Williams said.
“I think we’ve got a world-class city, world-class people, we don’t need a 10-day or two-week boondoggle just to verify our status as a world-class city. I think we’re great already.”
The Yes side of the bid was also out in force Saturday, with pro Olympic events showcasing the cultural side of the Olympics at Arts Commons, as well as a free family skate at the Olympic Oval alongside Olympic and Paralympic athletes.
Bid supporters held a rally last Monday featuring some Olympic star power, including British skijumper Michael (Eddie the Eagle) Edwards, Summer Olympian Donovan Bailey and 1988 Olympic mascots Hidy and Howdy.
The Olympic bid has an estimated price tag of $5.1 billion, with the province saying it would kick in $700 million toward the project and Ottawa vowing to cover another $1.4 billion through Sport Canada.
The city was asked to contribute $390 million, including $20 million for a $200-million insurance policy against cost overruns.