theBreaker.news Podcast: Another Vancouver Olympics, to solve the problems caused by the first?

Instead of simply celebrating 10 years since the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics, the organizing committee’s CEO wants Vancouver to bid for the 2030 Olympics.

John Furlong says that by doing it over again, it would help solve the city’s housing and traffic congestion woes.

[caption id="attachment_9154" align="alignright" width="191"] Andy Yan (SFU)[/caption]

Andy Yan doesn't buy that. The 2010 Games were a catalyst for both of those problems.

“You would think we are stepping away from these type of jumpstarts in the real estate and the tourism industry into other types of economic activity that you think could generate greater levels of a shared prosperity in the region,” Yan, the director of Simon Fraser University's City Program, told theBreaker.news Podcast host Bob Mackin. “To that extent, I think it asks, do we really need these mega-events to really tell us or define who we are compared to other more sustainable, thoughtful, in-depth kind of action that we really can leverage and become that region that we aspire to be.”

In a feature interview on this week’s edition, Yan said Vancouver 2010 was the bookend to Expo 86, the epoch of Vancouver entering the world stage. 

[caption id="attachment_9545" align="alignleft" width="532"] Hans Rey in Trans Hong Kong, a five-day adventure that even captured pro-democracy protests (Hans Rey)[/caption]

“From 2010 to present day, it’s right on the world stage. It has a mixed legacy. Part of it is really fundamentally how we there are still things we don’t know about the full disclosure of what happened to make the Olympics occur, as well as the full cost of the Olympics, it’s not only about the layout for things like security and facilities, but the opportunity costs that were involved. The full expenses that were subsidized by all levels of government.”

Also on this week’s edition of theBreaker.news Podcast, mountain bike legend Hans “No Way” Rey premieres his Trans Hong Kong adventure film at the Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival.

Mackin talks to Rey about Hong Kong as a mountain bike destination and how his film documented Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protests.

Plus commentaries and headlines.

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