Looking for a destination for your next sporting event? Consider Richmond, British Columbia, home of the iconic Richmond Olympic Oval - the "best building of the world" according to John Furlong, CEO of the Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Since capturing the world's attention as the official long track speed skating venue for the Games, the world-class Richmond Olympic Oval has undergone a six-month transition into a multi-purpose international centre of excellence for sports, health, and wellness that's capable of hosting special events as well as summer and winter sports simultaneously.

With the completion of the Richmond Olympic Oval's legacy phase, Richmond is securely on the map as an enviable venue for sporting events, activities, competitions, meetings and events. The legacy facility is able to accommodate multiple sport and support functions through a series of differing configurations of the main activity area including ice sports and track and field. "The award-winning Richmond Olympic Oval set the stage for Richmond's sports hosting capabilities at an international level," says Gayle Morris, director of Sales at Tourism Richmond. "Beyond that, our city's 26 name-brand hotels, easy access, sport facilities, temperate climate, fist-class amenities and enthusiastic community combine to make Richmond an ideal year-round sport and event hosting destination."

Richmond has an impressive history as a sport-hosting destination, successfully hosting many provincial level sporting events and junior sporting events such as the 27th Annual Richmond International Midget Hockey Tournament in 2007; the BC Golden Glove Boxing Championships in 2007; the BC Rugby Union Div 3 Provincial Championships in 2006; and the JCC Maccabi Games in 2006. More recently, Richmond hosted the 2010 Yonex Canada Open Grand Prix of Badminton, the highest-level badminton tournament ever held in Canada, from July 13 to 18, 2010. Richmond will host the National Fencing Championship in January 2011 and the Western Canadian Fencing Championship in May 2011.

Known for its accessibility, Richmond has been very successful at attracting world-class wheelchair and disability sporting events, such as the 2005 Wheelchair Curling Championships, the 2009 Wheelchair Basketball Americas Qualifier, and the 2010 Canada Deaf Curling Championships. Maintaining the momentum after the 2010 Paralympic Games, Richmond is currently hosting the 2010 World Wheelchair Rugby Championships from September 16 to 25, 2010. Richmond is a city with record longevity – residents live approximately four years longer than those of the rest of Canada – and was an apt host for the BC Seniors Games in September 2009. Prior to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, the BC Seniors Games was the largest sporting event ever held in Richmond, welcoming over 4,000 participants 55 years and over to compete in 29 sporting events over four days of competitions.

The City of Richmond's Sport Hosting Office offers complimentary services to sport organizations and organizing committees in helping when bidding for, planning and staging sport events in the City of Richmond. Visit http://www.richmond.ca/parksrec/sports/services/sporthosting.htm for more details on the City of Richmond's incentive grant program.

About Tourism Richmond
Tourism Richmond is a non-profit, membership driven destination marketing organization (DMO). The primary mandate of Tourism Richmond, British Columbia's 4th largest DMO, is to enhance awareness about the destination through sales and marketing initiatives by providing excellent visitor and member services. Ultimately, Tourism Richmond's goal is to increase economic activity related to tourism for the City of Richmond and all stakeholders. Richmond is a former Venue City for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.