Special Olympics Canada takes a pass on Prince George

“Prince George stepped up. They did an amazing job, it was fantastic to be a part of the bid team. We are going to wait for clarification from Special Olympics Canada to tell us a bit more about exactly why the bid was not accepted,” said Shirley Bond, a volunteer and committee member with Special Olympics Prince George.

The City calls the decision both frustrating and disappointing but notes it is now shifting its focus to possibly hosting other national and international events.

“Our local committee put together a 10/10 bid package and site tour, with a tremendous community effort that included Special Olympic athletes, coaches, community leaders, businesses, UNBC and City staff and many others,” Beesley said.

“Our strong belief is that we did not in fact lose the bid. The goalposts were changed after we knocked it out of the ballpark in terms of the quality of our bid package and the truly remarkable site visits we provided. Prince George has a proud history of hosting world class events and we remain confident that these games would have been no different,” Beesley continued.

While Bond says it is heartbreaking to lose the bid, especially since no other city was actually chosen, she says this doesn’t take away from the great work being done by the local Special Olympics community following a very successful 2025 Special Olympics BC Summer Games.

“We now have programs running for two to 11 year olds, which is a direct legacy from the games that we hosted. So great things continue to happen, that’s fantastic news, but certainly we’re disappointed that we will not be the host of those 2030 games,” Bond said.

Beesley adds one silver lining of the situation is that the City now has $500,000 available, as it was being held in the Major Events Reserve Fund for Special Olympics, but that can now be used to look into other opportunities.

“One of the opportunities that we’re looking hard at and we’re going to be taking to council is the BC Seniors’ Games, and this is actually a pretty big deal. A lot of athletes come, a lot of families, and the economic spinoffs would just be fantastic to Prince George. That’s an example of the type of thing that we are very seriously looking at right now,” Beesley said.

In a statement, Special Olympics Canada said it “cannot comment on the specific details of the Prince George bid,” but was “very impressed with the dedication to Special Olympics programming locally and the impact it has on the city, which rang loud and clear throughout the process.”

by CKPG News

Special Olympics Canada takes a pass on Prince George

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