GN buys into Olympics marketing program
“Each province and territory has a story and we are honoured to share ours with the world”

The official mascots of the 2010 Vancouver winter Olympics pose for photos with Taleeb Noormohamed of the Vancouver organizing committee, left, Peter Taptuna, minister of economic development and transportation, centre, and Premier Eva Aariak. (PHOTO BY CHRIS WINDEYER)
Nunavut is buying into the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
Premier Eva Aariak, economic development and transportation minister Peter Taptuna, and Taleeb Noormohamed of the Vancouver organizing committee, announced July 8 that Nunavut is now a “contributing territory” to the 2010 games.
“Each province and territory has a story and we are honoured to share ours with the world,” Aariak said.
But the right to share that story comes with a price tag: Nunavut is spending $168,000 to get in on the marketing bonanza that is the Olympics.
Half will go to establishing a Nunavut presence at the games, including a “Nunavut day” during the games, participation in a “cultural Olympiad” and the right to use the highly-prized Olympic logos.
Taptuna said the deal will mean exposure for Nunavut’s artists and tourism sector, plus the chance to educate the world about Inuit life, food, and connection to the land.
“The partnerships give us the unique opportunity to…educate people of the world about Nunavut,” he said.
Nunavut already has a deal with the Vancouver organizing committee to market up to 40,000 handmade inuksuit during the games.
The other $84,000 goes to the Own the Podium program, which funnels money to athletes in sports in which Canada is expected to excel in 2010. The goal is to see Canada win more Olympic medals than any other country.
Nunavut’s $84,000 contribution is pittance: the budget for the program is $110 million, with half coming from the federal government and the rest from corporate sponsors and deals with the provinces and territories.
Still, Aariak hopes Nunavut’s participation in the Olympics will provide a boost to the territory’s budding athletes.
“We are moving forward in fostering local athletes that may very well represent us at the Olympics,” she said.
Nunavut will also host the Olympic torch relay from Nov. 5 to Nov. 9 with stops in Kugluktuk, Alert, Grise Fiord, Resolute Bay and Iqaluit. The torch will also stop in Kuujjuaq Nov. 10.
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