TORONTO 2015 Games Hitting Home Stretch, Ontarians Getting on Board

TO2015 Releases Fourth-Quarter Financials
Conference call with TO2015 CEO and executives today at 1:30 p.m.

TORONTO, July 18, 2014 /CNW/ - With less than a year to go until the start of the TORONTO 2015 Games, the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games Organizing Committee (TO2015) is working hard to make sure Toronto, Ontario and Canada see big economic benefits from hosting this international event.

"The TORONTO 2015 Games are an economic driver in Ontario — from building brand-new community athletic facilities to employment and sport tourism opportunities. We expect these Games to create 26,000 jobs," said Saäd Rafi, chief executive officer of TO2015.

"In addition, so far, of all the funding spent to procure the goods and services we need to make these games a success, 84 per cent has gone to Canadian companies. We're going to continue to procure through an open and competitive process that seeks to achieve good value for taxpayers, but there's no doubt these Games create some great opportunities for Canadian companies. Corporate Canada continues to show great support."

TO2015's senior leadership team will be available to the media at 1:30 p.m. (ET) today. For details on how media can dial in, please see below.

TO2015 incurred $92.8 million, including $66 million on venue construction in its fiscal period ending March 31, 2014 (FY 2014, Q4). Documents outlining its infrastructure budget and quarterly financial graphs are available at TORONTO2015.org.

In this quarter, TO2015's operating expenses were $26.8 million and were predominantly spent in the areas of corporate, technology, transportation, overlay, broadcast, events and ceremonies,  and community and cultural affairs. To date, the Organizing Committee has spent $126.9 million or 15.7 per cent of its total operations budget of $810 million. Corporate Canada has stepped up and provided an incremental $43 million in value in kind sponsorship for the delivery of the Games.

The overall capital building program for the Games is continuing to come in under budget. The $57.5-million savings in the capital budget first reported in the November 2012 Quarterly Report remains.

TO2015's total venue construction expenditures for the quarter were $66 million. Project-to-date venue construction expenditures amounted to $387 million, representing 53 per cent of the total original capital budget of $730 million.

In this quarter, TO2015 incurred:

• $11.3 million on the CIBC Hamilton Pan Am Soccer Stadium ($83.5 million since inception).
• $27.3 million on the CIBC Pan Am/Parapan Am Aquatics Centre and Field House ($148.4 million since inception).
• $2.1 million on the CIBC Pan Am/Parapan Am Athletics Stadium ($24.8 million since inception).
• $1.4 million on the Cisco Milton Pan Am/Parapan Am Velodrome ($29.2 million since inception).
• $4.3 million on the Atos Markham Pan Am/Parapan Am Centre ($53.9 million since inception).
• And the balance on other smaller projects.

Since its budget was originally created in 2009, TO2015 has worked to refine it based on the most up-to-date information available, as well as changing market pricing, which can have a significant impact on such things as fuel costs and procurements.

The Organizing Committee's 2014 year-end financials have been reviewed by both the TO2015 Board of Directors and Audit Committee. The final audited accounting statements for 2014 are posted at TORONTO2015.org under the reference documents section of the About Us tab.

Other recent highlights include:

• TO2015 successfully launched its recruitment drive for Games-time volunteers on April 7. Response has been tremendous, with more than 24,000 applications received to date at TORONTO2015.org/volunteer. The volunteer program is presented by Chevrolet.
  
  
• The Games are helping bring more than 40 competitions to Ontario over the next year. The competitions, which started in May, involve 12,000 athletes competing in sports and at venues that are part of the Pan Am/Parapan Am Games. TO2015 is using the events to test a variety of operational areas.
  
  
• The Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation were named the official Host First Nation of the Games with the signing of a protocol agreement on May 22.
  
  
• CBC/Radio Canada, Rede Record (Brazil), TV Globo (Brazil), America Movil (Mexico), TyC (Argentina) and ESPN Deportes (USA) took part in the TORONTO 2015 Pan Am Broadcasters' Meeting, hosted by CBC in April. Through these broadcasters, the Games will reach more than 380 million households in the Americas.
  
  
• La Presse has joined as an Official Supporter to help bring the Games to francophone readers throughout Central Canada. In March, TO2015 added Scalar (information technology security) and Molson Coors (beer and cider) as its newest Official Suppliers.
  
  
• The Americas Paralympic Committee (APC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) conducted their second coordination committee meeting with TO2015 from May 6 to 8 to oversee preparations for the Parapan Am Games. "We were delighted with the outcome of the coordination commission and leave confident that TO2015 is on course to deliver the biggest and best Parapan American Games ever," APC President Jose Luis Campo said.

TO2015 Budget Background
The overall budget for the TORONTO 2015 Games includes the costs of overlay, some essential services and the need for appropriate contingencies for the capital and operating components. It has been reviewed and confirmed by independent third-party financial experts and by experts in staging large-scale, international, multi-sport events.

When it announced its budget in May 2012, TO2015 committed to regular updates to the public. Today's quarterly report is the seventh in an ongoing series of regular, quarterly organizational updates as the Organizing Committee moves forward to Games time.

Like the Province of Ontario, TO2015's financial reporting follows the fiscal year, which ends March 31, rather than the calendar year, which ends on December 31. This is why the bulk of the Organizing Committee's operating expenses, for example, will be paid in fiscal year 2016; though occurring in the summer of 2015, the Games will take place during the second quarter of fiscal year 2016. The next Quarterly Report will be released in September 2014 and will cover the first quarter of fiscal 2015.

TO2015 Quarterly Report Media Conference Call Details

To access the conference call by telephone, dial toll-free 1.800.920.6941 within North America. Please connect approximately 10 minutes prior to the beginning of the call.

About TO2015
The TORONTO 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games Organizing Committee (TO2015) is tasked with managing and delivering the Games. It is working to bring some of the world's best athletes and artists to the Greater Golden Horseshoe region, giving Ontarians a unique chance to be part of the action, and making the region a hub for sport.

The TORONTO 2015 Games are funded by the Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario, as well as Lead Partner CIBC and other partners and sponsors.

The TORONTO 2015 Pan American Games will take place July 10–26 and the Parapan American Games August 7–15.

For more information about the Games, please visit TORONTO2015.org.

SOURCE: Toronto 2015 Pan/Parapan American Games

For further information: Teddy Katz, Director, media relations and chief spokesperson, TO2015, 416.957.2117, teddy.katz@toronto2015.org