'It's been magnificent': Volunteers make World Police and Fire Games a success
The World Police and Fire Games (WPFG) came to a close Sunday after ten days of athletic competition, and organizers, athletes, and volunteers all say Winnipeg has done an excellent job of hosting the international event.
The games concluded Sunday with a full slate of track and field events at the University of Manitoba.
Stuart Sutton traveled from Australia to compete in the hammer, discus, and shot put competitions. This is the third time Sutton has attended the games, and he says it's been the best organized.
"It's been magnificent," he said. "The best officiating so far, they really knew what they were doing, and the volunteers were excellent as well."
Sutton is a firefighter from New South Wales who took in everything Winnipeg had to offer during the week he was here.
"The food scene's great, even just visiting some of the breweries because they’ve got a big brewery scene here, just to have one or two," said Sutton.
He also drove out to Gimli, visited the Assiniboine Park Zoo, and went to see Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Winnipeg Goldeyes games. Sutton said he's had an amazing time.
"The people in this city have been really warm, and they love the fact that 8,500 of us have come here," he said.
Chris Harrison is a retired RCMP officer who has been volunteering for the games. He said attendance could have been better, but the events have been fun to watch.
"We haven’t had as many spectators as we would have liked, but lots of countries showed up and we have lots of close competition," he said.
WPFG organizers tell CTV News around 2,800 people volunteered to help run the games, from officials to drivers to venue workers. Chief operating officer Mike Edwards said the volunteers have been incredible.
"That’s the feedback that we're hearing from the athletes, is that they have never seen a volunteer crew and a volunteer committee do so much and just take care of them," said Edwards.
He said organizing the games has been a learning experience for all of them, but one that he wouldn’t trade for anything.
"These volunteers made these games a success, there's no other way to say it."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
'Sophisticated' cyberattacks detected on B.C. government networks, premier says
There has been a "sophisticated" cybersecurity breach detected on B.C. government networks, Premier David Eby confirmed Wednesday evening.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
Canucks claw out 5-4 comeback win over Oilers in Game 1
Dakota Joshua had a goal and two assists and the Vancouver Canucks scored three third-period goals to claw out a 5-4 comeback victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series Wednesday.
Nijjar murder suspect says he had Canadian study permit in immigration firm's video
One of the Indian nationals accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar says in a social media video that he received a Canadian study permit with the help of an Indian immigration consultancy.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.