Winter Games a great show but what will the numbers be?

OPINION: For a first-time event, the Winter Games held throughout Central Otago during the past 10 days certainly had an impact, writes Nathan Burdon in this week's Straight Up.

Just how big an impact it had will probably take some time to work out.

Athletes I spoke to during the events were unanimous in their support for the concept and the way the Games were organised.

Many were surprised by the scale of the event, and some were genuinely delighted at the effort put into things like the prizegiving ceremonies, which featured national anthems and greenstone pendants for medals.

Much of the effort that went into the Games was centered on the athletes, according to chief executive Arthur Klap. He wants to do it all again in two years.

However, what 2011 won't have is the added motivation of a looming Winter Olympics.

What it will have will be the looming behemoth of the Rugby World Cup.

Klap needed the athletes, officials and administrators who have been involved over the past week and a half to go away raving about the event because word of mouth could be his best friend or his worst enemy.

While the athletes are important, if the event is to grow it needs people watching it.

More than 30 countries had expressed an interest in taking video highlights packages from the Games, while both New Zealand television networks were filing news stories.

Crowd involvement is a must for any sport to grow. It adds colour and atmosphere, and cash through ticket sales.

There was good access for spectators for the cross-country skiing at Snow Farm, the curling at Naseby and the halfpipe events at Cardrona, but many of the other events are unfortunately not that accessible.

There was some print media involvement, but realistically winter sports remains very much a niche sport.

What I hope this newspaper achieved during the Games was to highlight some of the very good athletes who we have training and racing in the south.

Unfortunately for them, much of their best work is done on top of mountains and/or overseas so it's only those involved in the industry who have a real appreciation for how much commitment and determination these guys put into their sport.

I personally found dealing with these athletes really refreshing. They appreciated and acknowledged the benefits to their sport from media exposure.

Most spoke well and with depth and did well to hide their bemusement at some of the lame questions thrown their way by a novice snow sports reporter.

Financially, the expectation was that the Games which did not have entry fees or ticket sales as revenue streams would come close to breaking even.

With a price tag north of $3.5 million, the event was possible only with million-dollar support from the Government.

One of the reviews to be carried out over the next three months will look into financial impact.

Pre-Games the talk was of a $50 million impact.

These things always have to be taken with a grain of salt.

It will be interesting to see what the post-Games figure is.

» Nathan Burdon has been the Southland Times sports editor since 2003 and has won numerous journalism awards, including provincial sports writer of the year.

- © Fairfax NZ News