Vancouver 2010 broke even according to organising committee

THE 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver broke even, according to the organising committee's final budget.

BREAKING EVEN: The 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver broke even according to figures released by the organising committee (Getty Images)

Figures released by the organising committee (Vanoc) showed that $1.86bn was spent on staging the Games - up on the original $1.61bn after costs began to increase in 2007.

Vanoc confirmed that 91 per cent of revenues came from corporate sources but taxpayers also helped to support the Games with both the provincial and federal governments providing assistance in the build-up to the Olympics.

The International Olympic Committee also took an unprecedented step by pledging to cover any budget deficit.

"The true measure of the 2010 Winter Games is not strictly financial, but a positive financial outcome is something we are very proud of in the story of the Games' success," said Vanoc chief executive John Furlong.

"It is a key result we committed to and, through a true team effort, we have achieved it under some vey challenging circumstances."