Learning From Games Experience

High-ranking Chinese law enforcement officers recently visited Toronto to get an insight into the city’s police best practices regarding security in preparation for the Winter Olympics.

Beijing has been awarded the 2022 Games, and officials wanted to learn from the 2015 Toronto Pan Am/Parapan Games experience.

“They wanted to learn from our experiences,” said Deputy Chief James Ramer, in charge of the Specialized Operations Command. “We have so many international partners who come here because we have a reputation for doing a lot of different things very well.”

The 22-member visiting delegation visited the Toronto Police Operations Centre (TPOC) and the Emergency Management Unit.

“They basically wanted to see how TPOC works and how we conduct business in addition to learning how we respond to public order issues,” Ramer said. “They were very impressed with the way we do business and what we have to offer.”

Staff Superintendent Peter Yuen spent time with the officers, led by seven police chiefs from Chinese cities.

“They wanted to see how we police major events and the level of resources we provide,” he said. “I am not surprised that they chose to come to Toronto because our police service has an exceptionally high reputation internationally for doing things very professionally.”

The delegation also visited Vancouver, which hosted the 2010 Winter Olympics, before returning home.