Majority of Canadians support boycotting Beijing Olympics: poll

HALIFAX -

Politically, boycotts aren't usually effective, but one expert says there might be a more important reason to keep Canadian athletes out of the Beijing Olympics.

The Olympics is the largest sporting showcase in the world, a prestigious event.

However, a recent poll by Nanos Research for CTV, shows 64 per cent of Canadians support pulling out of the Beijing games, scheduled to start in February. Twenty-nine per cent opposed the idea.

"At 64 per cent, if you were a politician you would take that to the bank because usually in a Canadian election you only need 38% to win an election," said Nik Nanos of Nanos Research. "The fact that people are twice as likely to support as opposed to oppose the boycott speaks to the intensity of the concern many Canadians have about participating in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics."

The poll was conducted in the midst of tension between China and Canada -- made worse following the 11-year sentence handed down to Michael Spavor on Tuesday.

He and Michael Kovrig were arrested by Chinese authorities in 2018, a move some feel was retaliation for Canada arresting Huawai executive Meng Wanzhou at the request of the American government.

Some have their doubts about how effective a boycott would be.

"I'm not sure it would actually do anything," said Jeff Milton. "I don't think we would; I'm not sure it would be a great idea anyway because there's too much downside to it."

Political experts tend to agree, however when it comes to China, the safety of Canadian athletes at the games is a real concern.

"This seems like a ripe opportunity for Beijing to do exactly that, to use the arrival of Team Canada as a pressure point against Ottawa," said Robert Huish, an  associate professor of International Development Studies at Dalhousie University. "We know that they have had this track record of hostage diplomacy in the past, so I think it's an extremely risky risky move right now going to Beijing."

It's a move that the leader of the federal opposition isn't willing to take.

"We will have to think long and hard and whether we reward a country like that with the games," said Conservative Party of Canada leader Erin O'Toole.

Right now, Canadians agree. Support for a games boycott was highest in Ontario where 70 per cent of the people polled think Canada should not send a team to Beijing. Quebec had the lowest level of support at just over 51 per cent. Atlantic Canadians came in at the national average of a little over 60 per cent.

Kovrig is still awaiting his sentencing. If he gets something similar to Spavor, there's a chance support for an Olympic boycott will grow among Canadians.