Practically three-in-five (59%) think Canada should boycott this year’s Winter Olympics—including 65% of those aged 55 and over.
Vancouver, BC [February 1, 2022] – The proportion of Canadians who will avoid coverage of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics has increased slightly across the country, a new Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of a representative national sample, 47% of Canadians say they will make a conscious effort to refrain from watching the sporting event, up two points since a similar Research Co. poll conducted in December 2021.
Half of Canadians aged 18-to-34 (50%) and a majority of Quebecers (53%) say they will consciously avoid this year’s Winter Olympics.
Almost three-in-five Canadians (59%, +3) think Canada should boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics over China’s human rights record—a proportion that rises to 62% among men, 65% among Canadians aged 55 and over and 67% among those who voted for the Conservative Party in the 2021 federal election.
“Sizeable majorities of Canadians who reside in Quebec (66%) and British Columbia (also 66%) are in favour of a full boycott of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “Support for a full boycott is also high in Atlantic Canada (58%), Ontario (57%) and Manitoba and Saskatchewan (56%).”
More than seven-in-ten Canadians (72%, +2) are worried about the health and safety of Canadian athletes who participate in the Beijing Winter Olympics, including 74% of women and 83% of those aged 55 and over.
Across Canada, 72% of respondents (+2) believe athletes who wish to protest China’s human rights record during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics should be able to do so. The same proportion (72%, +1) believe the International Olympic Committee (IOC) should not punish athletes who decide to speak out.
Just over half of Canadians (51%, -1) say they check labels “all the time” or “most of the time” to review where the products they purchase for their home or family were manufactured.
More than half of Canadians never avoid goods made in Europe (62%, -6), the United States (57%, -5) and Mexico (54%, -2). The proportion is slightly lower for products manufactured in Russia (44%, -5) and India (43%, -5).
Compared to December, there is little change in the perception of Canadians about goods manufactured in China. Only 30% (-2) never refrain from buying them, while seven-in-ten (70%, +2) avoid Chinese products “all the time” (16%, +1), “most of the time” (25%, +5) or “some of the time” (29%, -4).
Methodology: Results are based on an online study conducted from January 21 to January 23, 2022, among 1,000 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region. The margin of error – which measures sample variability – is +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
Find our data tables here and download the press release here.
For more information on this poll, please contact:
Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.
778.929.0490 [e] mario.canseco@researchco.ca