Winnipeg's Golden Boy statue, perched 77 metres atop the Manitoba Legislative Building, a sheaf of wheat under one arm and a torch held high in the other, stands as a symbol of "equality for all" - an ideology befitting one of Canada's most ethnically diverse cities.

LOCATION AND DESCRIPTION

Winnipeg sits at the geographical centre of North America at the confluence of the Red and Assinboine Rivers in southeastern Manitoba. It is Manitoba's capital city and its political, industrial and cultural centre.

CLIMATE

Summer temperatures range from warm to hot in Winnipeg (13° to 26° C on average). Winters are long and cold, with temperatures falling from -13° to -24° C. Winnipeg receives 504 millimetres of precipitation annually, much of that as snow. On some winter nights the colourful northern lights (aurora borealis) can be seen from the city.

ECONOMY

Winnipeg has a broad industrial base. Its central location has made Winnipeg the "Gateway to the West," a principal transportation and distribution centre, especially for goods travelling to western Canada and the United States from eastern Canada. The Canadian Wheat board and many grain companies have located head offices in Winnipeg, due to its close proximity to the fertile farmlands of the Prairies. The Winnipeg Commodity Exchange is Canada's chief grain market. Over half of the agricultural machinery manufactured in Canada is built in Winnipeg. Brewing, meatpacking and the textile industry are also major Winnipeg employers, and a bus factory manufactures many of North America's highway buses.

All of Canada's coins are produced in Winnipeg at the Royal Canadian Mint. The mint produces over 30 million loonies (Canada's one-dollar coin) every year.

PEOPLE

Over half of Manitoba's population resides in greater Winnipeg, including more than 43 cultural groups. People of British descent account for the largest ethnic group (24 percent), while large populations of Ukrainians, Germans, French, Filipinos, Poles, Jews and Chinese add diversity to Winnipeg's cultural landscape. Winnipeg is also home to the largest francophone population outside of Quebec and the largest Aboriginal and Metis population of any Canadian city.

CULTURE AND RECREATION

Winnipeg offers an abundance of cultural facilities and events with its own symphony orchestra, ballet troupe, live theatre groups, museums and an opera. The CFL's Blue Bombers thrill football fans in Winnipeg Stadium while hockey fans can cheer on the IHL's Manitoba Moose at Winnipeg Arena.

Outdoor enthusiasts will enjoy Winnipeg's 900 parks and athletic fields. There is a plentitude of skating and curling rinks, golf courses, swimming pools and tennis courts. Magnificent, white sand beaches lie less than an hour outside of Winnipeg on the shores of Lake Winnipeg.

Two daily newspapers, five local television stations and 10 radio stations (including a French language television station and a multi-lingual radio station) serve Winnipeg.