Vancouver police are defending the number of officers on the street during last week's riot, saying it was about the same during the gold-medal hockey game in the 2010 Olympics.

"It is true that about 5,000 officers were brought in from other jurisdictions for the Olympic Games, but those officers were for deployment by the Integrated Security Unit inside venues from Richmond to Whistler. The Vancouver Police Department policed the streets of Vancouver, with some assistance from the ISU in the final days," said a statement issued by police on Thursday.

The force is continuing to refuse to release its tally of feet on the street, saying even if it did, it wouldn't matter anyway because there will always be debate over how many officers would have been enough.

"Following the events of June 15, 2011, media attention has focused on the number of police on the streets that night. Debate appears to be raging over whether the number was too small and what should have been the 'correct' number. While the debate is always worthwhile having, it is important to remember that there is no 'correct' number."

The force says in the statement that the numbers are based on experience and threat assessment, but that changes minute by minute while the resources available remain the same.

"Realistically, there is no plausible number of police that could have been deployed that would have prevented this riot. Nor can anyone predict with 100 per cent certainty whether a riot will occur. Toronto had many more police, drawn from across the country, on the streets for the G20 and they still had a riot."

Earlier this week Vancouver police Chief Jim Chu fired back at a consultant who claimed police ignored his advice contained in the 1994 Stanley Cup riot report, saying the media were misled by the consultant.

"The fact still remains that the number of police on the street the night of June 15, correct or not, quelled a violent crowd of 30,000 people in three hours without major injuries or a single complaint of excessive force or unlawful arrest. Our goal once the riot began was to protect lives, end it as quickly as possible."

With files from The Canadian Press