Wednesday, July 6, 2011

IOC Voting on 2018 Winter Olympics Site Today

The International Olympic Committee is set to vote among the finalists today for the 2018 Winter Olympics.

*** The IOC announced this morning that a site had been selected in the first round, indicating that one of the cities below received more than 50% on the first ballot.

Those finalists include:
  • Annecy, France - Considered the long shot, this is the first Olympic bid for the French Alps mountain town.  Doesn't have strong support among the local populatoin; an IOC survey showed only 51% of local residents want the Olympics; France last hosted the Winter Olympics in Albertville in 1992.
  • Munich, Germany - Site of the ill-fated Summer Olympics of 1972. Has a very compact setup, with all the venues being situated within 55 miles of each other; Olympic athletes would have no more than a 10 minute commute to their village
  • Pyeongchang, South Korea - Considered the favorite based on its defeat in close votes for the 2010 and 2014 games.  Even more compact setup than Munich, all venues would be within a 30 minute drive.  South Korea hosted the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.
While I obviously don't have a vote, I would select Munich. It's time to settle the ghosts of 1972, and Munich would no doubt put on a world class Olympics.

***  Now that it's been announced that someone won in the first ballot, I hereby switch my prediction to Pyeongchang! It's pretty obvious now that the IOC is looking to expand its influence truly worldwide.

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