2018 Winter Olympics

XXIII Olympic Winter Games Olympics official logo Host city , Opening ceremony February 9 Closing ceremony February 25 Stadium The 2018 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XXIII Olympic Winter Games, is a winter multi-sport event scheduled to take place between 9 and 24 February 2018. Three candidates have applied to host the games: Annecy, France; Munich, Germany; and Pyeongchang, South Korea. The winning bid will be announced on 6 July 2011 by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), after the 123rd IOC Session in Durban. Munich has previously hosted the 1972 Summer Olympics, with some of the events proposed to take place in the 1936 Summer Olympics host Garmisch-Partenkirchen. Pyeongchang has bid twice before, and lost only marginally to Vancouver in 2010 and Sochi in 2014. Some of Annecy's event's would take place in 1968 host Grenoble. It is the first time since the bids for the 1988 Winter Olympics that only three bids were made. Contents 1 Calendar 2 Candidate cities 2.1 Annecy 2.2 Munich 2.3 Pyeongchang 3 Notes 4 External links Calendar Date(s) Action 31 July 2009 IOC to officially invite bid applicants from NOCs. 15 October 2009 Application deadline 2–5 December 2009 Applicant city seminar, Lausanne 15 March 2010 Application files due 22 June 2010 Candidate city selection 11 January 2011 Submission of candidature files and guarantees February–March 2011 Evaluation commission site visits 10 May 2011 Evaluation commission report released 18–19 May 2011 Bid cities briefing, Lausanne 6 July 2011 Winner announced at 123rd IOC Session, Durban Candidate cities Main article: Bids for the 2018 Winter Olympics Annecy Four cities (Annecy, Grenoble, Nice and Pelvoux) expressed interest in hosting the 2018 games. On September 24, 2008, the Olympic Committee announced it had granted these wishes and would bid in 2011.1 Annecy was elected as the official candidate city by the French NOC on March 18, 2009.2 The CNOSF acknowledges its tough competition, but France had learned from the failure of Paris' bid for the 2012 Summer Games, with French sports minister mentioning that "we were too proud and too sure that we were going to win".34 The supervisory board's chairman Christian Monteil said that "of course it's very hard, we've never really been the favorite" but that they want to win and won't give up the bid.5 Annecy has currently the smallest budget ($29 million) compared to its two competitors, with French sports minister Chantal Jouanno saying that Annecy needs a bigger budget if it is to make a successful bid.4 In June 2010, the IOC criticized Annecy’s bid stating that the competition venues were excessively dispersed. The IOC report was highly critical over the original venue plan, saying it would "present major operational and financial challenges" that would "affect the Games experience for all client groups, particularly athletes". On October 4th, 2010 Annecy’s leaders unveiled a new "ultra-compact" venue concept in response to the IOC concerns. Under the reworked venue plans, all ice and snow events would take place within a 21 mile radius at two main bases, Annecy and Chamonix, which are less than an hour apart and linked by motorway and the “Games Train”. All alpine skiing will take place in Chamonix, which will also host ice hockey. All freestyle skiing and snowboard are now centered on Annecy. Curling has been relocated to Annecy, the hub of most ice sports, meaning that the Olympic Village will be a little bigger than previously, to accommodate 2,500 athletes and officials. The bid has moved the second Olympic Village (1,500 beds) from the Mont Blanc valley into the center of Chamonix.6 However, the demission of the bid's CEO, Edgar Grospiron on December 12, 2010 over a budget dispute raises interrogations on the chances of success of the bid.7 On January 10th, 2011, Charles Beigbeder was named as the new CEO for the Annecy bid. In addition, Olympic champions Jean Pierre Vidal and Pernilla Wiberg were appointed as Vice Presidents of the bid. Beigbeder says he will seek more financial support for the bid from the private sector. Also announced with Beigbeder’s appointment was the selection of Pierre Mirabaud as director general of the bid. Mirabaud has been a regional government prefect, experience which Beigbeder says is needed by the bid.8 On February 12, 2011, the IOC evaluation commission completed its four day inspection of the Annecy bid. During a brief press conference, commission chair Gunilla Lindberg was cautious in her praise of Annecy. On a positive note, she told reporters: "We have during our visit witnessed very strong governmental support which the bid enjoys and this was highlighted by the presence of the President Sarkozy and many members of his cabinet throughout the visit. I think the bid committee of Annecy has listened to the comments made by the IOC [criticism of the spread-out venues in June] and there has been a big improvement, especially not having so many competition venues as was proposed." But there was no glowing assessment of the Annecy bid from Lindberg. The Swedish IOC member also gave no clue about any concerns that had arisen during the inspection team’s four-day stay in the French Alpine town.9 French President Nicolas Sarkozy also travelled to Annecy to meet with the IOC Evaluation Commission inspecting the city's bid for the 2018 Winter Olympic Games. “The government will do everything possible, you can be sure, so that Annecy, applicant for the 2018 Winter Olympics, will be chosen,” Sarkozy said. “Annecy’s victory will be the victory of the entire nation, standing behind you.”10 While pledging his support for the bid he said "you are trying hard. It's difficult. Your opponents are extremely powerful but I'm with you. If we win the Games it will be fantastic. And if we don't win, all we did will be useful for your cities and your region".11 On March 28, 2011, the CAO (Annecy Anti-Olympic Committee) stated that it wants to tell people about what "not only the excesses of the Olympics, the sport business, the financial stakes of multinationals and unacceptable demands of the IOC, but also on adverse impacts on the environment and on uncontrolled public spending with long-term debt for the Olympic city". The group says it has collected 13,140 names for its petition opposing plans to bring the Winter Olympics to Annecy. In a press release issued on the 28th, the opposition group cited information reported exclusively by media outlet Around the Rings that an IOC poll shows only 51 percent of the local population supports the Annecy candidacy.12 Annecy's logo features the French Alps, specifically Mt. Blanc, as well as suggesting the letter "A" for Annecy. Munich Munich hosted the 1972 Summer Olympics, and if selected would be the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Games.13 Berlin and Hamburg were considering a summer games bid for 2024 or 2028, but the German Olympic Committee is putting the Munich bid first.14 After Salzburg, Austria's failure to capture the 2014 bid,15 Germany feels it has a better chance and would prefer the Olympics sooner rather than later.16 Munich has a strong ally with IOC vice president Thomas Bach, who could swing the vote to Munich, even though the 2014 Games will have been held in Europe as well. Nevertheless, Munich is already considering a bid for 2022 if this bid fails.14 Munich is stressing an environmental approach17 and will use existing venues in Munich (some from the 1972 Games) and in the Bavarian mountain resorts of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (location of the 1936 Winter Olympics) and Schönau am Königssee. However, on November 20, 2010 the German Green Party rejected the 2018 Munich bid. Delegates at the party national convention voted in favor of an anti-Olympic resolution: 289 yes, 244 no and 70 abstentions. The resolution was put forward by a delegate from Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the mountain village south of Munich that would host the ski events. The anti-Games resolution challenges the transparency of the bid and the environmental impact the Games would have, points disputed by Munich 2018.18 January 2011 polls indicate 75% approval countrywide.19 On February 22, 2011, land owners in Garmisch-Partenkirchen supporting the 'Nolympia' initiative began collecting signatures under efforts to force a vote to decide whether the town will back the bid. "The Olympic Winter Games are too big for Garmisch-Partenkirchen. With more than fifty events in the snow cluster there are almost five times as many events as the world ski championships," said Nolympia backer Axel Doering. "Our goal is to win a referendum, so that the contracts be reviewed. Another goal is to finally show that the alleged "huge majority" [of support] for the Olympic Winter Games is a myth," he added. Munich's bid plans call for the leasing of land from private land owners for the Games.20German Olympic committee President Thomas Bach says complaints by landowners in Garmisch-Partenkirchen are not a problem for the bid. “It’s not a problem at all because for the field of play, it’s one piece of land with 800 square meters. The piece of land was there for the alpine world championships six weeks before,” says Bach. He added “we have seen this at the world championships they were all going down on this very slope and they will go down in 2018, hopefully.”21 On February 28th, 2011 the IOC evaluation commission traveled to Munich and to the other cities, in which competitions would be held. The 1972 Olympic Stadium in Garmisch-Partenkirchen was the high point of the IOC's tour. Under the Munich 2018 bid, it is slated as the site for ski jumping, Nordic combined and the aerials competition, with slalom events to be held on the adjacent ski slope. That venue also hosted slalom events at the FIS Alpine World Championships. The IOC's venue tour also took in visits to Hausberg, the snowboard and freestyle skiing venue, the Kandahar ski resort that also staged the skiing world champs and the biathlon and cross country venue.22 IOC Evaluation Commission chair Gunilla Lindberg says her inspection team has "absolutely felt the atmosphere and passion" for the Olympics at the end of its four-day inspection of the Munich bid. “The general impression is that it is a strong bid with strong governmental support. It is a good team on the bid committee and Germany is a big winter sports country used to organizing competitions." IOC vice president Thomas Bach insisted that 2018 was a good time for the IOC and Olympic Movement to bring the Games to the traditional winter sports city of Munich to "recharge the batteries after having been to new regions, with 2014 to Sochi and 2016 to Rio".23 German chancellor Angela Merkel says Munich has a "very good chance" of winning the race to host the 2018 Winter Olympics. She added: “The world can look forward to Germany hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games 2018.”24 The slogan of the game is Die Spiele im Herzen (The games in the heart). Its logo is a stylized M, reminiscent of the Bavarian mountain silhouettes and the awnings in Munich's Olympic Park.25 After skier and ski wear producer Willy Bogner withdrew from the bidding committee due to health reasons, figure skating superstar Katarina Witt became the lead promotor.3 If the bid is successful it will be the first time Germany has hosted the games since reunification. Pyeongchang After narrowly missing twice in bidding for the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics, Governor Jin-sun Kim of the Gangwon province announced in September 2007 that Pyeongchang would definitely bid a third time. He cited increased knowledge of the bidding process and the still high enthusiasm of residents as reasons to keep trying.2627 According to a survey by The Chosun Ilbo on December 23, 2009, 91.4% of Koreans, 93.4% of Pyeongchang and Jeongseon residents, and 93% of Gangwon residents support the 2018 Winter Olympics bid.28 South Korea's figure skating superstar and 2010 Olympic champion Kim Yu-Na and IOC member and Samsung Group chairman Lee Kun-hee are currently promoting the bid.2930 On February 16, 2011 the IOC Evaluation Commission arrived in Korea for the inspection of PyeongChang’s bid. “We have seen great progress in the bid from the two previous bids,” commission chairwoman Gunilla Lindberg said. “We have also seen progress in Korean winter sports during the last four years.” Speaking at the IOC press conference following the inspection of PyeongChang and venues in Gangwon Province, Lindberg said “I must also mention the passionate support of Gangwon residents. During our site visits it has been wonderful to see so many people to show their support to bring the Olympic Movement to Korea.”31 Seven venues have been built since the previous bids, including ski jumping slopes, and biathlon and cross country skiing courses.3233 PyeongChang would be a compact Olympic Games,34 with less than 30 minutes from the main accommodation in Alpensia resort to the venues and 10 minutes between venues.35 German reporter Dietmar Gessner from Sport Bild said that "in Asia including Korea you can create more customers. You can make lots of money for winter sports. But in Europe, this is not the case anymore. There are world class facilities (in PyeongChang) that can meet the demands of a growing market. This is a very strong point for PyeongChang. Because I think within the IOC they are encouraging PyeongChang to bid again and again. I think PyeongChang has done very good work on its reputation inside the Olympic family. (I think) Everyone is very impressed the way of bid with professionalism."36 PyeongChang’s slogan is “New Horizons.” The bid's logo suggests the winter scenery of Pyeongchang with snow on the mountains; the curve implies the strong will to win with the curve symbolizing a snowboard and slope of winter sports.37 Notes ^ Feu-vert pour les Jeux d'hiver 2018 (French) ^ Annecy, candidate pour les Jeux d'hiver de 2018 Le Monde ^ a b http://www.gamesbids.com/eng/winter_olympic_bids/2018_bid_news/1216134777.html Application Deadline For 2018 Winter Olympics Looms - Who Will Bid? ^ a b "Annecy 2018 Bid Improved - IOC". GamesBids.com. http://www.gamesbids.com/eng/winter_olympic_bids/annecy_2018/1216135556.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ "Head of Annecy 2018 Winter Olympics bid resigns amicably". Usatoday.Com. 2010-12-12. http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/2010-12-12-head-annecy-bid-2018-winter-olympics-resigns_N.htm. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ [1] ^ Par Europe1.fr avec RĂŠmy Pierre. "Annecy 2018 : Grospiron démissionne". Europe1.fr. http://www.europe1.fr/Sport/Articles/Annecy-2018-Grospiron-demissionne-334985/. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ [2] ^ [3] ^ [4] AroundtheRings.com ^ "Annecy 2018 IOC Inspection - Day Three". GamesBids.com. http://www.gamesbids.com/eng/winter_olympic_bids/annecy_2018/1216135555.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ [5] ^ "Munich Invests In 2018 Olympic Bid Application". Gamesbids.com. http://www.gamesbids.com/cgi-bin/news/viewnews.cgi?category=1&id=1191697570. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ a b "Hamburg’s Olympic Bid Delayed Until 2030". Gamesbids.com. http://www.gamesbids.com/cgi-bin/news/viewnews.cgi?category=1&id=1196351720. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ Munich to bid for 2018 if Salzburg loses 2014 - mayor ^ "Germany’s Olympic Association Endorses A Munich 2018 Winter Bid". Gamesbids.com. http://www.gamesbids.com/cgi-bin/news/viewnews.cgi?category=1&id=1185283391. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ "Munich 2018 Takes Environmental Approach". Gamesbids.com. http://www.gamesbids.com/eng/winter_olympic_bids/munich_2018/1216134769.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ [6] ^ "ZDF Politbarometer" (in German). ZDF. 2011-01-14. p. 12. http://wahltool.zdf.de/Politbarometer/mediathekflash.shtml?2011_01_14.  ^ [7] ^ [8] ^ [9] ^ [10] ^ [11] ^ "Munich Launches 2018 Olympic Bid With New Logo, Website". Gamesbids.com. http://www.gamesbids.com/eng/winter_olympic_bids/munich_2018/1216134785.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ "Pyeongchang Will Bid Again For The 2018 Olympic Games". Gamesbids.com. http://www.gamesbids.com/cgi-bin/news/viewnews.cgi?category=1&id=1188786454. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ Pyeongchang Could Be Third Time Lucky GamesBids ^ "(강원) 국민 91% "동계오륜 평창 유치 찬성"" (in Korean). The Chosun Ilbo. 2009-12-23. http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2009/12/22/2009122201416.html.  ^ "Yu-na Backs PyeongChang's Bid for Winter Olympics". Koreatimes.co.kr. 2009-04-13. http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2010/03/136_43086.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ "IOC inspects PyeongChang venues". Koreatimes.co.kr. 2011-02-17. http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/sports/2011/02/136_81601.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ [12] ^ "IOC assures upgraded PyeongChang". Koreatimes.co.kr. 2011-02-20. http://koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/sports/2011/02/136_81729.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ "IOC 실사단 "진전된 평창을 봤다" - 1등 인터넷뉴스 조선닷컴". News.chosun.com. http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2011/02/20/2011022001257.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ "'S-N tensions won't affect PyongChang's bid'". Koreatimes.co.kr. 2011-02-18. http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/sports/2011/02/136_81643.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ "PyeongChang to submit bid file to IOC". Koreatimes.co.kr. http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/art/2011/01/136_79277.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ "PyeongChang: 'great potential in sports market growth'". Koreatimes.co.kr. 2011-02-18. http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/sports/2011/02/136_81679.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  ^ "Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Bid Logo Unveiled". Gamesbids.com. http://www.gamesbids.com/eng/winter_olympic_bids/pyeongchang_2018/1216134945.html. Retrieved 2011-03-04.  External links Annecy 2018 web site Munich 2018 web site Pyeongchang 2018 web site Preceded by Sochi Winter Olympics Host City XXIII Olympic Winter Games (2018) Succeeded by TBD 2022 v · d · eOlympic Games Sports · Medal tables · IOC · NOCs · Medalists · Symbols · Venues Summer Games 1896 · 1900 · 1904 · (1906)1 · 1908 · 1912 · 19162 · 1920 · 1924 · 1928 · 1932 · 1936 · 19403 · 19443 · 1948 · 1952 · 1956 · 1960 · 1964 · 1968 · 1972 · 1976 · 1980 · 1984 · 1988 · 1992 · 1996 · 2000 · 2004 · 2008 · 2012 · 2016 · 2020 · 2024 · 2028 Winter Games 1924 · 1928 · 1932 · 1936 · 19403 · 19443 · 1948 · 1952 · 1956 · 1960 · 1964 · 1968 · 1972 · 1976 · 1980 · 1984 · 1988 · 1992 · 1994 · 1998 · 2002 · 2006 · 2010 · 2014 · 2018 · 2022 1 Discounted ex post facto by the IOC; 2 Cancelled due to World War I.3 Cancelled due to World War II.