Beijing makes its final Olympic pitch
Print Edition
BEIJING and Almaty yesterday made their final bids for the 2022 Winter Olympics with China’s basketball star Yao Ming countering Kazakhstan’s prime minister in the battle to sway decision-makers ahead of today’s vote.
China is the strong favorite in the smallest contest for a Winter Olympics in four decades, but the Kazakh city has gained ground in recent months with its compact Games plan and the promise of “real” snow. Most of China’s will be made by machines.
A total of 86 members of the International Olympic Committee will vote today in Kuala Lumpur after final presentations by the Asian rivals.
“Both candidate cities, we wish all the very best for tomorrow and thank them already now for their great contribution to the Olympic movement,” IOC President Thomas Bach said as he opened yesterday’s special session.
Former Houston Rockets center Yao will be one of the stars of the Chinese show for the IOC today, promising to spread the appeal of winter sports in the country.
Beijing, which hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics, wants to become the first city to stage both the summer and winter Games.
“We offer the proven capability to host the Games and much more: the chance for winter sports to reach millions of new people and grow into the future,” said Beijing’s Mayor Wang Anshun.
Kazakhstan’s Prime Minister Karim Massimov will lead the former Soviet republic’s call to claim a place on the world map. Almaty is making its second bid to get the Winter Olympics.
“I’m talking to IOC members, I believe we have a good chance to make it happen,” he said.
Six cities were originally in the race to follow 2018 hosts Pyeongchang in South Korea.
However, after Russia spent more than US$50 billion to stage the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Oslo, Stockholm, Krakow in Poland and Lviv in Ukraine all withdrew because of cost fears and local politics.
Beijing is considered a “safe bet” by IOC members because of its experience from 2008.
Some venues from 2008, including the Bird’s Nest national stadium, will be used again.
China’s weakness is the distance between venues — Zhangjiakou which will host the Nordic skiing and ski jumping events is 200 kilometers from Beijing — and its lack of snow.
All of Almaty’s venues are within 30km of the former capital.
Almaty, which has plentiful snow and dramatic mountain scenery, has also made veiled digs at China’s reliance on artificial snow flakes, with its campaign titled “Keeping It Real.”
Bach said he was not disappointed that there are only two candidates left, despite it being the smallest number in the final vote since Lake Placid in the United States won the 1980 Winter Games unopposed.
“We had just three candidates for the last Games. Due to geographical reasons there are only three continents that can organize a Winter Games,” he said.
Bach has passed reforms aiming to bring down the cost of hosting the Games.
Almaty has estimated a budget of US$3.6 billion and said 70 percent of the venues are already built. Beijing has said it will spend US$3.1 billion, but that does not include US$5 billion for a high-speed train from Beijing to Zhangjiakou.
The announcement of the winner will be made about 5:30pm Beijing time today.
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