윤강로의 스포츠세상 - Rocky YOON's Sport World

<故 사마란치 IOC 명예위원장 사망 1주기>

- 4월 21일 목요일, 고 사마란치 IOC 명예위원장의 사망 1주기이다.

- 21년간 IOC 위원장을 지냈던 고 사마란치는 2001년 명예위원장으로 물러났으며, 은퇴 며칠 후 수주간 입원했었으며 사망하기 전 때때로 병원신세를 진 바 있다.

- 은퇴 이후에도 스페인 스포츠계에서 활발히 활동했으며, 마드리드의 두 차례 2012, 2016 올림픽 비드에도 적극 참여한 바 있다. 

- 고 사마란치 명예위원장은 올림픽 무브먼트의 재정건전성을 개선한 데 큰 공로를 세운 인물로, 대회 방송권과 스폰서쉽을 발전시켰으며, IOC의 수익을 선수들의 훈련과 올림픽 참여를 위한 투자로 재분배하는 Olympic Solidarity 기관을 강화시켰다. 

Samaranch Anniversary

Thursday marks the one-year anniversary of the death of former IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch.

Samaranch stepped down as IOC president in 2001 after 21 years in the post, retaining the title of IOC honorary life president. Just days after his retirement, he was hospitalized for several weeks and had occasional hospital stays up until his death.

Even after his retirement, heart problems rarely slowed the sports administrator from Spain. He was active in Madrid’s bids for both the 2012 and 2016 Olympics.

Samaranch was also the man behind improving the financial health of the Olympic Movement, developing TV rights and sponsorship negotiations and strengthening Olympic Solidarity, the organ by which the IOC redistributes its revenue in order to ensure the training and participation of athletes at the Olympic Games.

Check back Thursday for an interview with Samaranch’s son, IOC member Juan Antonio Jr.

<8개 IF, Peace and Sport 가입>

- 지난 주 런던 SportAccord 행사에서 8개 IF개 Peace and Sport 가입 : 국제사이클연맹(UCI), 국제산악등산연맹, 국제3종경기연맹(ITU), 국제아마추어삼보연맹, 국제체조연맹(FIG), 국제세팍타크로연맹, 세계양궁협회(FITA), 국제코프볼연맹등이다.

- 이를 통해 IF들은 세계 저개발 지역의 평화증진, 사회통합 및 교육 활성화를 위해 이미 시작한 여러 사업들을 강화할 계획이다.

- Peace and Sport는 IF들에 네트워크 기반, 정치적 지지 및 운영 협력을 제공해 그들의 자원과 전문성이 세계 평화 구축 및 증진 활동에 통합되고 최고의 정치적 지원을 받을 수 있도록 할 것이다. 

<SportAccord: Eight IFs announce they join Peace and Sport Program>

During last week' SportAccord Convention in London, the International Cycling Union, International Mountaineering and Climbing Association, International Triathlon Union, International Amateur Sambo Federation, International Gymnastics Federation, International Sepak Takraw Federation, International Archery Federation and International Korfball Federation joined Peace and Sport.

Through their alliance, the International Federations (IFs) will underpin initiatives they have already undertaken to promote peace, social cohesion and education in disadvantaged areas of the world.

Peace and Sport provides IFs with a platform for networking, political support and operational co-operation through which their resources and expertise are integrated into global peace-building and peace-promotion projects, supported at the highest political level.

“Peace and Sport will help each IF to customise its sport in a way that suits local conditions, so that it can be practiced with very little equipment or adapted equipment,” read a statement from Peace and Sport.

“These sports will consequently become accessible to youngsters living in even the most disadvantaged environments. This innovative approach enables the values and virtues of sport to be diffused more widely and more effectively, especially to young people, regardless of their living conditions.”

<카타르와 더반의 2020 비드>

- ATR 소식통에 의하면 카타르는 2020보다 2024 비드에 나설 가능성이 있으며, 카타르에서 12월로 예정된 범아랍 경기대회 준비도 최근 여러 중동 국가들의 동요로 차질을 빚고 있음

- 카타르는 2022 월드컵 준비를 통해 개발이 촉진되고 있으며, 소식통은 카타르가 2014 월드컵 준비를 통해 2016 올림픽에 필요한 각종 경기장과 기반시설 조건들을 충족시킨 브라질의 선례를 따를 가능성이 있다고 전해

- 하지만 두바이와 아부다비가 여전히 2020 비드 가능성을 검토하고 있으므로, 중동 첫 올림픽 개최 타이틀을 빼앗기지 않기 위해 도하가 2020 유치에 나설 가능성도 여전히 존재한다고도 언급

- 더반 부시장, 7월 IOC 총회를 훌륭하게 치르고 이것이 올림픽 비드에 힘을 보탤 것이라고 자신

- 남아공 매체 보도에 의하면 그는 “더반은 (총회 참가자들을) 환대하고, IOC 집행위원회와 참가자들에게 더반의 올림픽 개최 능력을 보여줄 것”이라고 발언

- 또한 더반이 올림픽 개최를 위한 “최적의 날씨”를 갖추고 있다고 언급 

Qatar May Pass on 2020; Durban Confidence

Qatar Unsure About 2020

Qatar may decide to pass on a bid for the 2020 Olympics in favor of a pitch for the Games four years later, a source close to the Gulf state's Olympic committee tells Around the Rings.

The source also said Qatar's organization of the 12th Pan-Arab Games in December has been impacted by the current unrest in some Arab countries.

"I don't think they have a plan to try and organize the Olympic Games in 2020," the source told ATR Thursday. "I know they are interested in 2024. That is what I have heard all the time.

"But I am sure they have not made up their minds."

The staging of the FIFA World Cup in 2022 is accelerating the development of the oil-rich nation. An Olympic bid could complicate the timetable of the multi-billion dollar construction effort. 

The source, who is familiar with Qatar's aggressive approach to bidding for international sports events, believes the country's government may take its cue from Brazil. The South American nation is using the 2014 World Cup to put in place some venue and infrastructural requirements needed for the Rio 2016 Games.

"With all the infrastructure being built for the [2022 World Cup], it all makes sense to do something afterwards. They [Qatar] are spending so much money in the years leading up to it," he added.

With Dubai and Abu Dhabi still mulling a bid for 2020, he suggested Doha could still be forced to enter a bid amid fears the United Arab Emirates might winning hosting rights.

Such a scenario would mean Doha would have to scrap its plan to bid for another Games in the Middle East in 2024.

The petroleum-rich Gulf state lost out on the 2016 Olympics, with Rio de Janeiro winning hosting rights in 2009.

In December, IOC president Jacques Rogge welcomed another Olympic bid from the Middle East.

"There is an interest in certain Middle Eastern countries for the Games, and we would welcome their bids," he said in Muscat as the 2nd Asian Beach Games got underway.

Expressions of interest from the region brought a change to the IOC's 2020 bidding contest.

Doha’s 2016 bid fell short because the IOC was unhappy with its plan to hold the Games in October to avoid the blistering desert summer temperatures.

The IOC is now asking for NOCs to request submission of proposed dates, if nations want to stage the Games outside the normal period set by the IOC (July 15 and August 31). The IOC will respond to NOCs on these points by the end of August. The deadline for applicant city nominations from NOCs is Sept. 1.

In the coming months, Qatar's sports leaders are focusing much of their efforts on the 12th Pan-Arab Games.

With less than eight months until the multisport event, Qatar is currently facing significant challenges in its preparations.

The ATR source claimed that the toppling of governments in the region and unrest in other Arab countries was causing "major problems" in communications between organizers and some of the 22 participating NOCs such as Libya and Syria.

Durban 2020

Logie Naidoo, deputy mayor of Durban, says the city is confident it will put on a good IOC Session, which will be a boost for an Olympic bid.

“We will roll out the red carpet and convince the IOC board and conference members that Durban is capable of hosting the Olympics” he was quoted by South African media.

“We believe that we are on the right track and are fairly confident that we will pip the other cities and win the right to bid,” Naidoo said.

The Session is scheduled to take place July 6-9.

Durban must beat out the other South African cities that want to bid, including Cape Town, Johannesburg and Port Elizabeth.

Naidoo also said Durban has “perfect weather” for an Olympics.

<AP 인터뷰 : 2020로마 비드 리더의 발빠른 행보>

- 로마의 2020 올림픽 유치를 이끌고 있는 마리오 페스칸테 IOC 위원, 5700만 달러가 소요될 이 프로젝트에 대한 정치권의 지지를 확보하기 위해 의회 발의를 추진하는 등 발빠른 행보를 보이고 있다. 

- 그는 목요일 AP 인터뷰에서 “이는 매우 중요하다. 의회 발의가 통과되면 이의가 없는 것이다. 초정당적 지지다”라고 강조하였다.

- 로마는 아직까지 자국 NOC의 추천을 받은 유일한 2020 유치 희망도시다.

- 페스칸테는 동료 IOC 위원 프랑코 카라로의 경제성 검토 보고서가 긍정적인 결과를 확인하는 즉시 의회 발의를 추진할 계획이며, 시기는 6월로 예상하고 있다. 

- IOC 부위원장이기도 한 페스칸테는 정치권의 연합된 지지가 비드에 얼마나 중요한지 경험으로 알고 있다.

- 로마 유치 예산은 4천만 유로로, 이 중 6백만을 이미 확보했고 기업 후원을 통해 추가로 2천만 유로를 확보할 수 있으며, 또한 유치에 성공할 경우 대회 비용은 90억 유로가 될 것이라고 설명하였다.

- 로마의 비드는 1960년 올림픽 개최 당시 사용한 시설들 위주로 구성되어 있다.

- 페스칸테는 지난 달 주로마 일본대사의 말을 빌어 일본이 2020 비드를 하지 않을 것이라 말했지만 일본은 이를 반박했고, 이에 페스칸테는 “(대사의) 말에 대한 내 이해가 부족했던 것이라 하자. 하지만 그 때 나는 또한 만약 일본이 선택된다면 올림픽 무브먼트가 만족할 것"이라고도 했다. 로마의 막강한 경쟁상대를 단 한 곳 꼽으라면 도쿄”라고 해명하였다.

- 일본에 대한 동정표와 함께 2018 동계올림픽 개최지 선정 결과가 대륙안배 심리로 인해 2020 비드에 영향을 미칠 것으로 예상된다. 

- 하지만 페스칸테는 연속해서 유럽에서 열린 2004아테네-2006토리노, 2012런던-2014소치 등의 예를 들어 “(대륙안배) 원칙에도 예외는 있다”고 말했으며 이탈리아 IOC 위원들이 평창에 투표할지에 대해서는 언급 피하였다.

- “투표 전에 이탈리아의 동계연맹들과 상의해서 우리 선수들을 위한 최선의 기술적인 준비가 된 비드를 선택할 것”이라고 말하며 “가르미쉬 하면 동계스포츠가 생각난다”며 가르미쉬를 최고로 꼽았다.

AP Interview: Rome 2020 bid leader moving quickly

Rome is quickly moving forward with its candidacy for the 2020 Olympics, with bid leader Mario Pescante planning to submit a motion in parliament to secure political support for the $57 million campaign.

"This is essential," Pescante told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday. "If we have a parliamentary motion in place that's something you can't question. It's bipartisan."

Rome is the only city so far to be nominated by its national Olympic committee to bid for 2020. The host city will be chosen by the International Olympic Committee in 2013.

South Africa is expected to submit a bid from Durban. Other potential contenders include Madrid, Tokyo, Istanbul, Doha and Dubai.

Pescante's announcement comes two days after Premier Silvio Berlusconi indicated he likely won't seek re-election when his term ends in 2013. Rome Mayor Gianni Alemanno and Italian Olympic Committee president Giovanni Petrucci could also be out of office by the time of the 2013 vote.

Pescante said that as soon as fellow IOC member Franco Carraro's economic viability commission provides a positive report, he will present the motion in parliament, hopefully by June.

"I already have a parliamentary motion ready," he said.

Pescante, who is an IOC vice president, knows from experience how important a display of political cohesiveness is for a bid.

"In the first phase of the bidding process, there is a questionnaire with a key section regarding political consensus," he said.

Pescante also recalled what he learned after being brought in as a last-minute supervisor to ease political tensions ahead of the 2006 Turin Winter Games: "If you don't have unanimous support you can't do anything."

Rome is planning a —40 million ($57.6 million) budget for its bid, with —6 million ($8.6 million) secured so far. Pescante said a series of sponsorship deals with up to 10 national companies could bring in another —20 million ($28.8 million).

If Rome is awarded the games, Pescante said the Olympic budget would be —9 billion ($13 billion).

Rome's bid is centered around mostly existing venues used for the 1960 Games, notably the expansive Foro Italico complex that hosts the 80,000-seat Olympic Stadium, a newly built 10,500-seat tennis stadium and outdoor pools used for the 2009 swimming world championships.

Last month, Pescante said he was told by Japan's ambassador in Rome that Japan had decided not to pursue a 2020 bid following the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the country.

Japan denied that and is still considering a Tokyo bid.

"Let's just say that I understood him poorly," Pescante said Thursday. "But I also said that if Tokyo were to win, the Olympic world would be pleased. If I had to choose one city to beat Rome I would choose Tokyo."

A sympathy factor for Tokyo could be decisive.

"That definitely counts for a lot in Olympic circles, more for solidarity than sympathy," Pescante said.

There is also a feeling that the July vote for the 2018 Winter Games between Annecy, France; Munich; and Pyeongchang, South Korea; could have an effect on 2020, with the IOC perhaps reluctant to award two consecutive games to one continent.

"In theory that's the way it should be, but let me provide a few examples," Pescante said, noting that Turin followed the 2004 Athens Games and next year's London Olympics will be followed by Winter Games in Sochi, Russia — all European hosts.

"So there are exceptions to this rule," Pescante said, declining to say whether Italian and European IOC members will vote for Pyeongchang.

"I will consult with (the Italian) winter sports federation before voting and choose the bid with the best technical setup for our athletes," Pescante added, indicating Munich's Alpine resort of Garmisch-Partenkirchen as the best choice. "Garmisch is known for its winter sports. When you say Garmisch you think winter sports."

<안시, ‘진정성"(Authenticity)을 캐치프레이즈로 사용> 

- 안시가 슬로건처럼 자주 사용하는 ‘진정(Authenticity)’이란 단어가 또 사용되었다.

   - 프랑스 알프스 도시는 뮌헨과 평창에 대항하기 위한 무기로 알프스 그 자체를 꺼내들었다.

   - Charles Beigbeder는 Chamonix에서 1924년에 첫 번째 동계올림픽이 열렸으며, 동계올림픽과 젊은 세대들을 연계하기 위한 새로운 비전이 필요하다고 강조하였다. 

   - PT 영상도 진정성(authenticity)이 가득한 땅, 진정한(authentic) 환영 등으로 구성하였다.

   - Denis Masseglia NOC 위원장은 프랑스의 올림픽에 대한 염원을 말하며, 알프스를 재창조하기 위해 동계올림픽의 힘을 빌려야한다고 설명하였다.

   - Jean-Luc Rigaut 안시 시장은 올림픽 반대자들을 의식한 듯, 안시 주민의 약속을 강조하였다.

   - Beigbeder는 어제 환경단체와 건설적인 대화를 가졌다고 말하며, 대중적 지지를 확인하기 위해 5월 하순에서 6월초에 여론조사를 다시 할 것이라고 말했다.

   - Chantal Jouanno 체육장관은 항상 선두가 승리하지는 않으며, 모든 후보도시들은 스포츠가 직면한 도전을 이해할 필요가 있다며, 진정한 글로벌 비전이 필요함을 역설하였다.

   - 그녀는 프랑스 정부의 강력한 지지를 확인하며, Nicolas Sarkozy 프랑스 대통령의 강한 지지를 강조하였다.

 

   <'Authenticity' the Watchword again in Annecy 2018's Presentation at SportAccord>

'Authenticity' was once again the most-used term in Annecy 2018’s presentation of its bid to host the 2018 winter Olympic Games at the SportAccord convention in London this morning.

The French Alpine city appears to have decided that its most potent weapons in the battle against Munich in Germany and PyeongChang in Korea to stage the games are the Alps themselves, the cradle of winter sports, and France’s track record of having hosted the inaugural winter Olympics in Chamonix (also one of the centres of the Annecy bid) in 1924 and subsequent well-received 

games in Grenoble in 1968 and Albertville (also located close to Annecy) in 1992.

However, perhaps mindful of appearing backward-looking, Charles Beigbeder, the bid’s president, told the delegates: “Chamonix staged the first games in 1924, but the world was very different then. The winter games and winter sports have grown incredibly, and now we need a new vision, reinvigorating the connection between the winter games and young people worldwide.”

Yesterday, when looking ahead to the presentation, Beigbeder told reporters: “We want to show how spectacular the bid is, but not too much. We have only 20 minutes. We want to use the scenery, show some of that, but we don’t want the presentation to be a tourist advertisement.”

The presentation made use of two videos, one introducing and describing the games locations and venues, and the other a more evocative one featuring the sun rising over Annecy’s lake, ethereal piano music and descriptions of the area as “a land of sports and champions,” and “a land rich in authenticity” that will offer “an authentic welcome” to visitors, if Annecy is chosen to stage the games.

Beigbeder introduced Denis Masseglia, the president of the French national Olympic committee, and raised a laugh when he said that Masseglia would speak in French, the second of the IOC’s official languages, because it’s “good practice for you in London as you prepare to host the Olympic family” for next year’s Olympic Games.

Masseglia spoke of the ambition of France to host another Olympics (the memory of Paris’ defeat by London to host next year’s games still rankles), saying: “We want to mobilise the formidable power of the winter Olympics to reinvent the mountains.”

Masseglia was followed onto the podium by Annecy’s mayor, Jean-Luc Rigaut, who, perhaps in an effort to dispel the actions of a small group of local protesters opposed to the games, spoke of “the commitment of the residents of Annecy” to hosting the games.

Beigbeder said yesterday that the bid has had “constructive dialogue” with green activists, but added that there is another group that is “against globalisation,” and that “we don’t share their view.”

He added that the bid plans a new poll of residents to gauge the level of public support, saying: “We’re trying to assess the best time – probably the second half of May or early June.”

Last on stage was Chantal Jouanno. The French sports minister, who also raised a laugh with a reference to London’s victory over Paris in the race to host the 2012 Olympics. She said: “London taught us two things: that favourites don’t always win, and how to resolve the challenges facing

sport.”

She assured delegates that the French government “totally supports” the bid, a claim that was underlined yesterday by Beigbeder, who said of Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president: “He loves sport, he’s really a fan. He strongly believes in the bid.”

Jouanno, concluded with a commitment that France would “use our winter sports experience to stage games that connect the world through tradition and innovation.”

<안시, 지속적인 헌신을 강조>

- 안시 PT는 많이 개선되었다는 평가가 나왓다. 

   - Guy Drut IOC 위원은 올림픽 무브먼트를 위한 지속적인 헌신을 주장하였다.

   - Charles Beigbeder는 첫 번째 올림픽이 1924년 Chamonix에서 열렸음을 강조하며, “알프스의 심장에서 진정한 올림픽“의 메시지를 전달하였다.

   - Denis Masseglia 프랑스 NOC 위원장과 Jean-Luc Rigaut 안시 시장은 지역 경제의 촉매로써 올림픽을 부각시켰다.

   - 뮌헨의 빠른 속도감의 영상에 비해 안시의 영상은 편안함을 제공하나, 전달하고 자 하는 바가 뚜렷하지 않았다.

   - Chantal Jouanno 체육장관은 표류하던 PT를 바로 잡는 역할을 하였다. 

   - 최소한 안시는 Arsenal 매니저 Arsene Wenger를 사로잡는 데 성공했으며, 그는 “안시 PT가 훌륭하고, 모던하며, 역동적인 에너지를 느꼈다“라고 소감을 피력하였다.

<2018 Olympics bids: ANNECY runs to catch up with pledge of 'lasting commitment'>

LONDON, Apr 07: SportAccord was the stage for a thematic confrontation between the 2018

Winter Games bidders. Here SportsFeatures.com reacts to all three: continuing with Annecy:

The French presentation – a vast improvement on previous efforts – was led off by IOC member and former Olympic champion Guy Drut who insisted on his country’s “lasting commitment to serve the Olympic movement.”

Bid ceo Charles Beigbeder preached the message of “authentic Games at the heart of the mountains,” recalling the legacy link that secondary hub Chamonix had hosted what is now considered the first Winter Games back in 1924.

Subsquently French Olympic president Denis Masseglia and Annecy Mayor Jean-Luc Rigaut – viewing the Games as “a catalyst for regional development” - were supported by an excellent graphics video setting out the map of the bid with a clarifying English-language voice-over.

Annecy’s filmic efforts provided a pleasant and informative contrast to Munich’s high-speed videos which had gone before. But the focus of the bid was lost in an over-long tourism film and had to be regained by Chantal Jouanno, the Sports Minister.

Jouanno had played a crucial role in putting the Annecy bid back on track but the presentation dipped dramatically again when she introduced former Olympic champion and IOC member Jean-Claude Killy . . . who appeared only on screen.

At least Annecy had a high-profile supporter in the audience in Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger. Afterwards, he praised the bid and its presentation as “good, modern, dynamic, with movement and energy.”

Annecy’s bid has come a long way but is still running to catch up. Jouanno, challenged on a complex history, Jouanno responded defiantly: “It’s never too late.”

- 평창, 5억불의 올림픽 투자 프로그램(Drive the Dream), 뮌헨, 독일 스폰서들의 탄탄한 재정 능력, 안시, 알프스의 전통을 역설하였다.

   - IOC 집행위 Craig Reedie(영국)는 독일은 효율성, 평창은 시장성, 안시는 공헌을 잘 강조했다고 평가하였다.

   - 평창은 2010, 2014 때 아깝게 졌지만, 동계올림픽을 아시아 신시장으로 이끌려는 메시지를 전달하였다.

   - 뮌헨은 1972년 하계올림픽에 이어, 하계와 동계를 최초로 모두 유치하려는 도시의 메시지를 전달하였다.

   - 안시는 첫 번째 개최지 Chamonix(1924년 제1회 동계올림픽)와 알프스에서 진정한 village-style 올림픽의 메시지를 전달하였다.

   - 평창은 한국은 13번째 경제대국이며, 아시아는 올림픽 스포츠와 스폰서를 위한 거대 잠재 시장 임에도 불구 동계올림픽이 아시아에서는 단지 일본에서 2번 열렸음을 설명하였다.

   - 조양호 위원장은 “올림픽 무브먼트를 위한 역사적인 선택과 기회를 통해 6억 5천만 젊은 세대들에게 새로운 가능성과 동계스포츠를 접하게 해주길 원함“ 이라고 밝혔다.

   - 정병국 문체부장관은 5억불의 "Drive the Dream" 펀드를 조성해 동계스포츠 양성을 약속하였다.

   - 올림픽을 유치하면 평창은 NOC 방문에 180만불, IF 전문가 방문에 105만불 투자 의향을 표명하였다. 

   - 한국은 14억불의 알펜시아 리조트 건설 등 10년의 약속 이행과 compact Olympic venue를 강조하였다.

   - 뮌헨은 스폰서십을 강조하며, BMW의 영업담당 Ian Robertson는 7개 IF의 스폰서 중 50%를 독일기업이 제공하며, 올림픽 유치 시 더 많은 지원이 있을 것을 시사하였다.

   - Katarina Witt는 올림픽 흥행을 약속하였다.

   - Thomas Bach는 1936년 Garmisch-Partenkirchen 올림픽 이후 80년이 지났기에, 독일이 올림픽을 유치할 때가 왔음을 피력하였다.

   -  Garmisch-Partenkirchen 토지 문제에 대한 언급은 없었다.

   - 독일 내무장관 Hans-Peter Friedrich는 정부의 지원과 73%의 대중적지지를 강조하였다.

- 안시의 경우, Charles Beigbeder유치위원장이 올림픽 무브먼트가 살아있는 알프스의 풍부한 유산을 즐길 수 있는 진정한 올림픽을 부각시켰다.

   - 프랑스 체육장관 Chantal Jouanno는 항상 선두가 승리하지는 않으며, 모든 후보도시들은 스포츠가 직면한 도전을 이해할 필요가 있다고 하면서, 진정한 글로벌 비전이 필요함을 역설하였다.

Bid cities for 2018 Games make key presentations

LONDON—Pyeongchang pledged a $500 million Olympic investment program, Munich played up the financial strength of German sponsors and Annecy pushed its French Alpine traditions as the three cities bidding for the 2018 Winter Games pitched their case Thursday to a key international audience.

Three months before the IOC vote, the bid teams made 20-minute presentations at the SportAccord conference, a convention attended by hundreds of Olympic and sports federations officials from around the world.

The speeches and videos were an important warmup for next month's formal presentations to International Olympic Committee members in Lausanne, Switzerland. The IOC will select the host city by secret ballot at its session July 6 in Durban, South Africa.

IOC executive board member Craig Reedie of Britain said all three bidders helped their cause Thursday, and Annecy—widely considered the outsider—had stepped up its game.

"You had German efficiency and order, a very clear message on the market from Pyeongchang and a surprisingly elegant and distinguished contribution from Annecy," Reedie said in an interview. "It's a much better race that many in the IOC thought it would be six months ago. The two perceived front-runners have developed extremely well and the improvement in Annecy is marked."

Pyeongchang, which is making its third successive bid after narrow defeats for the 2010 and 2014 Olympics, is considered the favorite as it makes its case for taking the Winter Games to a new market in Asia.

Munich, which hosted the 1972 Olympics, is seeking to become the first city to stage both the summer and winter games. Munich says it's time to bring the Winter Games back to Germany

after an absence of 80 years.

Annecy says it can offer "authentic" village-style games in the heart of Europe's most popular winter sports region, including the site of the first Winter Olympics in 1924 in Chamonix.

Pyeongchang, which went third in the presentations and drew the largest crowd, said South Korea has the world's 13th largest economy and Asia represents a huge potential for Olympic sports and sponsors. The Winter Olympics have been held only twice in Asia and both times in Japan.

"This is a historic choice and a historic chance for the Olympic movement," bid leader Cho Yang-ho said. "We want to give 650 million young people in new markets the opportunity and the access to enjoy winter sport."

South Korean Sports and Culture Minister Choung Byoung-gug announced that the government would invest $500 million to help promote winter sports and develop athletes in Korea from 2012-18. The "Drive the Dream" fund would be used to upgrade and build new winter sports facilities and training centers.

Pyeongchang said, if it gets the games, it would spend $1.8 million dollars to pay for visits by national Olympic committee officials from 2012-17 and $1.05 million for trips by international federation experts.

The South Koreans said they had kept their promises to the IOC over nearly 10 years of bidding, including the completion of the $1.4 billion Alpensia ski resort, and claimed they offer the most compact Olympic venue layout in Winter Games history.

Prominently featured in a Pyeongchang video was Olympic figure skating champion Kim Yu-na, one of 14 South Korean medalists at the 2010 Vancouver Games. Appearing on a practice rink, Kim said she represented the dream of young athletes in South Korea and Asia.

Munich presented first and, in a new twist to its campaign, focused on Germany's record as a leader in sponsorship of winter sports. Ian Robertson, BMW's head of sales and marketing, said German companies fund 50 percent of the revenues of the seven winter Olympic sports federations.

Taking the Olympics to Munich, he said, "would of course encourage them to stay on for decades and even increase their support."

"That will mean much greater winter sports sponsorship everywhere and a much stronger Olympic movement as a result," he said.

Katarina Witt, the two-time figure skating gold medalist who chairs the Munich bid, said Germany would provide sold-out venues in a country steeped in winter sports tradition and experience.

"We are not just promising full stadia," she said. "We guarantee full stadia."

Thomas Bach, the IOC executive board member who oversees the Munich bid effort, said it was time for Germany to host the Winter Games for the first time since Garmisch-Partenkirchen in 1936.

"We have not hosted an Olympic Winter Games in more than 80 years," he said. "That's 10 generations come and gone without a games. ... This is the right moment for Munich."

There was no mention of the current controversy in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, which would host the Alpine ski events in 2018. Some landowners have refused to give up their land for the Olympics, and a referendum on the bid will be held in the town on May 8.

German Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich assured the delegates of the government's full backing for the bid and said public support has risen by 25 percent to 73 percent.

Annecy's presentation featured new leader Charles Beigbeder, a French businessman who stepped in after Edgar Grospiron resigned in January in frustration over the bid budget.

Beigbeder promised "an authentic games in the heart of the mountains" that would reunite the "rich heritage of the Alps with the Olympic Movement."

The videos played heavily on the scenery of Mont Blanc and included historic footage from the 1924 Chamonix Olympics. The Chamonix area would host most of the ski events in 2018.

French Sports Minister Chantal Jouanno drew laughs when she made a reference to Paris' defeat to London in the vote for the 2012 Summer Games.

"It is a great pleasure to be here in London—a city that, in the sporting context, has taught us French two things: That favorites don't always win. And that any bidding city must understand the challenges sport faces ... and offer a true global vision to resolve them," she said.

Notable again for his absence from the presentation was Jean-Claude Killy, the French ski great and IOC member. He appeared in a video instead.