Pyeongchang looks to live up to favourite tag

By Dirk Godder Jun 30, 2011, 13:31 GMT

Seoul/Pyeongchang - Pyeongchang may be considered the favourite to win the race to host the 2018 Winter Olympics ahead of rivals Munich and Annecy but the South Korean city is leaving nothing to chance after missing out twice previously.

The city lost to Vancouver, Canada, for the 2010 Winter Olympics and to the Russian resort of Sochi for the 2014 edition by just three and four votes, respectively.

'We have been preparing for this for 10 years and we can't afford to relax until voting day on July 6 in Durban,' said an optimistic but cautious Cho Yang-ho, chairman of the Pyeongchang bid committee, ahead of Wednesday's International Olympic Committee (IOC) decision.

The central theme of Pyeongchang's bid with its slogan 'New Horizons' is that granting the Winter Games to South Korea for the first time would spread the Olympic movement to new parts of the world. South Korea also sees the process as a national priority as the country looks to increase its sporting influence.

'We have a simple vision. We want to help promote the Olympic movement, and grow winter sports to new regions and connect with new audiences,' said Cho.

Pyeongchang's chances of success in the upcoming vote in South Africa have improved after the French resort of Annecy fell behind in preparations following the abrupt resignation of its bidding committee chief last December.

However, Pyeongchang's preparations also haven't been without problems, not least when regional governor Lee Kwang-jae was forced to step down in January of this year when the country's supreme court upheld a conviction for receiving illegal political funds.

Munich is now seen as the major threat to Pyeongchang as the Bavarian capital looks to become the first city to stage both summer and winter games.

Despite a strong German challenge, Cho remains optimistic that South Korea can become the first Asian country outside Japan to host a Winter Olympics.

'Bidding is like a marathon and you do not know what will happen,' he said.

President Lee Myung-bak is set to lead the South Korean delegation in Durban, which will also include representatives from all levels of government to demonstrate the level of commitment to the bid.

'Everyone is focused on our campaign, looking forward to the final presentations,' said a spokeswoman for the Pyeongchang bid committee ahead of the vote.

The IOC 2018 Evaluation Commission made its final on-site inspection of Pyeongchang in February of this year, noting the resort's 'very compact concept' and its significance in winter sports development throughout Asia.

Pyeongchang also finished top of the IOC's survey of public support for the bids with 87 per cent of the city's citizens backing the games. By comparison, Munich had 60 per cent support in the city and Annecy only 51 per cent.

National support is also higher in South Korea as a whole with 87 per cent behind the bid, compared to 56 per cent in Germany and 62 per cent in France.

But the Korean trump card remains the fact that staging the Winter Games in Pyeongchang could open up new markets for winter sports.

'I do have a feeling that things are going our way,' said Cho.

'The message we are sending to the IOC members is that with Pyeongchang 2018 is a huge opportunity to grow winter sports in Asia -a market with huge potential.'