The IOC Coordination Commission is “well pleased” with the progress of venue construction for the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics, according to a press release circulated by the POCOG organizing committee after the commission’s seventh visit to PyeongChang.
“We saw firsthand the progress of the construction projects,” the commission’s chair Gunilla Lindberg said at a news conference with PyeongChang 2018 President Heebeom Lee. “There is no doubt that the venues will be ready for the upcoming test events. My colleagues and I leave here more confident than ever that PyeongChang 2018 will deliver great Games.”
Lee also expressed satisfaction with the visit, calling it “a productive three days.”
The commission assessed every aspect of Games preparations during three days of venue visits and collaborative discussions with the PyeongChang 2018 Organising Committee. The organizing committee reported that, on average, new venues in PyeongChang and nearby Gangneung are 90 percent complete in advance of 26 test events scheduled between this November and April 2017.
“Based on thorough preparation, we will strive to provide the best of service to all participants and realize our goal of making the PyeongChang 2018 Games a Cultural Olympics, Environmental Olympics, Olympics for Peace and Economic Olympics, and pleasantly surprise the world with our performance,” said President Lee.
He also announced that PyeongChang 2018 will launch international ticket sales in conjunction with the one-year-to-go milestone celebration in February 2017.
Representatives from all seven international winter sports federations joined the discussions in PyeongChang, which focused on 10 areas: test events, sport, venues, legacy, Games services, full stadia, finance, accessibility, governance, and communications and engagement. The commission and POCOG held two plenary sessions and a series of side meetings devoted to specific topics such as athletes and National Olympic Committees; sport and IFs; and spectators. The IFs were particularly focused on preparations for test events involving their sports. The first test event, scheduled for 23-26 November, will be the FIS Snowboard Big Air World Cup. Snowboard Big Air will make its Olympic debut at PyeongChang 2018.
This story first appeared in the blog, The Sport Intern. The editor is Karl-Heinz Huba of Lorsch, Germany. He can be reached at ISMG@aol.com. The article is reprinted here with permission of Huba.