The Associated Press reports the International Olympic Committee (IOC) says it will speed up rulings about whether cities bidding for the Summer Olympic Games can hold the Games outside the traditional months of July and August.
According to IOC guidelines the Summer Games must be held between July 15 and August 31, but in 2008, Doha, Qatar proposed that the 2016 Summer Games be held in October to escape the summer heat.
Doha’s request was turned down and then omitted from the short list of finalists, reports AP.
IOC executive director Gilbert Felli says a decision will now be made sooner in the bid process. He also says proposals from southern hemisphere cities to stage the Winter Games will through an early vetting process.
Meanwhile despite a final decision on seven new events to be included in the 2014 Winter Games being delayed until 2011, the IOC said it was looking “favourably” at their introduction, reports the BBC.
The events include women’s ski jumping, ski and snowboard slopestyle, ski halfpipe, mixed biathlon relay and team events in figure skating and luge.
IOC spokesman Mark Adams said, “the atmosphere was very positive. I think we would characterize it to say that the executive board is looking favourably on all of those for inclusion”.
Felli said, “we are trying to understand the progress made since the first application, and see if more people are practising the sport”.
