Just days after the nine cities bidding for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games handed in their bid applications to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), events are underway to help promote each city’s bid.
New York is now hosting the World Archery Championships, which also serves as a qualifier for the 2004 Athens Summer Olympic Games.
American IOC member Jim Easton, head of the international archery federation (FITA), is in New York for the event.
In an interview in the Newark Star Ledger Easton said although IOC members from countries bidding for the 2012 Games cannot vote, their roles are to talk to people about the bid and convince them that the venues are good.
When asked if the IOC planned to shortlist 2012 bid cities Easton said they probably won’t cut the list to three or four, but they might cut it to six or seven. He added there are just a lot of good cities bidding.
In Paris the 48-nations European Youth Olympics start next weekend, an opportunity for Paris to promote its 2012 bid.
Several of the proposed 2012 venues will be used during the youth Olympics and many IOC members will be present.
Next month the world athletics championships are being held in Paris.
And Moscow’s 2012 bid is getting a head start because the city is now hosting the Moscow-Utah Youth Summer Games.
Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov doesn’t hide the fact that he sees the success of those Games as a boost for Moscow’s 2012 bid.
International Olympic Committee Vice President Vitaly Smirnov, who called the Moscow-Utah competition an integral part of the Olympic movement, read a greeting from IOC President Jacques Rogge.
Utah will host the Moscow-Utah Youth Winter Games in February.
