IOC former vice-president Dick Pound said Toronto’s 2008 bid should “knock the socks off” a technical evaluation committee when it makes a crucial visit to Toronto next March.
Pound said Toronto has a great bid and “it’s a great city and has a great site. The waterfront has tremendous potential”.
A Sun Media reporter who interviewed Pound in Switzerland said Pound’s words were of special significance because until now he has not made any strong public statements about Toronto’s bid or the competing bids from the other four finalists.
Pound added “when Toronto first submitted its bid, it did not play out as well on paper as it was in reality. So the IOC is really interested in seeing the technical evaluation report”.
“Toronto has some advantages that some people may not realize. Because it was a candidate 10 years ago, there is a residual knowledge on the part of some IOC members which helps Toronto” said Pound.
Toronto’s pitch is built around the fact that 26 of the Olympic sports would take place within six km of each other.
