IOC Evaluation Commission Hails PyeongChang Progress

February 21, 2011

Gunilla Lindberg, chair of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) evaluation commission has praised the bid of South Korea’s PyeongChang’s to host the 2018 Winter Games after the 14-strong team of inspectors concluded a trip to the city.

Lindberg told a press conference on Saturday that PyeongChang had made “great progress” after having previously failed with bids for the 2010 and 2014 Olympics. The IOC team has already visited Annecy in France and is now visiting the final bidding city of Munich before publishing an evaluation report in May.

Lindberg stated: “We have seen great progress in the bid from previous two bids. It has been wonderful to see so many people showing their support to bring the Olympic Winter Games here to Korea.”

IOC inspectors also saw “very strong governmental support” for the bid and “passionate support” from residents, said Lindberg. PyeongChang bid committee chief Cho Yang-Ho added: “I think we have explained our preparations in detail.”

At a final round of presentations on Saturday, South Korean Prime Minister Kim Hwang-Sik proposed a special Olympic law to help PyeongChang speed up construction projects for the event. The IOC will announce the winning bid on July 6.