Final push

Munich's bid committee for the 2018 Winter Games made a presentation to the International Olympic Committee at the IOC's headquarters in Lausanne on Wednesday.

The presentation was the last chance for Munich's bid committee, along with the bid committees from Annecy, France, and Pyeongchang, South Korea, to have the ear of IOC members before they vote on 2018's host city, on July 6 in Durban, South Africa.

While the IOC is careful not to show any favorites leading up to the actual host city vote, observers believe Pyeongchang has a slight advantage over the other two candidates, because they are both competing for the third time in a row.

But Munich, which hosted the summer Olympics in 1972, is still very much a contender.

"I had a good feeling from the outset, but this presentation brought us a good step forward," said Thomas Bach, the German Olympic Committee president and IOC vice president.

Prominent support

Munich's 45-minute pitch to the IOC was led by bid-chair and former Olympic ice skating great Katarina Witt, and also featured Olympic biathlon champion Magdelena Neuner.

Earlier on Wednesday, German President Christian Wulff confirmed that he would be on hand for the final host city vote in South Africa.

The Munich bid committee was bolstered during the presentation by the fact that it has put a local land-use controversy behind it as the bid enters the home stretch.

Munich's bid involves a two park concept: some of the events would be held in the city of Munich itself, while others would be held in the Alpine resort town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, to the south.

Some land owners in Garmisch-Partenkirchen were reluctant to sign over their land for use for the Olympic Games. However, voters in the town gave their support to the bid in a referendum last week, and the landowners have since yielded to allow their land to be used.

Author: Matt Zuvela (Reuters, dpa)
Editor: Nancy Isenson