PARIS Oct 5 (Reuters) - France intend to get their strategy
right in Annecy's bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics after failing
twice to secure the summer Games, the chief executive of Annecy
2018 Edgar Grospiron told Reuters in an interview.
Paris, the favourites for the 2012 Games, lost out to London
after failing in their bid for the 2008 Olympics which went to
Beijing.
Grospiron, 41, a popular figure in France since winning a
moguls gold medal at the 1992 Albertville Games, said the
lessons of the unsuccessful Paris bid had been taken on board.
London edged the French capital after benefiting from Prime
Minister Tony Blair's behind-the-scenes work and the leadership
of bid head Seb Coe.
The Paris bid was led by mayor Bertrand Delanoe, not a
figure with a reputation in the sports world, and the Annecy
submission will be backed instead by prominent French sports
personalities.
"The lessons from Paris have been learned and our strategy
is different," Grospiron said.
"We need a lot of people supporting us. It means we have to
work closely with Jean-Claude Killy and Guy Drut but also with
all the influential people at the international level."
Killy, a triple alpine ski champion at the 1968 Grenoble
Winter Games, and Drut. the 1976 Montreal Games high hurdles
champion, are both members of the International Olympic
Committee (IOC).
Marie-Jose Perec, who won three Olympic titles including the
200-400 double at the 1996 Atlanta Games, is also supporting the
bid.
Grospiron said Annecy would need the backing of politicians
plus International Rugby Board president Bernard Lapasset and
UEFA president Michel Platini.
Annecy, who were asked by the IOC to change their original
plan to build 10 venues, are in a three-way battle with Munich
and Pyeongchang in the vote on July 6 next year.
"We know that we have not won anything yet but morale is
going up," Grospiron said. "Clearly, we almost caught up and
Annecy's situation is more comfortable than a few months ago."
Perec told Reuters she would play an active role in the bid.
"I could not imagine myself not supporting a French bid,"
she told Reuters. "I will go to the international bodies to show
them that everything has been done in Annecy to host the Games."
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right in Annecy's bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics after failing
twice to secure the summer Games, the chief executive of Annecy
2018 Edgar Grospiron told Reuters in an interview.
Paris, the favourites for the 2012 Games, lost out to London
after failing in their bid for the 2008 Olympics which went to
Beijing.
Grospiron, 41, a popular figure in France since winning a
moguls gold medal at the 1992 Albertville Games, said the
lessons of the unsuccessful Paris bid had been taken on board.
London edged the French capital after benefiting from Prime
Minister Tony Blair's behind-the-scenes work and the leadership
of bid head Seb Coe.
The Paris bid was led by mayor Bertrand Delanoe, not a
figure with a reputation in the sports world, and the Annecy
submission will be backed instead by prominent French sports
personalities.
"The lessons from Paris have been learned and our strategy
is different," Grospiron said.
"We need a lot of people supporting us. It means we have to
work closely with Jean-Claude Killy and Guy Drut but also with
all the influential people at the international level."
Killy, a triple alpine ski champion at the 1968 Grenoble
Winter Games, and Drut. the 1976 Montreal Games high hurdles
champion, are both members of the International Olympic
Committee (IOC).
Marie-Jose Perec, who won three Olympic titles including the
200-400 double at the 1996 Atlanta Games, is also supporting the
bid.
Grospiron said Annecy would need the backing of politicians
plus International Rugby Board president Bernard Lapasset and
UEFA president Michel Platini.
Annecy, who were asked by the IOC to change their original
plan to build 10 venues, are in a three-way battle with Munich
and Pyeongchang in the vote on July 6 next year.
"We know that we have not won anything yet but morale is
going up," Grospiron said. "Clearly, we almost caught up and
Annecy's situation is more comfortable than a few months ago."
Perec told Reuters she would play an active role in the bid.
"I could not imagine myself not supporting a French bid,"
she told Reuters. "I will go to the international bodies to show
them that everything has been done in Annecy to host the Games."
Watch Board Games Online
