Austria, S. Korea, Russia finalists for '14 Olympics
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Paxton Fettel
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- Mar 3, 2006
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what the hell is Sochi doing there? a city on the coast of the black sea. isn't it a little too hot to host the Winter Olympics?
Kaizer
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Krasnodraskiy Kray alone has the same square as Austria, for example. At one side there is palms, yachts etc and sea .. At another - mountains, snow, etc.. And it's very popular place in Russia... few hours and you are on the coast with palms around, few hours and you are on skis in mountains...DTM_17 said:
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Jaca in Spain is apparently a winter resort, and the locals have a passion for winter sports apparently. I think its tough to dismiss it so easily, just because it isn't a traditional "winter locale." Even California hosted a Winter Olympics once.go kim johnsson 514 said:
I would also wager that South Korea will get the games. They barely lost in the bid to get the 2010 games. Furthermore, I think that the IOC may want to pursue a continental rotation system, like FIFA employs when deciding where to place World Cups.
1994: Europe
1998: Asia
2002: North America
2006: Europe
2010: North America
2014: ???
If Korea makes a strong bid, I think they will get it. If this is the case, then I think the NHL would make its final appearance during the 2010 Olympics. However, to be honest, if Canada or the United States are successful in Vancouver, I could see them going back to the Olympics. Much of the interest in international hockey in North America depends on the success of Canada/USA, and likewise, much of the interest the NHL has for international competition hinges on the results of those two nations. After 2002, people in Canada were excited to see Canada play. After the most recent games, I get a sense that more people are much more passionate in their NHL teams (although the lockout may have intensified that feeling). If Canada wins the gold in Vancouver, I think there will be a renewed sense of enthusiasm for participating at the Olympics.
I just hope that the NHL doesn't start picking and choosing which Olympics it wants to participate in. If they don't go to 2014, I hope they don't go to 2018. In order to give the tournament some legitimacy, it needs to be played in regular intervals, and not to the NHL's liking.
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Shootmaster_44
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This is a serious question as funny as it sounds. Are there any places in South America, Africa or Australia that would have the right climate to stage a Winter Games? If there is I could see that becoming a major priority for the IOC before returning to other continents.
South America : Definatly. Places like Chile, and Argentina definatly have areas that are cold enough for a Winter games. Would be great exposure for Ice Hockey in place where I dare say few people even know about the sport.
Africa : No. Thanks to global warming the one place with Snow/Ice/Glaciers is melting. Not to mention they don't have the infestructure anyways.
Australia : When Australia is mentioned they probably mean the Oceania area, which New Zealand is a part of. New Zealand definatly does have the right climate, with sky resorts and some Winter Sports, etc.
I fairly sure some parts of Australia do get snow, but I doubt it is enough for the Olympics.
As for NHL players continuing to play in the Olympics, I think the reduced enthusiasm was much more due to the fact the games were on at god-awful times. Who the hell wants to wake up at 5 am to watch a game?
Also I'd agree that if Canada wins in 2010, there will definatly be a push to continue the NHL's participation.
Shootmaster_44
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Yeah by Australia I meant Oceania. I've never known the correct term for that general area as I've heard it both ways.
I wonder why there are never serious bids from Chile, Argentina or New Zealand? It would almost be a slam dunk for them if they bid for a games. It would also be better for the NHL, as I just realized the answer to my own question. Due to the reversal of the seasons in the Southern Hemisphere the Winter Games in that part of the world would be staged during the NHL offseason in summer.
I'm not totally sure but for a fair period of time Chile was ruled by a dictator (Pinochet), that might have had something to do with it. And while it is one of the richest South American countries, perhaps it wasn't rich enough?
As for Argentina, there was the Fakland Island war against the U.K., a big economic depression, etc.
And beyond that, I'm not so sure Winter Sports currently have all that much participation in either country. Still though I wouldn't be shocked to see the Winter Olympics show up there sooner rather than later.
In New Zealand's case, they don't really have that large of a population, so perhaps that is a barrier (only 4.3 million people). Again though I'd be suprised if they don't get the Olympics at some point.
Chileiceman
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In Chile, beyond the rich class, there is no interest in winter sports. The only place cold enough would be someplcae way down south, but the population is very low there, and it is hard to get to.
There are no arenas whatsoever in Chile, no bobsledding track, no ski jump, and not very much money in the olympic federation. I really dont see it happening.
The problem is, if the OG are to be held in the Southern hemesphere it will have to be in something like late July-August...Is it a problem really?
Chileiceman
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Haute Couture
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Don't rule out Sochi.. It's a resort town, yes, but it snows there during winter.. And there's the small mountain range called the Caucasus Mountains that are somewhere in the city's vicinity.
There are a few things that can scare people away from Sochi, though... The infrastructure is not there yet - and probably won't even start the building process until the official Olympic Games confirmation. Therefore - and the same was with Moscow's bid for Summer Olympics and Russia's bid for Euro Soccer tournament 2010 - the plan, while ambitious and very impressive, was almost entirely theoretical. Also, there's the proximity to Chechnya that scares people off - but the again, people were afraid of Athens a few years ago and it turned out to be fine. Finally, there could be a question of the visa-attainability for thousands of fans..
There are a few things that can scare people away from Sochi, though... The infrastructure is not there yet - and probably won't even start the building process until the official Olympic Games confirmation. Therefore - and the same was with Moscow's bid for Summer Olympics and Russia's bid for Euro Soccer tournament 2010 - the plan, while ambitious and very impressive, was almost entirely theoretical. Also, there's the proximity to Chechnya that scares people off - but the again, people were afraid of Athens a few years ago and it turned out to be fine. Finally, there could be a question of the visa-attainability for thousands of fans..
Kap-the-Head
Registered User
I heard that because Sochi does not have any facilities at the moment could actually benefit in its bid for OG, since, if chosen, city would build all brand new infrastructure, instead of using old facilities. I believe, that was one of the reasons Moscow did not get summer OG, because, in their bid, they relied on infrastructure that was build for 1980 OG.
GKJ
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- Feb 27, 2002
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Actually, the Athens games there was major issues with the proximity to various war-torn countries. Security was a massive issue that they had to spend tons of money on and it almost made them lose the games entirely because within only a few months some of the venues were far from finished and they had to spend even more money on labor to get them done.
It was also an issue with the 96 bid. Athens was supposed to be a shoe in because of the 100th anniversary of the modern games, but at the time the wars in Yugoslavia were going and fear of it expanding into a Balkan war steered votes away from Athens.
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