2016 Golf Course Architect; Ukrainian, Russian Presidents Visit Sochi; 2016 Coins

The ATR Olympic Newsdesk

Is Proudly Sponsored By

Gangwon Province

Rio Golf Update

An architect for the 2016 Olympic golf course will be selected by the end of the year, Around the Rings understands.

Ty Votaw, vice president for the International Golf Federation tells ATR "We'll have an architect selected by the end of the year barring any unforeseen circumstances."

The comment came in response to criticisms from golfing legend Greg Norman who said the process for selecting a course architect and finalizing the design is taking too long.

Votaw added that the process is "probably taking a little longer than we anticipated. I would agree with Greg's assessment in terms of the time frame, and we conveyed that same information to him, which is why we agree with him."

Following his professional golfing career, Norman turned his attention to becoming a golf course architect.

He was quoted by Canadian media saying a decision on who will design the course needs to come "by the end of this year".

"Part of the charter is they've got to have a tournament there in 2015, a test run, right? To get to 2015, 12 months of environmental issues. It takes time, and time is running out -- 2012 next year. You basically only have 2 1/2 years to build a golf course and grow it in. It's a big effort."

Rio de Janeiro currently does not have an Olympic-caliber golf course. However, a few weeks ago, Rio 2016 selected Riserva Uno as the site where a course will be built. Currently the venue is a plot of land next to a residential development.

Votaw was in Atlanta for meetings ahead of the PGA Championships, the final major on the PGA Tour. He is Executive Vice President for the Tour.

Ukraine President Learning from Sochi 2014

Viktor Yanukovich, president of the Ukraine, says he will study Sochi’s plans for the 2014 Olympics while preparing for his country’s 2022 Olympic bid.

Yanukovich was in Sochi on Thursday for a diplomatic meeting with Dmitry Medvedev, Russia’s president.

Ukraine is currently studying a 2022 bid, with the project named "Olympic Hope 2022".

A statement from Yanukovich’s office said he would pay special attention to "the development of sports infrastructure".

"Our goal is to have such facilities in Ukraine," Yanukovych said after visiting Sochi’s Olympic Park.

The statement added Yanukovich feels the 2014 Games "will be an outstanding event, and that the infrastructure built for them will serve future generations of Russians and the whole global sports community."

Stamps and Coins for Rio

Carlos Arthur Nuzman, President of Rio 2016 and the Brazilian Olympic Committee, has begun discussionsfor the special coins and stamps to commemorate the Games.

Nuzman was in Brasilia, Brazil’s capital, on Wednesday with Gerhard Heiberg, chairman of the IOC marketing commission. They met with Alexandre Tombini, president of the Central Bank, to talk about a coin program, then with Wagner Pinheiros, president of Correios, the Brazilian, Post Office, to discuss a special series of stamps.

Robert Huot and David Maiden, members of the IOC commission on philately, numismatics and memorabilia, also attended the meetings.

According to the 2008 Olympic Marketing Fact File produced by the IOC, coin and stamp programs are longstanding traditions. "The difference between the coin's retail value and the production cost remains as a profit to the issuing government. Governments that issue Olympic coins have often contributed some or all of the (difference) to the cost of staging the Olympic Games or developing the nation's Olympic team."

The 2008 Olympic Marketing Fact File said that since 1951, more than 350 million Olympic coins have been sold, raising more than $1.1 billion for the issuing authorities and the Olympic Family. Olympic coin programsthroughout modern times have provided an estimated $700 million for the OCOGs, $20 million for the NOCs and $21 million for the IOC.

Olympic philatelic programs, the IOC says, have raised awareness of the Olympic Games and generated revenue. More than 50 million Olympic stamp series have been issued by countries since 1896, and OCOGs since 1920 have received revenue either through a surcharge on stamps or through a gross sum on the sale of stamps. No dollar figures were given by the IOC.

Cali Shows Off World Games Venues

A visit to Cali, Colombia has Panama’s sports minister taking inspiration from the city’s completely refurbished Pascual Guerrero Olympic Stadium.

"I´m really amazed at the work that has been done," said Ruben Cardenas, adding he would consider similar sports projects back home in Panama.

Already this month, the 33,000-seat venue hosted six preliminary matches during the ongoing FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia.

Cardenas saw the stadium as part of a tour of competition venues for the 2013 World Games alongside chief organizer Pascual Guerrero, son of the stadium’s namesake.

The venue is set to host flying disc and rugby competitions as well as the opening and closing ceremonies during the 2013 edition.

The World Games is a multi-sport event for disciplines and sports not included in the Olympics. They are organized under the patronage of the IOC.

Beijing Film Festival Highlights Olympic Past

Olympic films and promotional clips are the focus of the 7th annual Beijing International Sports Film Week underway in the 2008 host city.

The event "carries on with the previous incarnations by bringing film into communities and schools, acts as a vessel for participation by the public, promotes the creation of sports films, advances the film industry, nourishes exchange in the television industry, and furthers the internationalization of Beijing," according to the Beijing Olympic City Development Association, Beijing’s legacy project from the Games.

Entrants are competing for a shot at the 29th Milan International Sports Film Festival later this year.

Written by Ed Hula III, Matthew Grayson and Karen Rosen.