DOSB Backs Munich 2022 Olympic Bid

(ATR) The DOSB, Germany’s Olympic committee, will move ahead with a Munich bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics.

The decision came at a meeting of the DOSB in Munich on Monday.

Around the Rings is told that 81 of 82 delegates eligible to vote were in favor, with just the one abstention. In attendance were the 98 member organizations of the DOSB.

"They welcomed the modified concept by their president in our meeting today," DOSB spokesman Christian Klaue tells ATR.

Under the revised concept from the losing 2018 Winter Olympic bid, biathlon and cross country skiing events are moved from Garmisch-Partenkirchen to Ruhpolding and into the county Traunstein. Ruhpolding is already home to a biathlon venue where the World Championships were held in 2012 and a World Cup event takes place each winter.

Aerials and halfpipe are relocated into the Munich Olympic Park, site of the 1972 Summer Olympics.

Changes for the Munich 2022 bid mean that the 2018 two-park concept with a standalone sliding center in Königssee becomes a three-zone concept – an ice cluster in Munich, a snow cluster in Garmisch-Partenkirchen and an endurance and sliding zone in Schönau/Königssee.

Acting DOSB president Hans-Peter Krämer, who took on the role when Thomas Bach stepped down to become IOCpresident, said the German Olympic committee was offering "the most sustainable Olympic Winter Games in history."

The DOSB spokesman told ATR that a more important decision would come on Nov. 10 when referenda are held in the communities of Munich and Garmisch-Partenkirchen as well as in the counties of Berchtesgadener Land and Traunstein.

The votes come just four days before the IOC’s application deadline for the 2022 Olympics.

Krämer added in a statement: "We are confident that the referendum on Nov. 10 will end in favor of the bid and we hope to convince the IOC afterwards. Choosing Munich as host for the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games 2022 would be historic because it would be the first city to host Summer and Winter Games in history."

The meeting in Munich was led by Verena Bentele, the 12-time Paralympic champion. Among other sport stars in attendance were Olympic champions Maria Höfl-Riesch, Britta Heidemann, Marina Kiehl and Markus Wasmeier.

Barcelona, Oslo, Poland/Slovakia and Ukraine are among possible bidders for the 2022 Winter Games, while Almaty, Kazakhstan has already announced its candidacy.

Reported by Mark Bisson

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