IOC Heads to Haiti

(ATR) Plans for a second Youth Olympic Development Center are close to compete following a meeting between IOC officials and the Prime Minister of Haiti.

Christophe de Kepper, director general of the IOC, led the delegation to Port-au-Prince for talks with Laurent Lamothe.

Bringing a sport center to Haiti has been a major initiative of de Kepper's following the 2010 earthquake.

In a statement to Around the Rings following the October meeting, de Kepper said work on the center should be underway soon.

Joining the IOC were the NOC of Haiti, IOC experts and other members of the Olympic Movement to finalize construction plans.

"The IOC Executive Board agreed in December 2011 to build a center in Haiti based on a feasibility study presented at that meeting," de Kepper said.

"The center was a pledge by the IOC and the Olympic family to help reconstruction efforts in the country following the devastating earthquake there in early 2010. A call for tender was subsequently held to appoint a construction company for the center."

The multi-purpose sports facility is due to officially open in 2014 and will be located in the Morne Cabrit area located north of the capital.

Inspiration for the facility came from the inaugural Olympic Youth Development Center in Lusaka, Zambia, which was built by the IOC and opened in 2010.

"They are designed to be community centers where sport is offered together with educational activities and health practices and meant to provide the local population with the opportunity to have access to sport," de Kepper said. "The centers are built with the Olympic Values firmly in mind, and we hope they will serve to inspire all who visit."

Written Ed Hula III.

20 Years at #1: