OLYMPICS-IOC/ALMATY Almaty confident about Winter Olympics bid

Record ID: 146069

  • Title: OLYMPICS-IOC/ALMATY Almaty confident about Winter Olympics bid
  • Date: 28th July 2015
  • Summary: KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA (JULY 28, 2015) (REUTERS) PETRONAS TWIN TOWERS VICE-CHAIRMAN OF THE ALMATY 2022 WINTER OLYMPIC BID COMMITTEE, ANDREY KRYUKOV, TALKING TO REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) VICE-CHAIRMAN OF THE ALMATY 2022 WINTER OLYMPIC BID COMMITTEE, ANDREY KRYUKOV SAYING: "We're in good shape, we are prepared well for the final presentation and our team works perfect and I believe for us the result will be the best" KRYUKOV TALKING TO REPORTER (SOUNDBITE) (English) KRYUKOV SAYING: "Because for us such campaign was first time and such high level. Second thing is definitely we'll go very deep to our venues; we go very deep to our sports concept. And now we understood much more better than before, how to better develops sports. This is really for sport I mean through the legacy, through the development of the infrastructure, to the development of the athletes and team and that's why it's one of the biggest legacy we'll have" KRYUKOV (SOUNDBITE) (English) KRYUKOV SAYING: "Decision will be tomorrow, but prime minister will be here tonight and we'll have full team tomorrow to be there. And they will discuss the latest speaker list and the latest delegate list tomorrow" VARIOUS OLYMPIC FLAGS AMONG MALAYSIAN FLAGS
  • Embargoed: 12th August 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Malaysia
  • Country: Malaysia
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA3Y8DE0VBTC28TDAKS2NHVCTTH
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Kazakhstan is confident that Almaty will win its bid to host the Winter Olympics in 2022, vice-chairman of the bid committee Andrey Kryukov told Reuters on Tuesdday (July 28).
    Speaking in Kuala Lumpur, where the International Olympic Committee will make a decision on Friday, Kryukov said Almaty's delegation is well prepared for the final presentation.
    "We're in good shape, we are prepared well for the final presentation and our team works perfect. And I believe for us the result will be the best," said Kryukov.
    Almaty is the business and finance centre of Kazakhstan and it faces opposition from Beijing.
    Policial opponents of long-serving Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev say the bid is just another of his vanity projects, but Kryukov said winning the bid will help the nation to develop both sports infrastructure and competitors. Nazarbayev is a 75-year-old former steelworker who has led the nation of 17.5 million people for 26 years.
    "Because for us such campaign was first time and such high level. Second thing is definitely we'll go very deep to our venues; we go very deep to our sports concept. And now we understood much more better than before, how to better develops sports. This is really for sport I mean through the legacy, through the development of the infrastructure, to the development of the athletes and team and that's why it's one of the biggest legacy we'll have," said Kryukov.
    Almaty is in the foothills of the Tien Shan mountains and it co-hosted the 2011 Asian Winter Games with the Kazakh capital, Astana and it will host the 2017 Winter Universiade.
    It has not been revealed whether Nazarbayev will head to Kuala Lumpur, but Kryukov said prime minister and Chairman of the Almaty 2022 Bid Committee, Karim Massimov, will attend.
    "The decision will be tomorrow, but prime minister will be here tonight and we'll have full team tomorrow to be there. And they will discuss the latest speaker list and the latest delegate list tomorrow," said Kryukov.
    The Almaty bid committee says 70 percent of potential venues for the 2022 games have already been built, including the Medeu skating oval where more than 120 world records have been broken since the 1950s.
    Nazarbayev, allowed by law to be elected as many times as he wants, has overseen market reforms and attracted more than $200 billion in foreign direct investment. But he has faced criticism from the West and human rights bodies for backtracking on democratic reforms and his tough treatment of the small and disparate opposition in the mainly Muslim nation.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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