Mexico City has simultaneously been awarded the right to host archery’s two biggest events : the World Cup Final in 2015 and the World Championships in 2017.
Mexico is a fast-growing region for the sport, developing into a key market for international archery following the team’s success at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Mexico was the only nation to put two athletes on the same podium at London 2012, with Aida Roman winning recurve women’s silver and Mariana Avitia winning bronze.
The hosting rights were awarded through a bidding procedure.
“There is a formal bid process, with candidate cities, countries or federations submitting a World Archery-standard bid document and questionnaire, which is usually supported by an additional dossier produced by the LOC,” a spokesperson for World Archery told HOST CITY.
“Our Executive Board votes on its preferred hosts based on this bid documentation.”
Poland and Ukraine had also put in a joint bid for the 2017 World Championships. The World Archery federation was founded in Lviv and a bid is anticipated for future event, particularly as the 2019 World Championships will be the 50th edition.
And for the 2015 World Cup Final, South Korea was the other party interested in hosting rights.
World Archery cited the backing of Mexico City’s Mayor Dr Miguel Angel Mancera, Director of Sport and former athlete Mr Horacio de la Vega, national government and broadcasters as the key players in persuading the World Archery Executive Board to award both events to the same organiser.
“It is a sport on the rise in popularity and participation and there is a significant audience for its international events and athletes within the country,” de la Vega said.
2015 will be the second time that Mexico has hosted the Archery World Cup Final, after hosting the inaugural World Cup Final at the Mayapan Pyramids in 2006, when nearby Merida also hosted the World Archery Youth Championships.
Mexico City hosted the Olympic Games in 1968 and has also hosted the Pan American, Caribbean and Central American Games.
Mexico City promoted its candidature by creating the Mexican Challenge, first held at the end of 2013. The innovative event – produced by Moveo Lab, the sports company that will organise both the newly-awarded tournaments – pitched eight of Mexico’s finest against eight top archers from the rest of the world.
World Archery Secretary General Mr Tom Dielen said “With the Mexican Challenge concept, this organising committee proved that it shares our values of putting athletes at the heart of international archery competition. We are confident it will build on that success with two of World Archery’s flagship tournaments.”
The two tournaments offer very different dynamics. The annual World Cup Final is held over a weekend, features the year’s top 32 athletes and focuses on individual match-play and sports presentation. The final of the 2014 Archery World Cup will be held in the Olympic capital of Lausanne, where World Archery has its headquarters.
The biannual World Championships involve more than 500 archers from 70 nations over ten days. The 2015 World Archery Championships will be hosted in Copenhagen.
For future events, prospective host organisations can contact World Archery directly to see which events are currently open for bidding.
Category: Event Bidding
-
Mexico to host archery World Champs and Cup Final
-
NOCs call for overhaul of Olympic city bids
Austria, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland’s NOCs have submitted a paper to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) entitled “Olympic Agenda 2020: The Bid Experience”, which proposes a revolutionary change to the process of selecting host cities of the Olympic Games.
The paper briefly explains why all four nations have retracted bids to host Olympic Games in recent years, and sets out what could be done to make the prospect of bidding again more appealing.
The most bold suggestion is that the IOC Evaluation Commission’s findings should count directly towards the election of the host city. Currently, the host city is elected entirely by secret ballot by IOC members, after they have read the Evaluation Commission’s report, but this report does not directly count – only the votes do.
“The IOC could split the election into two equally weighted parts, one representing the technical evaluation with a ranking of all bid cities, and one representing the vote of the IOC members,” the NOCs’ paper states.
The IOC is currently undergoing a deep and wide review into all areas of its activities, with a major focus on bidding procedure. The findings of the “Agenda 2020” review will not be made public until November 2014 but the early appeal from these influential NOCs is a highly significant move.
All four committees have backed out of Olympic bids in recent years. The Austrian Olympic Committee was considering a bid of Vienna for the 2028 Olympic Games while the German, the Swedish and the Swiss Olympic Committees were looking into the possibility of bidding for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games.
“The striking element welding all four committees together is the fact that all above mentioned bids were not lost in the official bid process, but due to a lack in national or at least regional public or political support,” the paper states.
The NOCs of these established European nations spell out the concerns they have about bidding for the Olympic Games.
“Public and politics seemingly fear the high costs of bidding for and hosting the Games, especially in the aftermath of the increase of costs that was witnessed in Sochi as well as concerns relating to human rights and sustainability,” the NOCs said. “The situation is aggravated by the media picturing mistrust in the IOC.”
Another suggestion from NOCs is that the IOC’s role in financing the Olympic Games should be communicated more clearly to the public, pointing out that “the budget structure is quite confusing for uninvolved citizens.”
The letter is signed by: Dr. Peter Mennel, Secretary General, Austrian Olympic Committee; Dr. Michael Vesper, Director General, German Olympic Sports Confederation; Stefan Lindeberg, President, Swedish Olympic Committee; and Jörg Schild , President, Swiss Olympic Association.
The concerns of the paper are being addressed by the IOC’s Agenda 2020 Working Group on Bidding Procedure, of which Hasan Arat is a member. To find out more, register for HOST CITY: BID TO WIN conference and hear experts including Arat debating this hot topic on 28th October.
-
Blatter to open Soccerex as FIFA ethics report lands
President Blatter, the head of world football’s governing body FIFA, will deliver a formal address to Soccerex delegates on Monday 8th September, the organisers have confirmed. This will be Blatter’s ninth Soccerex appearance over the past 19 years.
His appearance at Soccerex Global Convention comes at a significant time in relation to the investigation by FIFA prosecutor Michael Garcia into the bidding process for the Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cups, with the investigatory chamber of the FIFA Ethics Committee recently stating that “we expect to deliver our report to the adjudicatory chamber by the first week of September 2014”.
In a one-to-one interview with Jeff Powell of the Daily Mail, Blatter will also address the latest issues affecting the global game and looking back on a fantastic FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
“FIFA and their President have always been enthusiastic supporters of Soccerex, but welcoming President Blatter to another event is always a huge honour for me,” said Soccerex CEO Duncan Revie.
“The interview is set to be one of the most important sessions in the history of Soccerex and will command a huge media presence all over the world.”
The Soccerex Global Convention kicks off with the Football Festival on 6-7th September, with the conference starting on Monday 8th September. A packed international exhibition and a programme of networking and social events complete the schedule for the world leading football business event.
For more information about Soccerex please visit http://www.soccerex.com/global or call +44 (0)20 8987 5522 or email enquiry@soccerex.com -
Qatar inspires Dubai to bid for Olympics
Dubai government officials have revealed plans to expand the emirate’s sporting facilities with an eye to bidding for a future Olympic Games.
The National Olympic Committee of the United Arab Emirates previously opted out of a bid for the 2020 Olympic Games with the intention of placing a bid for the 2024 or 2028 Games instead.
Ali Omar, Director of Dubai Sports Council sports development department, recently revealed that those intentions are still in place. “Hosting the Olympics is a dream,” said Omar. “We hope to submit such a bid within the next eight years, God willing.”
Their Gulf Arab neighbours Qatar have been rumoured to also be considering a bid for the 2024 Games, for the city of Doha, following their success in securing the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Omar cited Qatar’s success as an important factor that could help Dubai bring another major global event to the region. “Qatar’s move has brought the world’s attention to professional sports in the whole Gulf Arab region,” said Omar.
Dubai already has a prestigious history in hosting global sports events including the Sevens World Series, the Dubai World Cup thoroughbred horse race, the Dubai Desert Classic golf tournament, the Dubai Tennis Championships and a number of international cricket matches due to political unrest in Pakistan. Dubai will also host Expo 2020, a universal exposition taking place over six months which could set the stage for hosting an Olympic Games shortly afterwards.
The Dubai Sports City, a 50 million square feet purpose-built sports hub, would also add considerable weight to the bid with a 60,000 seated multi-purpose outdoor stadium, a 10,000 seated indoor arena, rugby and hockey stadiums and a golf course all situated within the colossal development.
The National Olympic Committee of the United Arab Emirates estimated in 2011 that 70 percent of the infrastructure needed for a Games in Dubai was already in place. But despite this Dr Ahmed Al Sharif, Dubai Sports Council secretary general, recently told media that more stadiums and facilities would be needed in order to host an Olympic Games in the city.
-
Bach says Nanjing 2014 can boost Beijing 2022 bid
Beijing, which staged the 2008 Summer Olympics, is up against the Norwegian city of Oslo and Almaty in Kazakhstan for the right to host the 2022 Games, with the IOC set to select the host city on July 31, 2015.
The second edition of the Summer Youth Olympics will conclude on Thursday, and Bach told the Xinhua news agency that Nanjing’s organisation of the event had been “seamless”, echoing the thoughts of Chinese IOC member Yang Yang, who said that Nanjing’s success would lift Beijing’s hopes of becoming the first city to stage the Summer and Winter Olympics.
“Of course it can help,” Bach said. “Nanjing has shown again the excellent way in which China has been able to organise a big event, as well as the friendliness and hospitality of the Chinese people.
“It is a good showcase for China and will, of course, support Beijing’s bid.
“The organisation here [in Nanjing] is flawless. We haven’t had any kinds of problems to solve so we have just been able to enjoy the Games with the athletes, the volunteers and the people of Nanjing.
“It has been a great combination of friendliness and efficiency at the same time. If you have the two together, you are guaranteed to have a successful Games.”
Former IOC President Jacques Rogge said earlier this month that, if Beijing were to be awarded the 2022 Games, he is sure they would “do a very good job”.
Bids for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games will be among the topics discussed by IOC Vice President Sir Craig Reedie and others at the HOST CITY: BID TO WIN conference, which will take place in London on 28th October. Visit www.bidtowin-hostcity.net for more information. -
Edmonton: we host events for our community
Edmonton, the Canadian city bidding to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games is looking forward to hosting a much smaller event in 2015 – the FIBA Americas Women’s Championships, because it fits with its strategy of attracting events that the community is interested in.
“We are very excited to be hosting the FIBA Americas Women’s Championships in August 2015,” Candice Stasynec, executive director of Edmonton Events told HOST CITY.
“In our event strategy we have identified specific events and activities that make sense for our community. It is gratifying to see the strategy coming to life.”
Basketball has been targeted as a key sport for the city. “What is so satisfying about winning this event is that is part of our larger strategy of further developing Edmonton as a centre of excellence in basketball and the home of basketball in Canada,” she said.
“The Canadian Senior Women’s National Basketball Team calls Edmonton home now. We are hoping to attract all the national teams to do the same.”
The reach of the event is boosted by the fact that the tournament will also serve as the qualifiers for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
“Our Canadian women’s national basketball team now has the opportunity to compete for an Olympic berth with a home-court advantage,” said Michele O’Keefe, Executive Director of Canada Basketball. “Hosting is a strategic priority for Canada Basketball and this Championship is a great step forward.”
Choosing the right event for cities to bid for is a key theme of HOST CITY’s Bid to Win conference in London on 28th October, which provides a unique dialogue between rights holders and cities.
Bal Gosal, Minister of State for Sport said “Hosting international sport events such as the FIBA Americas Championship for Women provides an opportunity for our athletes to achieve their podium goals in front of enthusiastic Canadian crowds and gives a great boost to the local economy.”
The Championships take place on 9-16 August 2015 with 10 teams from the Americas zone competing in the eight-day tournament. All 24 games are being played at the Saville Community Sports Centre (SCSC) at the University of Alberta’s South Campus in Edmonton.
-
Berlin to hold Olympic 2024 referendum as Mayor confirms exit plan
Berlin and Hamburg are interested in bringing the Summer Olympics to Germany for the first time since Munich hosted the 1972 Games, and the former has confirmed that it will submit its answers to a questionnaire sent out by the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) by the end of this week.
“We will answer the questionnaire of the DOSB and will then unveil our concept on September 1,” Wowereit told a press conference. “I am confident that we will answer those questions well. After that there will be a vote for all Berliners to decide. We want the widest possible support for this.”
The DOSB questionnaire contains 13 questions covering aspects such as venue locations, event goals, finances and transport infrastructure.
However, Wowereit will not oversee the possible realisation of Berlin’s Olympic ambitions after confirming at the press conference that he will step down as Mayor on December 11 after 13 years in office.
Wowereit, who has been widely criticised for delays and the spiralling cost of developing the unfinished Brandenburg Airport in Berlin, added: “I am leaving voluntarily and I’m proud to have made my contribution to the positive development of this city.”
It is unclear whether the departure of Wowereit may influence Berlin’s potential bid for the Games, but a spokesperson for his office told HOST CITY: “It was unexpected. We are all very surprised here.”
Berlin previously staged the summer Olympics in 1936, but failed in a bid for the 2000 Games after being eliminated in the second round of voting, with Sydney in Australia ultimately emerging victorious. The DOSB also opted to support Leipzig rather than Berlin for a tilt at the 2012 Olympics, although London in Britain eventually secured the hosting rights.
Other potential bidders for the 2024 Games include Baku (Azerbaijan), Doha (Qatar), Dubai (UAE), Istanbul (Turkey), Paris (France) and Rome (Italy) with South Africa also mulling over a possible bid and the US set to select an applicant city from a shortlist comprising Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington DC. -
Berlin and Hamburg outline compact visions for Olympic bids
Under the capital city’s proposals, Berlin would utilise its Olympiastadion – the centrepiece when it last hosted the Games in 1936. Elsewhere, plans focus on the use of land at the still-operational Tegel airport, which will close down when Berlin’s new international airport opens.
Tefel is about a 15-minute drive from the north-west of Berlin city centre, while land at the centrally located and defunct Tempelhof airport would be used alongside a selection of existing sports venues.
Hamburg’s proposal focuses on the Kleiner Grasbrook area, roughly a 10-minute walking distance from the city centre. A newly-built Olympic stadium would be downsized to a 20,000 capacity after the Games and the Athlete’s Village would serve to address Hamburg’s housing shortage.
DOSB president Alfons Hörmann said that the decision to pursue the Olympic Games would have to accommodate any possible bid by the German Football Association (DFB) to host the Uefa Euro 2024 national team championship.
“Following the discussion process we will decide if we apply with Berlin or Hamburg and, where appropriate, at what time for the Olympic Games,” he said. “This will be done in close coordination with our affiliates, for example because of the possible application of the DFB for the European Championship in 2024. It is important to again be aware that we are at the beginning of a long process, whose clear aim is to bring the Olympic Games to Germany. But the crucial prerequisite for this is clear approval of the affected citizens and all social groups.”
A bid from Germany would join a potentially strong field for the 2024 Olympic Games, with Paris, Rome, Baku, Doha, Dubai and Istanbul primed to enter the race alongside a South African bid. The US Olympic Committee is set to put forward one of Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco or Washington D.C. from its candidate cities.
Munich hosted Germany’s last summer Olympics in 1972, with Berlin having previously hosted in 1936. Berlin entered a bid for the 2000 Games, but was eliminated in the second round of voting with Sydney eventually awarded the event. Hamburg had put itself forward for the 2012 Games only for Leipzig to be chosen as Germany’s candidate. Leipzig was then defeated as the event went to London.
The DOSB has yet to announce a deadline over a decision on which city to back or if Germany will target the 2024 Games or the next edition in 2028. -
England targets Euro 2028 as Wembley closes in on 2020 finale
Uefa, football’s European governing body, will announce the host cities for the Euro 2020 tournament following a meeting on September 18 in Geneva, Switzerland.
The tournament will be staged in multiple cities across Europe, with widespread reports indicating that Wembley will be allocated the most prestigious package comprising the competition’s three biggest games.
England’s main rival for the top package had been Germany, but the latter is reportedly considering dropping its attempt to secure the top games at Euro 2020 in favour of launching a bid to host the Euro 2024 edition in its entirety.
Now Horne has suggested that England would be interested in following up hosting the finale of Euro 2020 by staging the full tournament in 2028 for the first time since 1996.
“We’re really confident with our bid,” Horne said, according to the Daily Mail newspaper.
“We know what the Germans have been saying. We know that they’re thinking about 2024, but nothing has been confirmed.
“I’m not going to dwell on their politics. I’m expecting that they’re not going to push very hard for 2020. They’ve made it very clear they want 2024.“I wouldn’t rule out looking at Euro 2028 for a full tournament bid.”
Wolfgang Niersbach, the head of the DFB, the sport’s governing body in Germany, said: “We still have the two options – to host the final rounds or four matches in the group stage. Our decision is open.
“We have a wonderful relationship with the England FA, but I am totally convinced that we will have both Wembley and Munich on the land map for Euro 2020.”
England lost out to Germany in bidding to host the 2006 Fifa World Cup and then crashed out in the first round of voting for the hosting rights to the 2018 World Cup, which was ultimately secured by Russia.
Germany’s anticipated bid for Euro 2024 is likely to be challenged by Turkey, which withdrew its bid for Euro 2020 games in April and announced that it would focus on the following edition of the event in 10 years’ time. -
Four countries share hosting rights to EuroBasket 2015
The showpiece conclusion to the men’s tournament will be staged at the multi-purpose Lille Arena, which will have a capacity of 27,000 for the EuroBasket.
For the first time, the group phase of the competition will be shared between four countries, with Zagreb (Croatia), Berlin (Germany) and Riga (Latvia) joining Montpellier in France as host cities.
“This is an important moment in the history of European basketball, as we have voted not only for the hosts of next year’s event but also on pioneering a new concept, with four hosts,” Fiba Europe president Turgay Demirel said. “All bids were of the highest quality and it was not easy to choose between them. I would like to thank all bidders for their commitment and their excellent preparation work, coming up to the vote.”
A total of 16 national bodies expressed an interest in hosting the tournament, leading to eight formal bids. Finland, Israel, Poland and Turkey were the countries to miss out in the bidding process. Croatia, France and Turkey tabled bids to host one of the four group phase pools and the final phase knock-out round, while Turkey bid to organise the final phase only. All other bids were solely for pool-phase hosting.
France was left as the only candidate to host the final phase after Turkey shelved its bid and Poland and Croatia withdrew their pitches for the showpiece stage before the Fiba Europe board met to finalise hosting arrangements.
EuroBasket 2015 was originally slated to take place in the Ukrainian cities of Kyiv, Donetsk, Lviv, Odessa, Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk before the ongoing political unrest in the eastern European country persuaded Fiba Europe into a June re-think. After removing the tournament from Ukraine, Fiba Europe said it would seek to determine whether the country could host the 2017 edition of the biennial event.
EuroBasket 2015 will take place from September 5-20 next year and the tournament will serve as a qualifying competition for the Rio 2016 summer Olympic Games.