2010 Youth Olympics: KL out in the first round

KUALA LUMPUR'S bid to host the 2010 Youth Olympic Games (YOG) went up in smoke when it failed to make the cut among the five cities short-listed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Monday.

The fact that Singapore was rated second among the cities still in the running, and Bangkok named as the second South East Asian city, makes it even more painful for KL.

Moscow, which scored high with most of the 15 evaluators, finished top among the nine bidding cities, while Athens (Greece) and Turin (Italy) were the two cities which made the cut.

KL, which topped the list in accommodation, sports and venues, was out of the race at sixth position when scoring extremely low in education and culture.

The Education and Culture programme is seen as the one of the most essential components of the YOG.
The Education and Culture programme should represent a unique, once-in-a-lifetime learning experience for the young athletes and competitors gathered from all over the world to celebrate the spirit and values of the Olympics.

Host cities are required to organise educational talks by Olympic governing bodies, former gold medallists and sports experts where athletes and non-athletes are required to participate.

Hosts must also organise cultural shows - local and international - as well as exhibitions and workshops in order to bring athletes, officials and the local public together during the YOG.

Singapore is Moscow's closest challenger after it scored high with several evaluators except for its Olympic Village concept. Singapore had top scores for accommodation, infrastructure and overall project.

NST