2012 Winter Youth Olympics

The 2012 Winter Youth Olympics is a youth sports festival to be celebrated in early 2012, in accordance with the International Olympic Committee as a new program to encourage youth and sport. It will be the inaugural event similar to the Winter Olympics. Currently, host cities are bidding for the right to host the Games. Swedish skiier Pernilla Wiberg has been appointed as the Evaluation Chair for the Commission to score the applicant cities. [ [http://www.gamesbids.com/eng/youth_olympic_bids/1216133687.html IOC Appoints 2012 Youth Games Evaluation Chair] ]

Four cities are in the running to host the Games: Harbin (China), Innsbruck (Austria), Kuopio (Finland), and Lillehammer (Norway).

Bid process

The schedule was announced in January, 2008.
* March 6, 2008 – National Olympic Committees (NOCs) were to inform the IOC of the names of their candidate cities.
* May 19, 2008 – Cities submit Candidature files.
* June 2008 – IOC announces shortlist of Candidate Cities.
* July 2008 – The Evaluation Commission submits its report to the IOC Executive Board.
* August 2008 – The IOC Executive Board will submit its recommendations to the IOC members for a postal vote.
* December 6, 2008 – The host city will be announced. [http://www.gamesbids.com/cgi-bin/news/viewnews.cgi?category=1&id=1201116439 IOC Announces 2012 Winter Youth Olympics Bid Process] ]

Candidate cities

All four applicant cities were kept as candidate cities by the IOC in August 2008.
* Harbin, China last bid for the 2010 Winter Olympics, but failed to make the shortlist. Harbin is known as China's "Ice City" for its winters and associated festivals. [http://www.gamesbids.com/cgi-bin/news/viewnews.cgi?category=1&id=1204901460 Five Cities Apply To Host The 2012 Winter Youth Olympic Games] ]
* Innsbruck, Austria. The city of Innsbruck is bidding, supported by the Austrian Olympic Committee. [ [http://www.oeoc.at/main.asp?kat1=13&kat2=142&kat3=&vid=1&NID=599 ÖOC nominiert Innsbruck für Olympische Jugendspiele 2012. ("Austrian Olympic Committee nominates Innsbruck for the Youth Olympic Games 2012") ] ] It is a two time host city of the Winter Olympics in 1964 and 1976.
*flagicon|Finland Kuopio, Finland is a first time bidder.
* Lillehammer, Norway Host city of the 1994 Winter Olympics.

References

External links

* [http://www.olympic.org/common/asp/download_report.asp?file=en_report_1275.pdf&id=1275 2012 Winter Youth Olympics brochure]
* [http://www.olympic.org/common/asp/download_report.asp?file=en_report_1277.pdf&id=1277 2012 Winter Youth Olympics questionnaire]