IOC “Satisfied” With London 2012

An IOC official told Reuters Monday, on the eve of a two-day executive board meeting, “we remain very satisfied with the state of planning. We are fully confident that a professional job is being done by LOCOG (the London organizing committee)”.

The official said recent negative headlines were just part and parcel of the run-up to such a major event, which is now well on track. The official said, “we see the debate that is happening with a degree of perspective, knowing that it is part of the UK’s democratic process to have in-depth discussions of this nature”.

According to the Guardian the IOC is expected to hear a progress report Wednesday by its chief inspector for the London Games, Denis Oswald. Oswald has praised London repeatedly, reports the newspaper, saying no other Olympic city had been as advanced in preparing for the Games as London.

Meawhile it was announced Monday by the London Olympic Delivery Authority that the Aquatics Centre has become the first main venue in the Olympic Park to reach the detailed design stage. The Aquatics Centre will consist of two 50-metre pools, one for training and one for competition, and a diving area, and is smaller than originally intended after the initial plans were rejected last December for being over-budget. Culture Minister Tessa Jowell asked architect Zaha Hadid to come up with a cheaper and less ambitious design.

The new design will still have the original 20,000-seat overall capacity with 15,000 for the swimming arena and 5,000 for diving. The wave-shaped roof of the pool will remain the same but will be 2-1/2 times smaller than originally planned.

During the Games it will host all the swimming and diving events with the exception of water polo, and after the Games it will be converted into a 2,500-seat complex with the potential to add a further 1,000 temporary seats for European events. Write or read comments about this article