Sir Rols Posted January 12, 2012 Report Share Posted January 12, 2012 Still don't think he hits on the big reason for Annecy not having a chance - just too soon after '92 for France to host its fourth WOGs - but interesting interview from insidethegames nonetheless: Annecy never had a chance in 2018 Olympic race, admits former bid leader January 11 - Edgar Grospiron, the former chief executive of the Annecy 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympic bid, has admitted that the French city was never going win the race to host the Games as it lacked support from the very beginning. Grospiron, the Albertville 1992 Olympic moguls champion, was widely praised during his short time in charge of the French bid for keeping the city in the race with its two rivals, Pyeongchang and Munich, despite having far less resources. But Grospiron resigned at the end of 2010 following a crisis meeting over the lack of finance available for the bid and was replaced by French businessman Charles Beigbeder for the last few months of the bid. Beigbeder suffered humiliation when Annecy received only seven votes at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) vote in Durban last July as they were trounced by victors Pyeongchang, who claimed a clear majority in the first round of voting. Annecy's seven votes represented the second lowest in recent history for either the Winter or Summer Games but Grospiron said that the city was never really in the race because it could not compete with the support that its rivals had. "It was disappointing for us to lose such a great competition but the most disappointing thing was that we never properly reached out for that opportunity to organise the Games in the [French] Alps," Grospiron told insidethegames here, where he is serving as Chef de Mission for the French team at the Winter Youth Olympic Games. "That is very sad for all of us that were involved. "The real important thing is that you need support right from the beginning and we didn't have that in the proper way. "If France wants to win an Olympic bid, we really have to work together and have full support from everybody right from the start. "Everything needs to be in place at the very beginning with regard to finances, economic support, Government support and also local support from the people of the area. "You need that as a minimum because the level of competition to host an Olympics is just so high. "In Annecy, there definitely was support but maybe it was not at the high level that is needed for an Olympic bid. "The competition for the 2018 Winter Olympics was very high and we just didn't compete with our rivals at that level. "The Olympics deserves investments and expertise that we never offered. "I did my job as best as I could while I was chief executive but in the end, I did what I had to do. "A resignation is never easy but I felt it is what I had to do at that moment." Grospiron, 42, dismisses claims that his resignation was the nail in the coffin for the Annecy bid and said that while such comments are flattering, he does not feel he deserves the plaudits. "For my part, I don't think that an Olympic bid is handled by one person," he said. "It is very kind of people to say that I was so important to the bid but I do not think I had such power to handle a bid on my shoulders alone. "I did my very best but in the end, I left because I felt I had no real choice but to leave." Moving forward, Grospiron says that France needs to learn the lessons of the Annecy failure before it can think about putting forward another Olympic bid. It was the fourth unsuccessful campaign from the country to host the Olympics following the failures of Paris to win its bids to host the 1992, 2008 and 2012 Games, the latter being awarded to London when the French capital was the overwhelming favourite to win. "For the moment, France doesn't have any strategy regarding a bid so we will have to wait and see," said Grospiron. ... more at: insidethegames.biz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gangwon Posted January 12, 2012 Report Share Posted January 12, 2012 I know that geopolitics didn't favour them, but a place as majestic and qualified as Annecy deserves better than 7 votes. If you decide to bid (and I don't blame them one bit for bidding), take it seriously and give the bid the support it needs. After seeing their fantastic videos during their final presentation (my favourite presentation out of the 3 bidders), I've developed a soft spot for Annecy and wish they could somehow host too, but like you mentioned, it's hard to get over the "already-hosted-3-times" hump when you have other European bidders knocking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Rols Posted January 12, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2012 I know that geopolitics didn't favour them, but a place as majestic and qualified as Annecy deserves better than 7 votes. If you decide to bid (and I don't blame them one bit for bidding), take it seriously and give the bid the support it needs. After seeing their fantastic videos during their final presentation (my favourite presentation out of the 3 bidders), I've developed a soft spot for Annecy and wish they could somehow host too, but like you mentioned, it's hard to get over the "already-hosted-3-times" hump when you have other European bidders knocking. I still think ... or at least hope ... that one day the IOC will again bite the bullet and try another "Lillehammer" style small town games (and, of course, I still haven't given up the hope that Norway's neighbour to the east might be the one to do it). But, no, geopolitics wasn't in favour of it happening in 2018. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taichi Posted January 12, 2012 Report Share Posted January 12, 2012 Maybe France will bid again but this time in another city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FYI Posted January 12, 2012 Report Share Posted January 12, 2012 Uh oh. Don't let sour grapes Tulsa get wind of this! But this article is interesting. France is almost akin to the position the USOC is in right now. They're in limbo in regards to another bid, 'til they both figure out on a strategy to move forward after consecutive big losses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Rols Posted January 12, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2012 Uh oh. Don't let sour grapes Tulsa get wind of this! I'm waiting for him to tell us that Gospiron must know nothing about winter sports or Annecy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tulsa Posted January 12, 2012 Report Share Posted January 12, 2012 In France we have 3 or 4 possibility for next bid : Annecy, Gap (South Alps, small city like Lillehammer), Nice (South Alps, like Sotchi) and maybe Grenoble... France will bid again maybe 2022 or 2026. It will depend 2020. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baron-pierreIV Posted January 12, 2012 Report Share Posted January 12, 2012 I'm waiting for him to tell us that Gospiron must know nothing about winter sports or Annecy! Just as soon as I scrolled down...who should come up but...the Scourge of Primeval Forests and non-European Dry Winters!!! I wonder if the Oklahoma City names him an Honorary son?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchy Posted January 13, 2012 Report Share Posted January 13, 2012 Still don't think he hits on the big reason for Annecy not having a chance - just too soon after '92 for France to host its fourth WOGs - but interesting interview from insidethegames nonetheless: It's always easy to be wise after the event! Nevertheless Grospiron is right about the lack of support. In a totally centralised country like France, you need central government support for your bid. If local support was forthcoming as far as 2018 was concerned, it was sorely lacking as far as Sarkozy's government was concerned. The fact that Grospiron slammed the door a few weeks before the choice was made certainly didn't help........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchy Posted January 13, 2012 Report Share Posted January 13, 2012 Maybe France will bid again but this time in another city. My feeling is that France won't bid for another WOG until a SOG has been held on its soil, Paris being the only viable city in the country to hold such a game. Considering the economic situation, I wouldn't be holding my breath...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Rols Posted January 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted January 13, 2012 It's always easy to be wise after the event! It is ... though that's what I, nearly all watchers, and the bid index here was saying all through the campaign already before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deawebo Posted January 13, 2012 Report Share Posted January 13, 2012 Naaaa i rather see France for SOG! Let the WOG for Germany or Switzerland Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenadian Posted January 14, 2012 Report Share Posted January 14, 2012 I don't think the vote tally matters much anyway. These games were pretty much destined for PyeongChang with Munich in there as an insurance policy in case something really frightened the IOC away from Korea. Yes, the geopolitical question was there - 20 years away from the last Winter Games in Asia and 26 out from the last time France hosted. But this was PyeongChang's third bid. They had been lobbying the IOC since perhaps as early as 2001 - ten years in front of the IOC is a long time. They easily got to know the Koreans and clearly saw how much they wanted these Games. Heck, they almost gave them the 2010 and 2014 Games! So it wasn't like 40 IOC members were suddenly going to switch to Annecy, especially since they had such a willing partner in the Koreans and a strong backup with a large and rich city like Munich. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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