POSTED: Tuesday December 7th 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MUNICH 2018 CELEBRATES START OF GERMANY'S WINTER SPORTS SEASON

FIS Cross Country World Cup in Düsseldorf reinforces world-class reputation

Munich, 7 December 2010: Munich 2018 brought its Festival of Friendship to this weekend’s FIS Cross Country World Cup in Düsseldorf, marking the first event in a calendar of illustrious elite competitions that will cement Germany’s credentials as a world-class host for winter sports events.

The FIS Cross Country World Cup was the first of 12 World Cup competitions and three World Championships which will be hosted in Germany this season. Munich’s bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in 2018 will certainly benefit from the wealth of opportunities to exhibit the nation’s unparalleled pedigree in staging winter sports events.

Katarina Witt, Chair of the Munich 2018 Bid Committee, was excited by the chance to present the Bavarian capital’s bid to the international winter sports community:

‘Munich 2018 is delighted to be part of the FIS Cross Country World Cup here on the banks of the Rhine and to have the opportunity to bring our bid to a global audience. The visiting international athletes will see the benefits of competing in a country with a long, proud heritage of staging elite winter sports events and Munich 2018 hopes that these competitions will provide compelling evidence of Germany’s hosting capabilities. International Federations, National Olympic Committees, athletes and fans alike would all benefit from Germany’s incredible expertise should Munich be awarded the 2018 Winter Games.’

The Munich bid soared into the winter season with the Munich 2018 hot air balloon acting as a beacon for passionate sports fans and generating support for the bid beyond Bavaria. Over the season, a 50-strong team of Munich 2018 volunteers will spread the Festival of Friendship concept across the rest of Germany with a strong presence at high-profile winter sports competitions. Munich 2018 sports ambassadors Alexander Spitz, an alpine skiing Paralympic medallist, and Richard Adjei, Olympic medallist in bobsleigh, helped share the Festival of Friendship atmosphere among excited fans this weekend by signing autographs and giving out Munich 2018 merchandise.

Bernhard Schwank, CEO of the Munich 2018 Bid Committee, said:

‘The arrival of a winter season with 12 World Cups and three World Championships in Germany will highlight the fascinating atmosphere and huge enthusiasm for winter sports in our country. This competitive environment has developed from a long history of staging global sports events and has produced millions of ardent, knowledgeable winter sports fans. These exceptional attributes add real vitality to our bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.’

Munich, Bavaria and Germany have had a significant role in establishing Europe’s Alpine region as a heartland of winter sports. Germany delivers record breaking crowds at winter sports events, year after year, including 30,000 fans for ski jumping in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, 90,000 for the annual Biathlon World Cup and a staggering 360,000 for the Nordic World Ski Championships. In May, a world record 77,000 passionate winter sports fans watched the opening game of the IIHF World Championships in Gelsenkirchen.

Germany’s experience of hosting international events has undoubtedly contributed to the success of the national athletes. Last week, Munich 2018 sports ambassador Maria Riesch’s outstanding performance won her first place in both downhill competitions and second place in the Super G at Lake Louise. Anja Huber won the single and team event at the Skeleton World Cup in Calgary and luger Natalie Geisenberger finished second at the World Cup in Winterberg. Andreas Kapp and his curling team started the European Championships with three wins in a row.

Notes to editor:

The Munich 2018 Bid Committee will be present at the following events:

04-05.12.2010: FIS Cross Country World Cup in Düsseldorf

31.12.2010-02.01.201:1 FIS Tour de Ski in Oberhof

01.01.2011: New Year’s Ski Jumping in Garmisch-Partenkirchen

02.01.2011: FIS Parallel Slalom Olympiaberg in Munich

03.01-09.2011: IBU World Cup Biathlon in Oberhof

05-06.01.2011: Luge World Cup in Königssee

08-09.01.2011: FIS Nordic Combined World Cup in Schonach

10-16.01.2011: IBU World Cup Biathlon in Ruhpolding

14-15.01.2011: Cup of Berlin (Figure Skating) in Berlin

04-05.02.2011: FIS Alpine World Cup in Arber-Zwiesel

07-20.02.2011: FIS Alpine Ski World Championships in Garmisch-Partenkirchen

14-27.02.2011: FIBT Bob & Skeleton World Cup in Königssee

22-27.02.2011: IPC Biathlon and Cross Country World Cup Finals in Finsterau

27.02-11.03.2011: IBU World Championships Biathlon in Ruhpolding

10-13.03.2011: Speed Skating World Championships in Inzell

Background
Munich, in collaboration with Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Berchtesgadener Land, is applying to host the 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The application will be put together and managed by Bewerbungsgesellschaft München 2018 GmbH, whose management is chaired by Bernhard Schwank and whose managing director is Jürgen Bühl. Shareholders in the application organisation are the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) with 51 per cent, the City of Munich (30 per cent), the Free State of Bavaria (nine per cent), the market town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (eight per cent) and the district of Berchtesgadener Land (two per cent). The bid is being supported by national sponsors the Adidas, Allianz, BMW Group, BayWa, Flughafen München GmbH, Lotto Bayern, Deutsche Lufthansa AG and the Sparkasse Finance Group, along with national suppliers ARGE (Albert Speer & Partner and PROPROJEKT), Deloitte, GfK Verein, IMMO 2018, Messe München GmbH, Norton Rose LLP, Munich Olympic Park, pilot sport and Stadtwerke München GmbH. More information about the concept, the progress of the application and many other aspects can be found at http://www.muenchen2018.org.

Bewerbungsgesellschaft München 2018 GmbH
Munich 2018 Bid Committee
Olympiapark München
Spiridon-Louis-Ring 21
80809 München

Responsible for contents:
Bernhard Schwank and Jürgen Bühl

Press Contact:
Simone Seefried
Agnes-Pockels-Bogen 1
80992 München
Telephone: +49 89 540428-313

Mobile: +49 176 840 532 26 / +27 718 993 815
E-Mail: presse@muenchen2018.org

Online Press Area:
http://www.muenchen2018.org/en/press

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Keywords · Munich 2018 · winter Games · Olympic Bidding · FIS Cross Country World Cup

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Name: Simone Seefried
Organization: Munich 2018 Bid Committee
Email:
Phone: +49 89 540428-313
URL: http://www.muenchen2018.org

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