POSTED: Tuesday June 28th 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DIRK NOWITZKI BACKS MUNICH 2018 FOR SLAM DUNK IN SOUTH AFRICA

NBA icon pledges support as new poll shows soaring public approval

Munich, 28 June 2011: Munich 2018 is gaining crucial momentum less than one week before the opening of the 123rd IOC Session in Durban: NBA basketball star, Dirk Nowitzki, has thrown his weight behind Munich 2018 just as a new national poll reveals that 78% of people in Germany support the Bavarian capital’s bid for the 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. 

Dirk Nowitzki was named the 2011 NBA Finals MVP as he guided the Dallas Mavericks to their first ever championship title. His public backing is further evidence that Munich 2018 has the needs and the aspirations of sportsmen and women at its heart, with is promise to deliver the ultimate athlete experience. Nowitzki echoed the Bid Committee’s team of 125 sports ambassadors in championing Munich 2018’s unique offering to the Olympic Movement: full stadia, passionate fans and the electrifying atmosphere that every Olympian and Paralympian deserves. 

Nowitzki is a true believer in the Olympic ideal. After spearheading the German national team’s qualification for Beijing 2008 with a victory over Puerto Rico, he was famously too emotional to take part in the post-match press conference. He said: ‘I never thought I would cry because of basketball, but I could not stop the tears.’ The four-time All-NBA first team and 10-time NBA All-Star player highlighted just what the Winter Games means to the people, and athletes, of Germany:

‘It is a tight game! But I am optimistic that Munich can secure the win with a Buzzer-Beater in Durban. The dream of an Olympic Games has motivated me for years. Carrying the German flag into the Olympic Stadium in Beijing in 2008 was such a thrilling moment. I can only imagine the emotions athletes will feel when entering the Munich Olympic Stadium under that iconic roof. Our passionate crowds in Germany would carry the Olympic ideal out into the world on a new wave of enthusiasm. I know that our youth is captivated by the Olympics. I felt it when I was giving the German flag to our Youth Olympic Games team last year at the Brandenburg Gate. Today’s generation of athletes lives the Olympic dream even though Germany has not had the Games for 40 years. I hope we get the Games for them in 2018.’ 

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

'The German sports family can be proud of this extraordinary athlete. He’s a superstar in the NBA, but he’s still the guy next door. At the Olympic Games in Beijing in 2008, he said that playing in the tournament was a dream come true. As Germany’s flag bearer, he showed so much passion and truly inspired the entire team.'

Public support for Munich 2018 is also at an all-time high according to results published by the INFO Institute in Berlin yesterday. A representative poll revealed that 78% of people nationwide are in favour of hosting the Games, with just 15% opposed. 

Katarina Witt, Chair of the Munich 2018 Bid Committee, said:

'This is a great result. The growing support for our bid among the German public and from our sporting heroes is a strong sign to the IOC and gives Munich 2018 great motivation and encouragement for the final week of the campaign. Munich 2018 is a bid by athletes for athletes: our sports stars know what an unforgettable experience we are promising for them and that’s why competitors at the very top of their game are giving us such vocal support.’ 

The mood in the Munich 2018 camp is highly optimistic after a successful presentation from the high-profile bid delegation at the ANOCA Extraordinary General Assembly today. Final preparations are also underway for the pivotal presentation to the Olympic family at the 123rd IOC Session in Durban on 6 July.

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, with Katarina Witt as Chair, Bernhard Schwank as CEO and Jürgen Bühl as Managing Director. 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 Adidas, Allianz, the BMW Group, BayWa, Deutsche Bahn, Deutsche Post, Flughafen München GmbH, Lotto Bayern, Deutsche Lufthansa AG, METRO GROUP, and the Sparkasse Finance Group, along with national suppliers ARGE (Albert Speer & Partner and PROPROJEKT), Deloitte, Getty Images, GfK Verein, Hubert Burda Media, 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/en.

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 540428-317
Mobile: +49 176 840 532 26
E-Mail: presse@muenchen2018.org

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

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Keywords · Munich 2018 · IOC · Dirk Nowitzki · Katarina Witt · Bernhard Schwank

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Name: Simone Seefried
Organization: Munich 2018 Bid Committee
Email:
Phone: 4989540428317
URL: http://www.muenchen2018.org

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