With the 2018 Winter Olympics having been awarded to Pyeongchang, South Korea it’s only natural that we start to wonder who is in the running for the games and the IOC Executive Board has narrowed the candidate cities down to Oslo, Norway; Almaty, Kazakhstan; and Beijing, China. It should be noted that Olso Oslo withdrew its bid on October 1st 2014.
Vice-Chairman of Almaty 2022 Bid, Mr. Andrey Kryukov explained that Almaty wants to change the way Olympic Winter Games are planned for and hosted by ensuring a true and lasting Olympic Legacy for the city and region, and that inspires more cities to bid for the Games in the future. Almaty has a very long tradition in winter sports, beginning in the 1950’s during the Soviet Union when the city was the center for outdoor winter sports activities. “Our sensible, affordable and sustainable Games Plan is based on real venues, real winter sports hosting experience and real snow and winter ambience. Almaty can prove that a nation doesn’t need to be a superpower or spend tens of billions of dollars to host a Winter Games. Consistent with the goals of IOC’s Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms, Almaty 2022’s planning for the Winter Games utilizes our existing resources and is directly linked to our city’s long-term goals. Rather than changing our city to fit the Games, we adapted the Games plan to fit our city’s needs. This is real change of the Winter Games and exactly what we mean by ‘Keeping it Real’ ” Mr. Kryukov commented.
Mayor of Almaty city, Mr. Akhmetzhan Yessimov explained that Almaty 2022’s budget is prudent, and all Games guarantees are fully backed by the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Almaty’s OCOG budget is 1.7 billion US dollars and its Non-OCOG budget is only 4.5 billion; this reflects moderate, sensible spending. Mr. Yessimov also pointed out that seventy percent of the venues necessary for the Games already exist and are currently fully utilized for winter sports. Since 2000, Almaty has added six top-tier venues to its already existing collection of world-class ski resorts and other competition venues. By 2017, 80% of the venues necessary will exist due to Almaty hosting the 2017 Winter Universiade.
“Almaty is a vibrant and cosmopolitan city full of young and passionate winter sport enthusiasts who passionately want to bring the Games to our city. Almaty 2022 is fully supported by our Government and we have the financial strength necessary to deliver a great Games experience for the athletes and participants. To be ready for 2022, Almaty has been investing in winter sports facilities and experience for over a decade, and on 31 July we hope to earn the opportunity to showcase to the world the tremendous progress our country has made” Mr. Yessimov commented.
“Almaty’s bid for the Winter Games is driven by our people’s passion for winter sports and is well aligned with our long-term sports infrastructure plan. Almaty will only need two additional competition venues for the Games. Rising demand from the city and region makes the addition of these venues a natural continuation of our strategic plan. Hosting the Winter Games will further the development of winter sports in Kazakhstan and the Central Asian region.” Minister of Culture and Sport of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Mr. Arystanbek Mukhamediuly commented.

Almaty 2022

The host city for the 2022 Winter Olympics at the 128th IOC Session in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on July 31, 2015.