The cozy alpine styled InterContinental Hotel will be home to the IOC in the bid plan / Intercontinental Hotel

read more... »

(Center) Nawal El Moutawakel chairing the Rio 2106 evaluation visit (L to R) Craig Reedie, Jacqueline Barrett, Nawal El Moutawakel and Gilbert Felli / Rio 2016

read more... »

Paula Radcliffe and Dennie Phelps / GettyImages

read more... »

By STEPHEN WILSON AP Sports Writer

LONDON(AP)—The world’s largest consumer products company signed on as a global Olympic sponsor Wednesday, the second multi-million-dollar marketing deal this month for the International Olympic Committee.

IOC president Jacques Rogge unveiled the 10-year agreement with American-based giant Procter & Gamble Co. at a news conference in London.

read more... »

11th Olympic worldwide partner announced

28 Jul 2010The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has announced that Procter and Gamble (P&G) will join The Olympic Partners (TOP) Programme.

P&G will be an official Olympic worldwide partner in the ‘personal care and household products’ category until 2020, including the London 2012 Olympic Games. As part of the agreement, P&G will also partner the IOC and the National Olympic Committees around the world.

read more... »

By Neil Maidment

LONDON, July 27 (Reuters) - Olympic quadruple gold medallists Chris Hoy and Michael Johnson tried out London’s 2012 Games facilities on Tuesday, two years to the day before the Games begin.

Cyclist Hoy took to the track in the Velodrome, watched by construction workers who enthusiastically downed tools to witness the Scotsman do a couple of laps.

read more... »

NEW DELHI (AP)—The Indian government is threatening to cut off funding to sports federations that refuse to comply with controversial age and tenure limitations, a move that is likely to put the authorities further at odds with the International Olympic Committee.

Angry that more than a third of the 68 associations have ignored the new regulations, Sports Minister M S Gill told the Press Trust of India that only those that comply will be eligible for financial grants and other benefits.

read more... »

By Julian Linden

NEW YORK, July 16 (Reuters) - The preparations for the next few Olympics are all going according to plan and with no major problems looming, International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge has been able to think about his own plans for when he steps down from the most powerful job in sport in 2013.

“I’ll catch up with my older books that I could not read because of lack of time,” the former Olympic sailor and rugby international told Reuters in an interview on Friday of his plans when he stands down after having spent 12 years in the role.

read more... »

NEW YORK (AP)—Dow Chemical announced its new 10-year deal with the International Olympic Committee on Friday, making it the official “chemistry company” for the games.

The American giant became a top-tier sponsor through 2020. Olympic and Dow officials declined to reveal terms, but IOC marketing commission chairman Gerhard Heiberg said the value of deals was increasing even with the global financial crisis. Each four-year IOC sponsorship contract usually goes for up to $100 million.

“The five Olympic rings are the only medium that we have in the world that is recognized by 95 percent of the global population,” said Dow vice president Heinz Haller. “Developing countries, developed countries, mature economies, emerging economies.”

read more... »

KEIR RADNEDGE / Sports Features Communications

LONDON/MUNICH, Jul 17: Willy Bogner has rejected suggestions of a crisis over Munich’s 2018 Winter Olympics bid. Bogner, bid ceo, was responding to media questions after claims of a disagreement over proposals for the involvement of nearby Garmisch-Partenkirchen.

The unique feature of the Munich bid is that, if it beat off competition from Annecy and PyeongChang when the IOC votes next July it would be the first city to have hosted both summer and winter Games. But that involves staging some ice events at Konigsee as well as Alpine events in Garmisch.

read more... »