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Two days after the reassurances of Thomas Thomas Bach, president of the Pyeongchang Winter Games security, the organizing committee has also arrived today.
Wednesday 13 September 2017 5 minutes reading time
On Monday Bach said there is only one signal that the security of the Games of the next February is in danger due to the state of tension with North Korea and these statements came just on the day when the UN Security Council has decided to step up sanctions against North Koreans because of repeated nuclear tests and threats.
"I do not think any nation will decide not to participate in the Games for Security reasons, there is a clear commitment and we hope that diplomacy and peace can prevail in the Korean peninsula," said Bach. There is no doubt, the 2018 Winter Olympics will be. UN member states are discussing an Olympic truce project, we hope that these debates, to which we will participate, will be successful in such a way that the project will be approved in November by the United Nations General Assembly. "
He was echoed by FIS President and member of IIO Executive Board Gian Franco Kasper: "I am convinced that Pyeonchang will be the safest place in the Games, but I fear that some nations will boycott them because of concerns for their athletes." Today, chairman of the organizing committee Lee Hee-beom has asked all countries, including North Korea and Russia, to participate in the Games. Lee admitted that more needs to be done to promote the event in other countries and that at the end of August only 22.7% of tickets had been sold, the worst case ever so far away from a Winter Olympics.
"We have learned that in some cities in the United States such as Los Angeles, New York and Washington, ticket sales are not particularly active, while in China and especially in Japan, many have complained that the cost of tickets is too high - says Lee, who adds that in South Korea sales were very low outside Seoul, but they are sure to be able to fill the racing places. Another difficulty lies in finding hotel rooms because not all hotels have been completed but Lee has been told that all this will be done by December.
Lee then talked about participating in the NHL Players' Olympics: "I do not think the decision to not participate is definitive so we will continue discussing this issue with the International Ice Hockey Federation." Moving to Russia and North Korea, the participation of the former is still in doubt because of inquiries commissioned by the IOC on alleged state doping in Sochi 2014, while no North Korean athlete is officially qualified for the Games but Lee hopes for some flexibility in case they continue to fail to qualify. "I can not think of an Olympics without Russia or other countries," Lee concludes.
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