Lausanne summit for Olympic Host Cities

Lausanne, the Olympic Capital and host city of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and more than 20 International Sports Federations, is organising, from 9 to 11 October 2008, the first Summit for Olympic Host Cities. “For each successful edition of the Olympic Games, there has been a strong host city at its core. The Lausanne Summit is the first ever gathering of these Olympic cities, where experiences will be shared to build the platform for the future”, explained Lausanne’s mayor, Daniel Brélaz.

More than 30 cities participating
The Summit will bring together the cities who have organised, will organise, or are considering organising, the Olympic or Youth Olympic Games, both summer and winter. More than 30 cities have already confirmed their participation - a great success and clear sign of the interest in this initiative, which is primarily based on knowledge transfer.

IOC President: “Perfect platform”
The International Olympic Committee backs this initiative as part of its knowledge transfer strategy. "The IOC is committed to ensuring that a city understands, as early as possible, the importance of integrating the Olympic Games into its long-term urban development strategy, in order to leave the best possible urban and sporting legacy to the country, the city and its entire community. This is why the IOC supports the first Lausanne Summit and the General Assembly of the World Union of Olympic Cities, which will be the perfect platform to share and exchange information and knowledge”, said IOC President Jacques Rogge.

Prestigious speakers
The City of Lausanne has succeeded in signing up prestigious keynote speakers for this first Summit. Simon Anholt, the world’s leading specialist in creating brand strategies for countries, cities and regions, will give a keynote speech about how sports events can be used to help a host build its own competitive identity. Michael Knight, former Minister of the Olympics for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, will be joining the impressive list of keynote speakers. He will be addressing the Lausanne Summit on the topic of socio-political opportunities related to hosting the Olympic Games. Gilbert Felli, Olympic Games Executive Director at the IOC, will explain how the bidding, planning and staging of the Olympic Games has changed over the last 10 years.