Norwegian NOC Chief Receives Death Threat

(ATR) The head of the Norwegian Olympic committee, who is leaving his post, received a death threat linked to Oslo’s 2022 Olympic bid.

"Mr. [Børre] Rognlien did receive a letter he perceived as threatening. The letter was handed over to the police for investigation," Per Tøien, head of communications for the Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Confederation of Sports, tells Around the Rings.

He said Rognlien "has made it clear that this threat has nothing to do with his decision not to stand for re-election as NOC president."

The costs and benefits of Oslo’s 2022 bid provoked fierce debate across Norway before the government brought the axe down on the project last month due to financial issues and IOC demands.

Rognlien was a key figure in the debate as he and the Oslo 2022 bid team sought to lobby government ministers to back the Olympic ambition.

The NOC spokesman said Rognlien’s decision not to stand for re-election as president was "based on a thorough consideration on his part. He has served Norwegian sports on all levels for 52 consecutive years. He feels that it's the right decision to hand over the position after serving four years as president."

"His decision not to stand for re-election at the NOC General Assembly in 2015 has, according to himself, matured over a period of time," Tøien said.

"His main goal for his presidency has been to fulfill as many of the goals that the Norwegian sports movement set for his term at the General Assembly back in 2011.

"All the hard work that he has done throughout the entire Oslo 2022 bid process has just made it even clearer for him that his decision to step aside next year is the right one for him."

Commenting on Oslo’s bid demise, Tøien said the reasons for the no-vote from the governmental parties are "complex."

"But it was indeed a challenging political situation in the government, with the junior coalition partner (the Progress Party) already having a no-vote from their Annual General Assembly in May this year.

"The public debate turned very emotional, and the public polls were not in favor of the Oslo 2022 bid project."

Reported by Mark Bisson

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