(ATR) The IOC president says the Olympic legacy of the Nanjing Games will be an emphasis on sustainability.
Thomas Bach learned of the great pains taken to make the event a success when sitting on a chair previously used during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. According to the German, Nanjing 2014's chief accountant made a point to mention that his organizing committee did not buy the chair.
"We just rented the chair for this Youth Olympic Games," the accountant told Bach, "and if the people from Beijing offer us a very good price after the conclusion of the Games, we may consider to buy it."
The IOC chief said this attention to "the last detail of the organization" is a good example for future YOG hosts Lillehammer 2016 and Buenos Aires 2018.
Though Bach could not confirm the rumored $70 million the IOC kicked in to help make the Nanjing event happen – "The accounts have not yet been closed" – he did say the IOC has placed a high priority on making the Games successful and financially feasible.
"We are financing the construction of the Youth Olympic Village," Bach said of Lillehammer,"which of course will be smaller than [Nanjing’s]. We will also do so in Buenos Aires, and that’s already started here."
Bach said he held his first meeting with the Buenos Aires 2018 organizing committee on Tuesday. He said the group "can learn from the sustainable part of the organization here in Nanjing: how they can make the best use of the existing facilities using their great tradition and legacy they have with regard to sport in Argentina."
The IOC president's comments came at his final Nanjing 2014 press conference, hours ahead of the closing ceremony on Thursday night.
"Many sports clubs have facilities," Bach said of the 2018 host city. "How can they be integrated into the organization? How can we make use of the know-how of the people running the clubs?"
He called sustainability a "top priority" in any transfer of knowledge discussions that take place between Nanjing and Buenos Aires.
Written by Nick Devlin in Nanjing
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