2006 WINTER OLYMPIC & PARALYMPIC GAMES

 

XX WINTER OLYMPICS 2006 - TURIN
in ITALY

Turin beat Helsinki in Finland, Klagenfurt in Austria, Popard-Tatry in Slovakis, Sion in Switzerland and Zakopane in Poland to host the 2006 Winter Olympic Games.

It is expected that over 2500 athletes will take part in the 2006 games in Turin, participating in the various winter Olympic disciplines and competing for around 82 medals. Something like 2000 officials and judges and over 9000 from the media will also be in Turin.

The last time Italy hosted the Winter Olympics was in 1956.

Turin's organising committee is known as TOROC and has been busy promoting and encouraging the whole of Italy to get behind the forthcoming Winter Olympic Games to be held between 10th and 26th February 2006 in the northern town of Turin, high in the mountains in the Piemonte region. The Winter Paralympics will follow from 10th to 19th March 2006.

April 2004 saw the innovative "Openvillage" start its tour of Italy to promote the games. A tour which will last until November 2005.

The idea has been planned with the involvement of a number of organisations and local authorities and will include visits to schools in areas hosting the village.

The "Village" includes a large inflatable dome where, thanks to special effects, visitors will be able to enjoy a fantastic, multi-sensory experience of many of the winter games disciplines:with skiers and skaters appearing to come to life all around them. There will also be stands where official promotional merchandise can be bought, as well as various quizzes and competitions to test the Olympic knowledge of visitors. From time to time,visitors will have the chance to meet athletes and sporting champions, past and present. The Village will be open at the weekends during its scheduled stops across Italy.

By giving the public the opportunity to see what the games are all about, it is hoped to whip up enthusiasm and support throughout the whole of Italy, especially during the final lead-up to the games.

The Olympic Torch will also make a circuitous, 2 month long, journey across Italy's 20 regions;again to try and involve the whole country.

The mascots for the 2005 Turin Olympic Games are a snowball called Neve and an ice cube called Gliz and the emblem chosen for the Turin games is a modern depiction of the spirit of the Olympics.