The Association of National Olympic Committees’ general assembly recently unanimously approved the ANOC executive council’s recommendation to select San Diego as the host city of the inaugural 2017 World Beach Games.
The Olympic-style, multi-sport event, which is expected to have a budget of $150 million, will be held at Mission Beach and could feature more than 20 sports, including beach tennis, soccer, volleyball, surfing, jet skiing, triathlon, track and field and basketball, according to Yahoo.com. “We were very impressed by the plan that San Diego put forward,” said ANOC president Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah. “As part of the process that selected San Diego, a report from Dow Jones Sport Intelligence was commissioned. This enabled us to independently research and verify important event related criteria for the ANOC World Beach Games. “We have worked closely with industry experts to devise an innovative concept which will blend sport, culture and entertainment and we believe that San Diego is the perfect city to deliver our vision. The ANOC World Beach Games is completely aligned with Olympic Agenda 2020 and will be something new and exciting that people have not seen before. It will help NOCs to reconnect with a whole generation of young people and deliver a positive and lasting legacy for the Olympic Movement.”
ANOC has received interest from many cities around the world to host the first ANOC World Beach Games. The ANOC executive council studied the Dow Jones Sport Intelligence comprehensive report before selecting San Diego during its meeting in Washington, D.C on Oct. 28.
The general assembly unanimously approved San Diego as the host city of the ANOC World Beach Games. Following the approval, the San Diego exploratory committee was invited to present its concept to the 204 NOCs in attendance.
The ANOC president wanted to create an event which will add real value and allow NOCs to engage with millions of young people around the world. To fulfill this vision, the ANOC World Beach Games will move beyond a traditional multi-sport event and incorporate many different cultural and entertainment events into its program. More than 20 sports are expected on the sports program, with some sports to be voted on by the NOCs as ANOC tries to ensure that all NOCs are actively involved in the development of the event.
