Beijing and Almaty contest Winter Olympics in human rights nightmare

The IOC is set to award either Beijing or Almaty the 2022 Games but with both bids prompting so many concerns it is time to restart the process from scratch

On Friday the International Olympic Committee will decide whether Almaty in Kazakhstan or the Chinese capital Beijing will host the 2022 Winter Olympics. Both countries are human-rights nightmares. No matter which city wins, the Olympic movement loses.

Originally the IOC had numerous suitors. But bids for the Games melted away. Voters in Munich, Stockholm, Krakow, and Graubunden, Switzerland, said thanks but no thanks to the Olympics, citing high costs, low public support and security demands. Lviv was forced to pull out due to unrest in Ukraine. Oslo was a clear frontrunner, but its bid was derailed when conservatives and progressives joined forces to say no.

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from Sport | The Guardian http://ift.tt/1I3QYHY