Should Kazakhstan's business capital Almaty win the right to host the 2022 Winter Olympics it would help improve the oil-dependent Central Asian state's human rights record, the bid deputy chairman Andrey Kryukov told AFP on Wednesday.
The country, ruled by President Nursultan Nazarbayev since independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, struggles with a poor human rights image as does their sole rival for the hosting of the Games, China, whose capital city Beijing is their candidate.
Kryukov, speaking by phone after Almaty had hosted the International Olympic Committee's Evaluation Commission, the only IOC members permitted to visit bidding cities, said victory would have far-reaching consequences.
"We look on human rights through the Olympic Charter prism," he said. "We are, though, a state that is only just over 20 years old.
"The Games will provide us with the experience to make things better. We must be much better."
Kryukov said the leaders of Kazkahstan and fellow former Soviet Republics like Azerbaijan, who are hosting the inaugural European Games in June, and Turkmenistan, who will host the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Art Games, believe sport can help in the development of a country.
"The reality is we want to be better, we want to grow into a model society," he said. "However, it is not so easy to do, it is a big high jump.
"However, the most important thing is that the president understands the power of sports.
"Don't forget we (Kazakhstan) were the first to host the a major Games in the region in 2011 (they co-hosted with Astana the Asian Winter Games).
"We are constantly trying to improve our status. In 2017 we will host the University Games.
"Thus we are accumulating experience from event to event."
- Not a backwater -
Kryukov said the latest poll findings by the IOC revealed 85% of the population were in favour of hosting the Games, up from 65% when the campaign first started, with 10% against, and remarked that the visit by the Evaluation Commission had been useful for both parties.
In particular, it permitted the bid team to show how compact their Games would be, in stark contrast to Beijing which will have the alpine skiing events up to 220 kilometres (140 miles) from the city.
It had enabled Kryukov, born and bred in Almaty, and his team to show the IOC members they had not been joking when they said the ski jumping could be watched from the best hotel in downtown Almaty.
"From that hotel they have a view of the ski jumping hills," he said. "The venue is also a five-kilometre walk from the smartest shopping district.
"It's not in a backwater outside the city. The Commission could feel that the atmosphere was that of a traditional winter sports city.
"It is impossible to bring that sort of atmosphere into a city if you don't have a history of winter sports.
"Some of our venues are over 50 years old. Also, with regard to the personnel involved, you cannot replace locals with English-speakers.
"We showed the Commission real local people, experts in the field of winter sports, and some of the presentations by them were rather emotional."
The Evaluation Commission, headed by former Russian Deputy Prime Minister and now IOC member Alexander Zhukov, will visit Beijing from March 24-28.
The 100-plus members of the IOC will vote on who hosts the Games on July 31 in Kuala Lumpur.
Source: AFP