Ben Avison (BA): It has been said that cities are becoming less interested in hosting major multi-sports events than smaller championships. Do you think that’s true of your events? How keen do you think cities are on hosting your own events?

Jeongkang Seo (JS): Smarter cities carefully assess the return on investment and may find it not very attractive to host mega events which require huge investment if there is no matching benefit. Taekwondo is a relatively cost-effective sport which does not require any huge investment but is capable of bringing competitive values and leaving strong legacy, so we are finding more cities showing interests in hosting our events based on our measurable value proposition.

Shiny Fang (SF): In our case cities are quite keen – it’s all about the anticipation and expectation of the cities. Before they bid for competitions they want to know what would happen and what are the opportunities. We have many cities bidding for our competitions, but we try to divide different levels of competition. When we choose cities, the world championships go to bigger cities and smaller events go to some smaller cities which are more suitable hosts in terms of infrastructure and facilities.

BA: The World Taekwondo Championships this year is in Muju, the home of taekwondo. How important is it to take your sport to new regions as well?

JS: Hosting events is a very effective way of developing a sport in a country or a region. It creates new national heroes who inspire spectators and TV audiences to take up the sport. Five medals were taken by African nations at the Rio 2016 Games and taekwondo is now increasingly popular there. So, it is undeniable that it is stable to go to the region where taekwondo is already developed and popular, but equally it is critical to find the less-developed place for the purpose of sport development.

BA: People talk a lot about the importance of readiness for events – we hear examples of cities that are only just ready in time and in the worst case scenario it become apparent they are not going to be ready. How important is this for you and how does it impact your choice of host city?

SF: In our discussions, we always talk about the working relationship and how closely the city and federation can work together to host the event. Even though we are aspiring to the highest standards you still have to rely on local partnerships; sometimes they will wait until the last moment and they will say they are ready when actually they are still not ready. It’s a constant struggle but it’s not impossible to find solutions.

Good project planning is essential for anyone, including the IOC, the IFs and not only in sport but in industry. Therefore when we choose a working partner it’s important to examine how precise they can be and how confident you can be in your expectations of the plan together.

JS: If a city has clear objectives and has willingness to collaborate with the right holders as partner, I think it will be able to prepare events quickly and to a high standard. We are also providing the host cities with support program called STEP (Support taekwondo event program) to ensure the host cities clearly understand operational requirements for hosting our event in every stage in the lead up to actual organization. So, I would say that close collaboration and partnership are more important than readiness.

BA: You mentioned the importance of partnerships there – how important is the alignment between city and national governments?

SF: I think it’s super important. Especially when bigger sized competitions and the national federations have limited resources. It is a significant commitment from the federations, so they need to have the support of the local authority government or central government. It is very important. Our new bidding procedure enables us to award a competition to a city instead of a national federation – of course they will be involved in any case but mainly on the technical side. At the end of the day a competition is not only a competition, it’s an event, so you need effort and input from all sides.

JS: Strong and sustainable partnership among themselves will ensure smooth preparations and everlasting legacies. For example, the City of Manchester built such a strong relationship with the national taekwondo organization, matching their long-term strategies. The city helped build the national training center and the national federation is teaching self-respect and self-discipline to young kids in the city. Also partnering with UK sport, they presented three events in three years, a plan that perfectly matched our long term strategy as well. We are encouraging this know-how with other potential cities at our annual Partnership Workshop program.

BA: In an age where events are mainly experienced remotely via TV and digital, does it make a difference where an event is hosted?

SF: I would say yes, because you have a better atmosphere inside a competition than outside that can seriously affect the whole production. If you want to show the best images that sum up the drama and excitement of your competition, you have show how excited people are on site watching.

JS: These days, there are several different ways to consume sports, so it is of course important to produce high quality production and utilise social media to effectively deliver the footage to the audience at home but it is equally important to create great atmosphere onsite as it improves the experience for those watching from their homes. Spectators have a vital role to play in contributing to the success of the event, transmitting vivid impression of the sport from venue.

BA: Is it possible to evaluate all factors in a bidding procedure – for example the venues, broadcast infrastructure and local culture? How do you select your cities bearing all these things in mind?

JS: Hosting an event is a partnership between an IF and a city and it should be a collaborative process. Both parties have to benefit from the partnership and as an IF we must not be too prescriptive. We ask questions in the bid file where they need to answer: What’s the purpose of bidding? What’s the legacy you want to leave? What’s your capacity for producing all these requirements? By answering the questions the bidders already have in their mind if the event is suitable for them or not and at the same time we are able to evaluate the capacities and suitability of the cities who want to organize our events.

BA: Another approach might be to have a range of events that are suitable for different types of cities. In the case of the UIPM I know you have the Laser-Run that be held in different venues…

SF: Sure. In certain competitions you always have set criteria. Within those criteria you can always enlarge the number of spectators, so you can award the event based on the final bidders. The criteria are clear; you always have to have a basic host standard which you cannot compromise.

For IFs, to be very practical, we are looking for cities to have the ability to host the competition – that’s goal number one. Only when you have a place where you know things will happen according to your requirements are you safe. We are not in a bad situation for bidding cities but the commercial valuation of our sport is not simple. For sponsorship and partnerships it’s not easy for any sport.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach has admitted the Olympic Games bidding process is an issue that “cannot be ignored”, despite the strong support of broadcasters, sponsors and rights holders.

After the withdrawal of Budapest, Hamburg and Rome, just two candidate cities – Los Angeles and Paris – are left in the race to host the 2024 Summer Olympic Games. And now Stockholm has announced it will not bid for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games.

Bach said the Olympic Games are being used for political aims in some countries.

“What we have seen is a change in the decision-making procedures in different countries – particularly in Europe but also elsewhere,” he told delegates at the General Assembly of the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO) in Uruguay.

“I do not need to go into detail about how the Olympic Games is used for political purposes by groups in some countries.

"We have to understand that our candidature procedure is giving arguments for this as it is too expensive and too complicated. “

Budapest and Hamburg both withdrew from bidding for 2024 after holding referendums.

Similarly, the 2022 Winter Games bidding procedure was reduced to two contenders – Beijing and Almaty – after the withdrawal of the European cities of Stockholm, Lviv, Krakow and Oslo.

And shortly after Bach’s comments, it emerged that Stockholm is now withdrawing from bidding for the 2026 Games due to a lack of cross-party support and clarity around finances.

Stockholm Mayor Karin Wanngard said in a statement: "We Social Democrats have always thought that the Olympic Games are important for Stockholm's growth and development… Unfortunately, we are alone to have this position about the Olympic Games."

Speaking in Uruguay, Bach said “The good old times are over with regard to candidature procedure.

“Today hardly any Mayor or political authority can go to their population and say, ‘Let’s try again, and maybe we will win’ after spending millions on an unsuccessful bid.

“Maybe it will change back in five or 10 years, but it is not possible today.”

Bach stressed that, despite the apparent lack of enthusiasm from host cities for hosting the games, the Olympic Games remains commercially secure with long term agreements with sponsors and broadcasters in place.

"We have contracts on the TV side until 2032 and we have TOP sponsors on board until 2028 and there are more in the pipeline."

He also said relationships with rights holders was stronger than ever.

Such is the level of concern about the prospects for future Olympic bids that a working group comprising four IOC vice presidents is currently assessing the possibility of awarding the 2024 and 2028 Summer Olympic Games simultaneously to Los Angeles and Paris.

The host city election for 2024 – and potentially 2028 – takes place in Lima in September.

The UK Government has asked cities interested in hosting the 2022 Commonwealth Games to develop and submit plans for staging the event, with multi-city proposals to be considered.

It says applications will be assessed in a “fair and transparent competition process”, with factors to be assessed including: “the economic benefits the Games could deliver to the UK – and to the host city or cities – through international trade, investment and tourism opportunities, and how potential host cities could benefit as well as the necessary infrastructure and major event delivery experience that potential host cities have.”

Applications from individual cities will also be assessed to ensure they offer “value for money”. Liverpool has already announced a bid for the Games. 

This bid coordination by the UK government is a new approach. For previous Commonwealth Games, bids from British cities have been led from within England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and their Commonwealth Games Associations.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport says it will “work with interested cities and the relevant Commonwealth Games Associations on a detailed assessment of whether Britain can step in to host the event in 2022”.

“Hosting the Commonwealth Games in 2022 could give us an opportunity to step up and show the very best of Global Britain as an outward-looking nation that is confident on the world stage. So it’s only right that we look into the potential for hosting one of the world’s biggest sporting events on home soil,” said Culture Secretary Karen Bradley.

“Britain has a wealth of expertise in staging major sports events, inspiring people to get involved in sport and helping to grow our economy. The British people embrace these events and always give a warm welcome to the world. I would urge cities to consider if they have the desire and capability to stage the Games in 2022 as they could bring benefits not just to their city but across the country.”

The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) reopened the bidding procedure after confirming that Durban would no longer be hosting the Games. The CGF has invited cities to express interest by 28 April and has said it hopes to determine a new host city in 2017.

UK Sports Minister Tracey Crouch has written to the CGF to confirm the UK’s interest as a potential host in 2022.

“The London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games showed the appetite and enthusiasm that the British people have for supporting major sporting events,” she said.

“Now that the Commonwealth Games Federation need to find a new host for 2022, we want to hear from cities interested in repeating the triumphs of London, Glasgow and Manchester before it in 2002. We will then weigh up whether the UK should step in to host, looking at the opportunities to promote Global Britain and deliver a lasting legacy at good value for taxpayers.”

The UK government statement said it will decide whether or not to put in a formal bid by the end of the year.

Interested cities who require further information should email: CG2022@culture.gov.uk

Following the decision to strip Durban of the 2022 games, the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has revealed that it wants to name a replacement host city by the end of this year.

After being awarded the 2022 games in September 2015, it was decided in March this year that the South African city would not meet key criteria set out in the CGF bidding process.

Since that decision was made as many as nine candidate cities had expressed “some informal interest” after the CGF again opened up the bidding process.

Speaking to a select group of journalists at SportAccord Convention, CGF CEO David Grevemberg said that prospective host cities have until April 28 to submit interest in replacing Durban. Once that deadline has passed the CGF will begin evaluating each bid book.

“Nine cities have expressed some informal interest,” said Grevemberg. “We are now looking to make that process more formal.

“We have put out a clear call for interests by April 28. Then we will evaluate those submissions and go through a process. We are purposely agile because we need to move this as fast and furious as possible but we also need to have a timeline.

“Let’s see how many cities come forward. We don’t want cities to waste money through a laborious bid process. We want to be very streamlined in this approach and leverage as much value as we can for the new prospective hosts and federations.”

English cities Birmingham, Liverpool, London and Manchester have reportedly expressed interest in 2022 as well as speculation that Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur and cities in Canada could pose rival bids. Even a number of Australian cities could target 2022 despite the Gold Coast winning the rights to host the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

Despite this, Grevemberg says that every bid will be assessed. He added: “There are no bids off the table right now, but we have to look at what’s the best interests for the movement, what are our real options and we just need to go through the process right now.

“I don’t want to be too speculative on any particular cities or decision because we have enough agility. The notion of extraordinary circumstances requires extraordinary process. We will continue to be vigilant and sticking to our principles on this process.

“We don’t take the expressions of interests for granted at all and we recognise we need to evaluate a partner and not just be an auditor in the process.”

The International Association of Event Hosts (IAEH) came together from across the globe for the annual IAEH Forum at SportAccord Convention in Aarhus, Denmark yesterday to discuss and vote on the structure of the organisation.

Representatives from 24 of the 34 member organisations voted on the incorporation of the IAEH as a charity under English law, overseen by the Charities Commission in England. The establishment of a Charitable Incorporated Organisation was unanimously approved.

IAEH founding members Iain Edmondson from London & Partners and Devorah Blumberg from New Zealand Major Events said that the vote is a milestone in the association’s development. 

Edmondson said: "The agreement from members to incorporate the IAEH is a huge step forward for us as an association. It signals that we are globally aligned in our thinking as event hosts. The formalisation of the association provides a platform for growth as the global network for sharing our knowledge".

Blumberg went on to say: "The incorporation of the association will also provide members with an international shared voice for hosts of major events. We invite cities, regions and countries that aren't already involved in the network to join now and enjoy the benefits of working with peers on a global scale.

The membership discussed nine priority areas for knowledge sharing and the calendar of meetings for the period ahead. Of the priority areas for discussion the group identified a clear front runner of interest to event hosts - measuring economic and social benefits. Other subjects which were front of mind for members included attracting visiting tourists and alternative sources of funding. Members will discuss these priority areas in greater depth as part of the IAEH work programme.

Throughout 2017 IAEH members will have four more opportunities to meet ahead of the Annual Forum in 2018 which is usually timed with SportAccord Convention. IAEH members also met at Host City 2016 in Glasgow. Members see these meetings as valuable opportunities for sharing experiences from hosting major events with a focus on overcoming challenges and measuring success.

Events have the power to inspire and change people’s lives in a number of different ways. They can generate economic growth, international and domestic profile as well as a wide range of social and cultural benefits for their hosts, both through their immediate impact and through any subsequent legacy or long term development.

Measuring and reporting the impact of an event are fundamental when evaluating the success of an event, and is vital for any future planning.

Recognising the importance for the need for a good evaluation tool for the UK events industry, partner organisations worked together to develop eventIMPACTS.

Launched in 2010, the online toolkit comprises of key guidance and good practice principles to help event organisers improve their evaluation of the outcomes – attendance, economic, environmental, social and media impacts - associated with staging sporting and cultural events. It caters for events of all sizes and categorises impacts into groups based on their potential complexity and cost to measure.

eventIMPACTS was created out of the belief that no event should be staged without an accompanying commitment to measure its success against the objectives initially set and since its launch it has proven itself to be a leading resource for the events industry. Through the use of the tool, consistent evaluation methods, measures and impact assessments provide the ability to model event outcomes and make better forecasts, which in turn improve the industry.

However, just like events must evolve and respond to customers’ needs and changes in technology, so too must the way they evaluate them. Recognising this need, eventIMPACTS has further been developed and now includes updated guidelines relating to social and media impacts. The new guidelines now allow organisers to measure how events positively impact peoples’ behaviour and quantify exposure across a range of media platforms.

These additional resources will allow event organisers to measure social impacts in areas of satisfaction, identity and image, participation and volunteering and skills. Advice on how to measure the media impacts has been extended to include volume of coverage, engagement and tone and value.

These improvements mean organisers across the UK are now better equipped to calculate the overall impact of their events and we know they agree. A survey on the new resources has revealed overwhelmingly positive feedback from the events industry. In particular, it was widely agreed that eventIMPACTS provides a clear structure for assessing the benefits from events.

The co-founder of FOCUS Wales Festival, Neal Thompson, said “eventIMPACTS is now easier to use and reveals much more information on the actual overall contribution our events make. It is such an important resource for highlighting how integral events are, both to the economy and society itself in the UK as a whole.”

The positive response from the industry shows the toolkit fulfils a need in the market and is helping ensure event organisers can see if they achieve the level of impact they desire from their event. 

Just as advances in technology will continue to impact on event delivery, so too will it impact what we measure. Going forward, eventIMPACTS will continue to evolve with the changes within the industry, technology and society, to ensure it continues to be a tool that allows best practice.

To see the toolkit and find out more, visit www.eventimpacts.com

On Thursday 16 March the UK’s sports industry is teaming up with the Department for International Trade (DIT) to take advantage of future global sporting events, taking the success and expertise of the London 2012 Games overseas.

DIT’s annual Global Sports Projects Conference, in London, offers UK companies advice and shared insight into working overseas on sporting projects, and gives tips on best practice, potential pitfalls and the support available.

The UK has long established a worldwide reputation for organising first-class sporting events across the country and overseas. These events have helped to boost economic growth and in 2015, the sport sector contributed £35 billion to the UK economy, increasing by 2.2 per cent since 2014.

International Trade Minister Mark Garnier said: “From Wimbledon to the Grand National, the United Kingdom is renowned for its love of sport and we can use our first-class expertise to help deliver of some of the world’s most exciting major sporting events.

“It’s an open goal for UK companies as there is a global demand for UK goods and services across the sporting world. My department is committed to helping businesses realise their exporting potential and we even want more companies to take full advantage of the opportunities that open up to them.”

The UK has a major sports legacy and the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games is widely recognised as one of the most successful Games in history. By 2020, it’s expected to have contributed between £28 billion and £41 billion to the UK economy.

Since 2012 the UK has successfully staged more than 70 major sporting events including the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games and World Track Championships in 2016. The UK also hosted the most economically successful Rugby World Cup ever in 2015.

Last summer, DIT also directly helped over 40 companies secure business in excess of £150 million for Rio 2016. Looking ahead to future events, the UK has also secured the right to host over 20 Olympic and Paralympic events at European or World level, including 15 World and European Championships.

The Global Sports Projects Conference takes place at Plexal on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park where more than 140 businesses are expected to attend to hear about their exporting opportunities.

It’s a day of panel discussions, presentations and networking; with DIT offering specialist advice to helping UK companies export to their respective markets.

Businesses will be given expert help to capitalise on export opportunities for major sporting events like the Japan 2019 Rugby World Cup and the Tokyo 2020 Olympic & Paralympic Games and the growing football sector in China and India.

Gleneagles, the world-renowned luxury hotel, has been unveiled as an Official Supporter of the Glasgow 2018 European Championships – an exciting new multi-sport event that will see Gleneagles make golfing history as host of the first ever European Golf Team Championships.

The news comes a week after the announcement of Atos as Glasgow 2018’s first Official Supporter.

To be staged every four years, the European Championships will combine the existing European Championships of Athletics, Aquatics, Cycling, Gymnastics, Rowing and Triathlon. The first edition will be held in 2018 in a unique sporting partnership between Host Cities Glasgow and Berlin.

The European Golf Team Championships is the only new event being staged as part of Glasgow 2018 and will take place at the famous Jack Nicklaus-designed Gleneagles PGA Centenary Course – the same venue that hosted Europe’s memorable victory over the USA in the 2014 Ryder Cup.

The Championships promise to be a game changing moment for golf, with Europe’s elite men and women set to compete together for the first time. It is backed by the European Tour and Ladies European Tour and will include a men’s and women’s event along with a ground-breaking mixed competition.  

Host Venue and Official Supporter Gleneagles is home to some of the best golf facilities in the world including three championship courses and the PGA National Golf Academy. Gleneagles is a former long-standing European Tour and Ladies European Tour venue and has unrivalled experience of hosting international events such as The Ryder Cup.

The European Golf Team Championships will also build on Scotland’s reputation as the perfect stage for major events such as The Open, Scottish Open and Women’s British Open as well as major one-off events like The Ryder Cup and The Solheim Cup.

Aileen Campbell MSP, Scottish Government Minister for Sport, said: “Gleneagles has staged many prestigious golf tournaments through its history and was the home to what many regard as the best Ryder Cup ever in 2014. In 2018 Gleneagles will be the magnificent setting for European Championships and will see elite men and women golfers compete together for the first time. 

“In 2014 the Ryder Cup players spoke about the top class facilities, an enthusiastic and knowledgeable crowd and left with good memories and we know it will be the same for those taking part in the inaugural European Championships in 2018.”

Councillor Frank McAveety, Leader of Glasgow City Council, said: “The European Championships will be a new highlight on the global sporting calendar, set to be played out in front of a potential television audience of up to one billion people.

“Gleneagles is a world leader when it comes to golf and we are delighted that they will play such a crucial role in the delivery of the new European Golf Team Championships, which will be a real first for world sport.

“Glasgow is the gateway to Scotland and partnerships such as this with Gleneagles will help us bring one million more people to the city as part of Glasgow’s Tourism and Visitor Plan to 2023.”

Bernard Murphy, Gleneagles’ Managing Director, said: “We’re proud to be associated with what will be a ground-breaking moment in sporting history. The event will build on Gleneagles’ long history of raising the bar in golf and breaking cultural boundaries in sport – including the first match between British and American professionals in 1921.

“We look forward to continuing that tradition at the European Golf Team Championships, when Europe’s leading men and women compete together for the first time, in what will be a real historic moment for the sport.

“We are therefore delighted to be announced as an Official Supporter of Glasgow 2018, and look forward to delivering an inspiring event that will strengthen Gleneagles’ reputation as one of the foremost golfing venues in the world.”

Attendances across Glasgow 2018 are expected to be in the region of 250,000 with registration for priority access to tickets currently available at www.glasgow2018.com for all sports including golf.

As part of the inaugural European Championships in 2018 around 3,000 athletes will visit Scotland for six events (Aquatics, Cycling, Golf, Gymnastics, Rowing and Triathlon) while a further 1,500 athletes will compete in Berlin as part of the European Athletics Championships.

Yoshiro Mori, president of the Tokyo Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games 2020, believes the Sapporo 2017 Asian Winter Games will provide “valuable experience” in the build-up to Tokyo 2020.

The Olympic Council of Asia’s 8th Asian Winter Games opened at the Sapporo Dome in February featuring five sports, 11 disciplines and 64 events at 12 competition venues.

Mori said: “It is a great honour for Japan to be able to host such a prestigious event as the Asian Winter Games for the fourth time. The Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee would like to welcome and wish the best of luck to the athletes from 32 countries and regions who are competing at this birthplace of the Asian Winter Games.

“We would also like to send our best wishes to the organisers who will be able to showcase the best of what Sapporo and Japan have to offer: world-class facilities, a centuries-old culture imbued with a modern and cosmopolitan spirit, as well as a unique Japanese kind of hospitality we call ‘omotenashi’.”

A record 1,200 athletes and 32 National Olympic Committees competed in Sapporo 2017 and Mori added that the logistics behind the Asian Winter Games are important for Tokyo 2020 preparations.

Mori said: “For Tokyo 2020, the Sapporo 2017 Asian Winter Games offers the experts we are engaging in various fields, from transportation to medical services, media operations and venue management, an opportunity to gain valuable experience in advance of the Tokyo 2020 Games.

“For international delegations and sports fans, they also offer a foretaste of the experience that awaits them at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.”