Highlights of Singapore Olympics Youth Games Candidature

Highlights of Singapore Olympics Youth Games Candidature
(obtained from the Singapore2010.sg)

Concept and legacy
· A concept that fully embraces Olympic values of Excellence, Friendship and Respect was developed.

· Through close partnerships with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the International Federations and the National Olympic Committees, creative presentations of sports will be achieved through fully integrated Sport, Education and Culture programmes.

· With unity of purpose among all agencies and full commitment of the government, the Organising Committee is capable of delivering a model Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in two and a half years.


Education and Culture
· The Education and Culture Programme (ECP) is designed to provide an enriching and transformative experience for all participants. It is designed and delivered by young people, for young people, to inspire young people.

· The innovative and modular programme will be delivered through four modalities, namely, learning, contributing, interacting and celebrating.

· The new media platform will be extensively used to reach out to youths worldwide by developing youth communities and strengthening the connections between young people even before the YOG begins.

Sports and venues
· offers a unique blend of compactness and vibrancy to the sports programme and venues concept.

· All competition venues will be within 30 minutes’ travel time of the Youth Olympic Village and the Olympic Family hotels.
· Singapore 2010 proposes an exciting and youth-oriented sports competition and entertainment experience.

· All 26 sports of the Summer Olympic Games will be included in the YOG.

Youth Olympic Village
· New, integrated University Town set to be ready by February 2010 will be used as Youth Olympic Village (YOV). Designed as a high-quality residential and educational community environment for young people, it is conducive for multicultural interaction and learning.

· The tropical campus of the YOV will occupy a 19-hectare former golf course and be built using environmentally sustainable design concepts.

· The YOV offers exceptional proximity to all sports venues- some 70 per cent of sports competition venues will be within 20 minutes’ travel time, while all will be within 30 minutes.

Security
· Singapore’s reliability of police services ranked highest in the Global Competitiveness Report. Security agencies will collaborate with their international security network and the IOC Security Advisor during the YOG.

· An integrated approach will be used to build robust event-specific plans that address all aspects of security and law and order, while retaining the spirit of the YOG.

· The Singapore Police Force can tailor its resources to the scale of the event and the level of risk.

Political and economic climate and structure
· Singapore is a parliamentary democracy with a strong and stable government. It is single-tiered with no regional or local authorities.

· All government agencies are fully united in supporting Singapore’s bid and totally committed to delivering a well-executed Youth Olympic Games. Government agencies and sports fraternity are united and work closely together.

· To ensure a seamless transition from the bid phase to the organising committee phase, Singapore will continue with the multi-agency set-up used in bidding for the YOG.

Legal aspects
· The Second Minister for Finance, on behalf of the Government of Singapore, covenants that the Government of Singapore will respect the provisions of the Olympic Charter and the Youth Olympic Games Host City Contract.

· All necessary legal measures have been taken, or will be taken, to protect the Olympic-related marks and designations in the name of the IOC.

· Singapore has a highly effective legal system for protecting intellectual property rights.

Customs and immigration formalities
· Immigrations and customs clearance in Singapore is fast and efficient.

· Work permit procedures are also simple and efficient.

· 171 National Olympic Councils (NOC), or over 80 percent of NOCs do not require a visa upon entry into Singapore.

· Games-time accreditation will be integrated with the entry-visa application process.

Finance
· A prudent, conservative and thorough budgeting process was developed; the Singapore bid was budgeted at USD 75.411 million.

· The Government of Singapore will act as the ultimate financial guarantor and will provide all financial guarantees towards the hosting of the Youth Olympic Games.
· The Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee (YOGOC) will be formed as a body within the Government of Singapore and will not be subjected to any income taxes.

· The YOGOC does not intend to hold a lottery for the purpose of financing the YOG in 2010.

Marketing
· The Government of Singapore will sign a binding agreement with the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) for the YOG marketing programme. Under the agreement, the SNOC will assign all rights in marketing and sponsorship to the YOGOC.

· Singapore, a financial and commercial powerhouse, is home to more than 7,000 multinational corporations and many home-grown, world-class brand names potentially interested in providing sponsorship for the YOG.

· The YOGOC will work closely with SISTIC, an experienced and committed ticketing partner, on a ticketing strategy and programme.

Medical services and doping control
· In 2000, the World Health Organisation ranked Singapore as having the best healthcare system in Asia and is renowned for having one of the world’s best healthcare systems.

· The travel time from YOV and Olympic Family hotels to the nearest hospital is no more than 10 minutes, with emergency medical services available at all venues.

Accommodation
· According to the 2006 Union of International Associations and the International Conference and Convention Association, Singapore is ranked in the top three international convention cities in the world.

· 39, 000 hotel rooms are located within 20 km of city centre, meeting all YOG needs of compactness and vibrancy.

Transport
· Singapore’s world-class transportation infrastructure provides safe, efficient and reliable Games-time transport.

· Free public transport will be provided for all accredited personnel and event ticket-holders.

· All YOG vehicles will be tracked by GPS and Olympic Lanes will be designated along key routes for even speedier access to all YOG venues.

· Also a major air hub, Singapore is connected to more than 130 airports worldwide and 80 international airlines operate scheduled services via Singapore to 191 cities in 59 countries.

Technology
· A world leader for effective global communications, Singapore is consistently among the top nations in several global Information Communication Technology rankings.

· Athletes and the Olympic Family will enjoy content and services tailored specially for them through the Digital Concierge service, a joint project by the IDA and the Singapore Tourism Board. Every participant will have access to YOG-related services on the move.

Media Operations
· Singapore is a global hub for communications.

· The YOG’s Main Media Centre will be located centrally at the Marina Bay Sands resort. There are 2, 500 rooms and is in an extremely convenient location. It also has excellent supporting facilities, accommodation, transport and attractions for the media.

· Young journalists both locally and internationally will be involved in covering the YOG, in line with the YOG’s vision to be a Games delivered by young people for young people.