London 2012 woes top IOC board meeting agenda

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 26 (Reuters) A rapid reversal of fortunes for the organisation of the London 2012 Summer Olympics will top the agenda at this week's International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Executive Board meeting in Kuwait when progress is discussed.

In just 16 months London's preparations have gone from spectacular to controversial as organisers squabble over rising costs, politics and the legacy the Games will leave behind.

Until the October resignation of American businessman Jack Lemley as chairman of the Olympic Delivery Authority, preparations looked well ahead of schedule.

But Lemley's sudden departure marked a turning point with progress now overshadowed by a sharp budget rise, an unexpected VAT bill, increased security concerns and question marks over the post-Games legacy for the capital.

''Obviously London progress will be discussed at the meeting (on November 28-29),'' an IOC official told Reuters. IOC chief inspector for London Denis Oswald will deliver a report on the second day of the meeting.

Oswald has praised London, saying no other Olympic city had been as advanced in preparing for the Games as the English capital.

Alarmed by the Games' ballooning costs and size, the IOC drew up a plan three years ago to reduce organising budgets and make the Games more attractive to bid cities.

BEIJING ON TRACK London's problems, where all 100-plus proposed changes to reduce the size of the Games will be in place, is the last thing the IOC wants.

Beijing on the other hand seems set to please the IOC with preparations well on track for 2008. Most venues, some of them breathtaking, are in their final stage of construction. Free press and free access issues for media though remain a thorn for Chinese organisers.

Vancouver, which also faces rising costs due to a construction boom in western Canada, is also forging ahead for the 2010 Winter Olympics after an upward budget review earlier this year.

Broadcast revenues, though, still need to be finalised with the IOC which is changing its formula for broadcast rights allocation for host cities.

Both cities' progress will also be reviewed in Kuwait.

An Austrian skiing scandal during this year's Winter Olympics in Turin could again come into focus with the IOC expected to review the case.

''It is very possible that this issue will come up at the board meeting,'' the IOC official said, refusing to say whether any disciplinary decision will be taken.

A banned coach's presence prompted the IOC to launch coordinated night-time raids with the Italian police on the hotels of the Austrian cross-country and biathlon teams and test ten Austrian athletes for doping. All were found to be clean.

The coach has since sued IOC president Jacques Rogge for defamation of character.

It is still unclear how this case will affect the Austrian city of Salzburg's bid to host the 2014 Winter Games. South Korea's Pyongchang and the Russian Black Sea port of Sochi are also shortlisted.

Reuters PM GC1522