LAUSANNE — Seeking to cut into Beijing's status as favorite, leaders of the Kazakh bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics told the IOC Tuesday that Almaty presents the ideal choice for a “real” winter setting with plenty of natural snow. With the vote less than two months away, Almaty leaders also portrayed their bid as being perfectly in tune with the IOC's “Olympic Agenda 2020” reform program that calls for affordable Games and maximum use of existing venues. Almaty and Beijing made presentations at a “technical briefing” at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne attended by 85 of the International Olympic Committee's 101 members. The closed-door presentations could be vital in swaying opinion ahead of the secret IOC ballot in Kuala Lumpur on July 31. — Reuters
