IOC CHOOSES FOUR FINALISTS FOR WINTER 2002

     As expected, the IOC named Ostersund, Sweden; Salt Lake
City, Utah; Quebec City; and Sion, Switzerland as the four
finalists for the 2002 Winter Games (THE DAILY).  Tom Welch,
president of the Salt Lake Bid Committee, said yesterday the city
would not bid again if "this campaign comes up empty." Welch said
the reason would not be for "lack of feeling for the Olympic
movement," but rather the fact "that for 10 years now we have
drawn on the resources of our community to fund this campaign.
... We'll take a breather.  We'll let someone else carry the
baton."  Salt Lake lost the '98 bid, but is the "favorite" to
land the 2002 Games.  For the two campaigns, Welch said the bid
committee has spent close to $14M in private funds to land the
Games.  The four finalists now have five months to "make final
pitches and entertain visiting IOC representatives before the
full IOC elects the winner in Budapest, Hungary on June 16
(Melissa Turner, ATLANTA CONSTITUTION, 1/24).