Pyeongchang, South Korea Awarded 2018 Winter Olympics

The city of Pyeongchang, South Korea tried twice, unsuccessfully, to land the Winter Olympics in years past. It seems that the third time was the charm. Defeating Munich, Germany and Annecy, France to be chosen to host the games, the South Korean city received 63 of 95 votes, with Munich and Annecy receiving 25 and 7, respectively. South Korea lost out on bids in 2010 and 2014, but all's well that ends well in this case.

Pyeongchang will also be the first Asian city outside Japan to ever host the Winter Games. Japan has previously held the Winter Olympics in 1972 and 1998. When the news was announced, delegates from South Korea burst into cheers. IOC President Jacque Rogge opened the sealed envelope and read these words" "The International Olympic Committee has the honor of announcing that the 23rd Olympic Winter Games in 2018 are awarded to the city of Pyeongchang."

Proving that the city was a popular choice, this was the first in an Olympic bid contest that had more than two finalists was decided in the first round since 1995, when Salt Lake City easily defeated three other cities to be granted the 2002 Winter Games. The slogan of Pyeongchang is "New Horizons" and the city has campaigned to receive the Games based on the fact that it will spread the Olympics to new markets in Asia and, in turn, become a bastion of winter sporting in the region. The award to South Korea also follows a recent trend by the IOC, which also awarded Winter Games to Russia and a South American country (Brazil) in 2014 and 2016, respectively.