Jacques Rogge, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), announced via live webcast that Singapore will be the host city of the first edition of the Youth Olympic Games to take place in 2010.

Nine cities—Athens, Greece; Bangkok, Thailand; Debrecen, Hungary; Guatemala City, Guatemala; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Moscow, Russian Federation; Poznan, Poland; Singapore, Singapore; and Turin, Italy;—had applied to host the event. Moscow and Singapore were selected as the finalists by IOC’s panel of experts. The final choice was made by the IOC members who cast their vote via post over the last few weeks. Fifty-three of the 105 IOC members entitled to vote chose Singapore and 44 Moscow; IOC members from Russia and Singapore did not vote.

The Youth Olympic Games aim to bring together talented athletes with an age group of 14 to 18, from around the world to participate in high-level competitions, and will also run, alongside the sports element of the event, educational programs on the Olympic values, the benefits of sport for a healthy lifestyle, the social values sport can deliver, and the dangers of doping and of training to excess and/or of inactivity.

The first Summer Youth Olympic Games in Singapore will open on August 14, 2010 and will bring together approximately 3,200 athletes and 800 officials. The sports program will encompass all the sports on the program of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, but with a limited number of disciplines and events.

Where equestrian is concerned, competitions will take part in horse sport’s biggest Olympic discipline, jumping, on borrowed horses. The FEI is currently working on the qualification criteria with the IOC. These will be made available as soon as they have been established.