Garmisch residents vote to remain alpine host on 2018 bid

According to an Associated Press report, citizens of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, the area slated to host alpine skiing events in Munich’s 2018 Winter Olympic bid, voted Sunday in favor of remaining the bid’s alpine skiing base.

The town, which hosted the 2011 FIS Alpine World Championships in February, heard complaints from many residents who said the Games were just too big for the quiet Bavarian city and would cause financial and environmental damage to the popular ski area.

Preliminary results showed that 58 percent of the local voters were in favor of staying on the bid, which would bring the Winter Olympics to the area for the second time. Garmisch-Partenkirchen also hosted the 1936 Games. About 60 percent of the area’s 21,000 eligible voters weighed in on the matter.

The International Olympic Committee will announce the 2018 host city on July 6. Munich is up against Annecy, France and Pyeongchang, South Korea.

“The result, from our point of view, shows that the majority of the population is really in favor of bringing the Olympics to Garmisch,” Bernhard Schwank, the chief executive of the Munich bid committee told the AP. “It was a very important step tonight to get this clear vote in Garmisch.”