Olympics: Vancouver favourite to win race for 2010 Winter Games

When the host city for the 2010 Winter Olympics is chosen here today, London and the other contenders for the Summer Games two years later will be as anxious as the three winter candidates - Vancouver, PyeongChang and Salzburg.

Which city the members of the International Olympic Committee choose will have an influence on where the 2012 games will be staged. If Vancouver wins, then the chances of a European city being awarded the Summer Games are enhanced. If the Canadians are not successful, then Toronto will enter the fray for 2012. With Athens due to stage the games next year and Beijing in line for 2008, wisdom has it that an American city will be awarded the 2012 event when the vote is taken in two years' time.

Some IOC members believe that Vancouver has not performed well in the final days of the campaign, which can be crucial when, as in this case, the rival bids are very similar in terms of facilities offered.

The former IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch, who still has influence with the 126 IOC members, has backed Salzburg, while the South Korean city of Pyeong Chang has tempted national committees with the lure of sponsorship by electronics giant Samsung.