FIFA interview Pipe on 2007

[Guest Jeffery S.]

Out today on fifa.com

http://www.fifa.com/en/news/feature/0,1451,108314,00.html

FIFA World Youth Championship

Canada primed to build on success of Netherlands 2005 Canadian Soccer Chief Operating Officer Kevan Pipe was impressed by what he saw at the FIFA World Youth Championship Netherlands 2005.

FIFA.com

(FIFA.com) 02 Jul 2005

After watching the triumph of the FIFA World Youth Championship Netherlands 2005 unfold, Canadian Soccer Association Chief Operating Officer Kevan Pipe cannot wait to get his hands on the event in two years' time.

With Canada having the honour of hosting the FIFA World Youth Championship in 2007, Pipe was over in Holland on a fact-finding mission throughout the tournament and he clearly liked what he saw.

He told FIFA.com: "The Dutch have put on an absolutely fabulous show. The stadiums, the facilities, the volunteer network... I think there is something we can learn from in literally all strategic aspects and also the way they have been able to focus this incredible attention on the championship.

"There were more than 1,400 media accredited for the event and FIFA itself was able to sell the televised signal to 170-plus countries around the world. The media focus on the event in Holland and worldwide has been nothing short of superlatives, so there are many things that we are learning from already."

Pipe feels that Canada's hosting of the FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship in 2002 laid strong foundations for a successful world youths event and he is now hard at work making sure all six venues are up to the job of delivering a first-class tournament when the planet's most promising players arrive on Canadian soil.

"We've had a pretty good grounding in the basics of running a championship like this," said Pipe. "What we've now got to do is take it from the U-19 Women's level of 12 teams, three sites, two weeks' long and a great tournament and now ramp up for a production that is probably three to four times' the scope in 2007.

"However, we think we've got the people and the facilities and the resources required to achieve that goal. The historical ties between Holland and Canada are extremely strong and full credit to the Dutch people for putting on what is clearly a wonderful show."

Host cities chosen

Toronto, Montreal, Edmonton, Ottawa, Vancouver and Victoria will be the host cities in 2007 and work is already underway in terms of upgrading, planning and building the stadiums well in time.

In Edmonton, the 60,000-seater Commonwealth Stadium is ready to go and concerns about trying to fill such a huge venue for FIFA World Youth Championship matches are something Pipe has long been familiar with. He points to the fact that, on average, around 30,000 people showed up in Edmonton for the FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship matches and more than that number showed up for a friendly between the Canadian and Mexican women's teams two years ago.

In Toronto and Montreal, new facilities will be constructed and Pipe is expecting a decision on Toronto's 20,000-seater building project by the end of this summer before FIFA sends an inspection committee out to Canada in the autumn.

He said: "In Canadian history, apart from the staging of the summer and winter Olympic games, I don't think there is a sporting event which would rival what we are about to take on in 2007 and we are all very excited about that."