The whirlwind tour of the Southern Lakes officially came to an end for Winter Games NZ 2009 delegates yesterday with praise coming from all corners, but the work is only just beginning for organisers.
Since Wednesday, six delegates from Australia, the United States, Canada, China, Japan and South Korea - all countries taking part in the Winter Games next year - have been involved in briefings and familiarisation tours in Queenstown and Wanaka.
Yesterday the group had a tour of Coronet Peak, which is still a construction site as the new base building continues to take form.
International games division director of the Department of Internal Affairs of the Korean Olympic Committee Ki-young Jung said it was his first visit to New Zealand.
‘‘I was definitely impressed by the panoramic views and amazing ski resort.''
Mr Jung said the number of Korean athletes at next year's event had not been determined as it depended on budgets, but he was keen to involve curlers and skaters, and ‘‘the more the better''
The Korean team, like others, would be using the Winter Games as a test event, carrying qualifying points for the Winter Olympics.
Winter Games NZ chief executive Arthur Klap said the event scheduled for August 28 to September 6 at venues in Dunedin, Naseby, Wanaka and Queenstown was ‘‘a huge project''.
‘‘We take it each week and each day as a step along the way.
‘‘We have a meeting with Sky Television to . . . sign off the television agreement next week.''
There would be more than 100 hours' of coverage in New Zealand, and one of the next steps was to begin discussions to determine international television coverage.
The feeling the organisers had following the delegates visit was extremely positive.
‘‘It couldn't have gone better,' Mr Klap said.
