By Karolos Grohmann
LAUSANNE, Switzerland (Reuters) - Munich 2018 Winter Games bid leaders were delighted with their final presentation to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) before the July vote as France's Annecy was seen making up ground.
The German city, bidding to become the only venue to have hosted the Summer and Winter Olympics, faces competition from Annecy and Pyeongchang of South Korea.
"I think it went very well and we pulled off a very good presentation," IOC member Thomas Bach, who is part of the Munich bid team, said after presenting their concept to 88 IOC members Wednesday.
"But it really is of no interest to lead a marathon race after 22 kilometers or 30. What is important is to cross the finish line first," he added.
The Bavarian capital, which resolved a land dispute with local farmers a day before the presentation, is seen as a frontrunner together with Pyeongchang.
Munich will also have the support of German president Christian Wulff, who confirmed Wednesday he would be attending the IOC vote on July 6.
"We are very relieved," Munich bid chief and twice Olympic figure skating champion Katarina Witt told Reuters.
"It was a real school exam but I think we did well. Now we have to improve for Durban, though it is hard to think what we can improve until then."
The IOC will announce the hosts in Durban, South Africa with Munich and Pyeongchang, hoping it will be third time lucky after two failed attempts, regarded by most observers as the strongest bidders after a favorable IOC evaluation report last week.
ANNECY COMEBACK
But Annecy officials said following their pitch that is no longer the case.
"We have nothing to envy from the other two bids," said former Olympic skiing champion and IOC member Jean-Claude Killy, who is part of the Annecy team.
"We are all three even now. It is not the case any more of being behind. It was the case before for good reason but not any more. It went very well today," he said.
Annecy also had the country's sports minister Chantal Jouanno presenting to the IOC and reading out a message of support from French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
The Alpine city has longer travel times with venues more spread out than is the case with the other two bidders and local support is also lower than in Munich and Pyeongchang.
"My feeling is a few months ago they were far behind but they are now part of the group," said IOC Executive Board member Denis Oswald, as a handful of French demonstrators opposing the bid peacefully protested behind him just outside the Olympic museum.
"You can never make everyone happy but I do not pay too much attention to it," said Oswald.
The presentations are part of the IOC's efforts to inform voting members about the bids, since they are not allowed to travel to candidate cities following the 2002 Salt Lake City bribes-for-votes scandal.
Teams are allocated 45 minutes to present their bids with a further 45 minutes of questioning. Pyeongchang will present its bid later Wednesday.
IOC members said the presentations could not really turn any city into a favorite but a bad show could damage their chances.
"I don't think (you can win a lot at these presentations) but you can lose a lot if you are not good enough," IOC Executive Board member Gerhard Heiberg of Norway said.
(Editing by John O'Brien and Ken Ferris; To query or comment on this story: sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
