The head of Annecy's bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics says he's not worried by a poll indicating half of the residents of the lakeside town are opposed to the project.
A survey by the Opinion Way Institute for local radio in Annecy showed that 50 percent of the 505 people questioned are against the Olympics, including 26 percent who are ''very unfavorable.''
Annecy, widely considered the outsider, is competing against Pyeongchang, South Korea, and Munich. The International Olympic Committee will select the host city on July 6 in Durban, South Africa.
''Right now I'm focusing on the international side of the bid and IOC members,'' Annecy bid leader Charles Beigbeder told The Associated Press on Tuesday. ''Once we will be awarded the games, we will have plenty of time to work with (Annecy citizens) and to take into account their legitimate concerns.''
The Annecy bid has been struggling from the start and was handed another blow last week following reports that it had a shortfall of $3.7 million in its budget of $42.7 million.
Beigbeder, in charge since Edgar Grospiron quit last December because of budgetary issues, has denied the reports.
Annecy is making its first Olympic bid. France has staged the Winter Games three times - Chamonix in 1924, Grenoble in 1968 and Albertville in 1992.
