World Union of Olympic Cities

Tomorrow, Beatriz is speaking at a meeting at the University of East London. One of the keynote speakers is

Dimitrios L. Avramopoulos, Minister of Health and Social Solidarity, Greece, and founding president, World Union of Olympic Cities

I must confess to not having heard of this Union and found little advice from google. Even the IOC website says nothing about this initiative. I wonder if anyone can shed any light on this initiative. It sounds very interesting! The Athens Environmental Foundation has some details and a copy of an original lette from Avramopoulos and it sounds like one of the major initiatives Athens took on when it hosted the Games in 2004. Here is the copy from the AEF site:

"AEF has received a letter of strong support by the World Union of Olympic Cities (WUOC), an international organization that has been formally sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee. The WUOC has been created to join cities as international centers for the development of sports, cultural and international activities that symbolize the deeper meaning of the Olympic Movement.

In the letter to AEF, WUOC Executive President Dimitris L. Avramopoulos congratulates AFF for its efforts and encourages everyone to actively participate and support the foundation's global activities."