LONDON, England - The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has received high praise from senior officials of the International Cricket Council (ICC) for its presentation to the ICC Forum on the region’s preparations for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007.
Chris Dehring, Managing Director of the ICC CWC 2007, assured the Forum, following the ICC’s annual general meeting in London that the West Indies is ready for the ICC CWC 2007.
Dehring told delegates from 89 countries, as well as the major commercial partners of world cricket and the international media that preparations for the ICC CWC 2007 had begun since 1998.
He said consultations with international experts and officials had taken place, as well as observation of various world games including the visit by a Caribbean delegation to South Africa to meet with organisers and experience the operation of the ICC CWC 2003.
Dehring, who was accompanied to the Forum by Rev. Wes Hall, President of the WICB; Roger Brathwaite, Chief Executive of the WICB; and WICB director Stephen Alleyne, also noted there had been significant preparation of development plans for venues around the region and a key milestone was the completion of the Master Plan for the ICC CWC 2007.
Following the ICC Forum, Malcolm Speed, the ICC Chief Executive Officer, observed that Dehring’s presentation had been well received by the delegates.
“It provided an opportunity for cricket’s leaders from around the world to understand and appreciate the way in which the West Indies is preparing to stage the biggest event in international cricket - the ICC Cricket World Cup - in 2007,” remarked Speed.
Ehsan Mani, the recently elected president of the ICC, also expressed his appreciation of the information that Dehring shared with members of the world body and the media.
“The presentation by Chris gave the cricket world an excellent understanding of the enthusiasm and professionalism that the West Indies is bringing to staging the ICC Cricket World Cup,” he said.
Dehring also informed the delegates that the cricket officials in the West Indies understood that the world expected international standard stadium facilities, quality support services, enhanced security, efficient event management and commercial responsibility.
“We understand that this event has to be professionally managed and, to this end, a team of dedicated professionals with expertise in areas such as venue development, cricket operations and event management will be hired to help us deliver a truly world class event with a Caribbean flavour,” he said.
Dehring outlined a road map that will be followed over the next year. This will see the competitive bid process between countries being opened in October this year and closed in January next year with the Head of Government in each prospective territory submitting that country’s bid.
In March, the Venue Assessment Team, comprising professionals who have worked on world games like the Olympics and the Football World Cup, will then analyse the bidding countries to determine which are best suited and, by April, a provisional allocation of matches will be made.
“After the provisional allocation of matches CWC 2007 and the ICC will be monitoring the progress of countries who were awarded matches to ensure that targets are being met. “ Dehring added
“We hope to make the ICC CWC 2007 in the West Indies a unique and unforgettably positive Caribbean experience for all who attend,” Dehring concluded.