107th IOC Session - LA84 Foundation

Festive lights decorate
the entrance of the Asahi
Media Village.
258
Media Accommodations
Of the accredited personnel from press organizations
and television / radio broadcasters covering
the Games, 3,500 were accommodated at
the two Media Villages in Nagano City, and another
4,000 stayed at 105 area hotels and inns.
In consideration of the long hours that media
personnel would work due to time differences,
accommodations were secured as close as possible
to the MPC, IBC, and competition venues.
The Yanagimachi Media Village and the Asahi
Media Village were located 4km and 6km respectively
from the MPC and IBC in newlyconstructed
high rise complexes built by
Nagano Prefecture and the Prefectural Housing
Association.
All rooms at the Media Villages were in
principle for single-person use. Based on rates
charged at previous Games, prices were set at
¥14,000 per night including breakfast. Rates
charged at hotels also included breakfast.
With the consent and understanding of the
Japanese media, priority for reserving rooms at
the Media Villages was given to overseas media
personnel. This decision was taken with the convenience
of overseas guests in mind, since there
were few private hotels with foreign language
services, and overseas visitors were unfamiliar
with the geography of the area.
As the two Media Villages were to be used
as residential housing facilities after the Games,
residents during the Games were asked to follow
Japanese custom by taking off their shoes
at the doorway to the units. While the IOC
Press Commission at first expressed concern
that there might be complaints from the international
media, they agreed to support NAOC’s
request, and no difficulties were encountered.
Restaurant at the
Yanagimachi Media
Village
Information about media accommodations
was sent out in January 1997 to the NOCs along
with applications forms for Games accreditation
and accommodations and the Media rate card.
Although the deadline for media accommodations
applications was April 1, requests for
changes and additions continued to come in
until just before the Games, and coordinating it
all was an immense task.
Media Villages
Officially, the two Media Villages were in
operation from January 24 – February 25, 1998.
However, in order to accommodate the large
number of people from broadcasting companies
in town making preparations for the Games, part
of the Yanagimachi Media Village opened from
January 7.
Each apartment unit consisted of 3 – 4 bedrooms
at least 10m 2 in area, as well as one
shower / toilet area per two rooms. Each room
was provided with a television set equipped to
receive the international signal as well as British
and American satellite news services.
As well as Info’98 terminals, information
desks were set up to provide general Games information.
Shuttle bus service to the MPC and
IBC was available around the clock, and for
early morning competitions, buses ran directly
to the venues.
The Media Villages were mostly staffed by
Games volunteers, however three months prior
to the Games, experienced personnel from leading
hotels in Japan were stationed at the villages
to help ensure the smooth running of operations.
Including a number of hotel management students,
670 people at the Yanagimachi Village,
and 430 people at the Asahi Village worked in
three shifts daily to provide a highly efficient
and comfortable level of service that earned
many accolades from the resident guests.