IOC president to discuss with Annan worldwide peace during Games

IOC president Jacques Rogge will meet U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan later this month to discuss the "Olympic Truce" for worldwide peace during February's Winter Games. The two men will meet Jan. 24 at the International Olympic Committee's headquarters in Lausanne, which Annan will be visiting for the first time, and then again the next day at the World Economic Forum in the mountain resort of Davos, the IOC said in a statement.

In November, the U.N. General Assembly urged all 191 member states to observe a truce during the games. The origins of the truce come from the ancient Greek tradition of ekecheiria, or "Olympic truce," declared to stop war between the sides of participating athletes and ensure safety throughout the duration of the games.

Sports have a high place on the agenda for the Davos meeting and Rogge is expected to attend various sessions Jan. 25-26. The IOC expects a record number of television viewers for the Turin Winter Olympics next month thanks to more comprehensive broadcast coverage. More than 80 national Olympic committees are sending athletes to the games, compared to 76 at the last Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

"The widening geographical appeal of the Olympic Winter Games is clear," the IOC statement said. "The latest IOC visits and test events have confirmed Torino 2006's state of readiness", reports the AP. N.U.