Olympic works ‘under control’
Preparations for the 2004 Olympics are proceeding at a satisfactory pace, Culture Minister Evangelos Venizelos told Parliament yesterday, in a speech laced with criticism of Athens 2004 Organizing Committee chief Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki. «The timetables for the Olympics projects are well under control,» Venizelos said. He was briefing Parliament’s educational affairs committee on the progress of Greece’s preparations for the Games. The minister – whose brief includes sports – confirmed that the government will table a draft law regulating «the functioning of Athens» during the Games. But he implied that the bill would not be as draconian as the 2004 Organizing Committee would like, according to proposals leaked to the press last month. «The bill will be in accordance with the Constitution, and not tailored to some people’s demands,» he said, in a veiled reference to Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, with whom his relations have distinctly soured.
