IOC formally opens $145M new headquarters in Switzerland

The International Olympic Committee has formally opened its 145 million Swiss francs ($145 million) new headquarters exactly 125 years after the Olympic Games was revived.

"On our 125th anniversary, we clearly see what a great visionary Pierre de Coubertin was," IOC President Thomas Bach told guests Sunday at the inauguration.

"By bringing the entire world together in peaceful competition, the Olympic Games are a symbol of hope and peace for all humankind," Bach said.

A ceremony in the lakeside grounds of Olympic House in Lausanne including a playing of John Lennon's song Imagine.

Bach cited Lennon's lyrics when he said of De Coubertin: "You could say, he was a dreamer. But he was not the only one. This peaceful world, which John Lennon asks us to imagine, this peaceful world is what we all are working for."
"The whole design is intended to make the building welcoming and to reflect our transparency."