The South Korean resort, the runner-up in both the 2010 and 2014 balloting, received a glowing report from the technical evaluators. But the more compelling argument to choose Pyeongchang over Munich and the French lakeside city of Annecy is that it has paid its dues and that no Asian site has played host since Nagano in 1998.

“It’s time to go a little bit to Asia,’’ said Swiss member Rene Fasel, who heads the international hockey federation. “Running a third time is for sure an advantage.’’

Though Munich, which would be the first city to stage both the Summer and Winter Games, has an excellent bid, it would be the third European host in 12 years. The IOC will make its choice at its session in South Africa in early July.

Meanwhile, the race for the 2020 Summer Games officially began yesterday when the IOC asked countries to submit bid cities. Rome, which finished second to Athens in 2004, already is in and 2016 candidates Tokyo, Madrid, and Doha (Qatar) are interested, as well as four-time bidder Istanbul, Durban (South Africa), Hobart (Australia), and Dubai (United Arab Emirates).

Vicious cycle Even if cyclist Tyler Hamilton hadn’t given back his 2004 gold medal last week, it’s likely the IOC would have stripped it from him after the Marblehead native admitted to doping on CBS’s “60 Minutes’’ over the weekend. Hamilton had tested positive in Athens after winning the time trial but was allowed to keep the medal after his confirming “B’’ sample was damaged. Besides pointing the finger at former teammate Lance Armstrong, Hamilton admitted in a letter to friends and family that he had used performance-enhancing drugs and “lied about it over and over.’’ If the normal procedure is followed, Russia’s Viatcheslav Ekimov will be upgraded to gold (his third), US competitor Bobby Julich to silver, and Australia’s Michael Rogers to bronze . . . In the wake of multiple protests that disrupted Beijing’s global torch relay in 2008, next year’s route will be limited to the United Kingdom with a possible stop in Dublin. The 8,000-mile relay, which will take 70 days, will begin May 18 at Land’s End in Cornwall, England’s southwesternmost point, and end at the Olympic stadium in London July 27.

Flying Finns Finland’s men’s ice hockey players were welcomed back from Slovakia as heroes by 100,000 countrymen in downtown Helsinki after they routed archrival Sweden, 6-1, to win the world title for only the second time. It was a remarkable run by the Finns, who won three of their preliminary games by shootout before catching fire and shutting out the Russians in the semis. It was only the third medal in nine years for Suomi and the first title since 1995. The Americans, who were zapped, 4-0, by the Czechs in the quarters, ended up eighth, their worst finish in a non-Olympic year since the 2003 squad finished 13th. Their reward was to be tossed into a group with the Finns and Canadians in next year’s event, which will be split between Helsinki and Stockholm . . . US figure skating is going through its traditional post-world championships retirements and splits. Ryan Bradley, whose 13th-place finish in Moscow was the worst by a men’s champion, is calling it quits at 27. John Coughlin, who won the domestic pairs title with Caitlin Yankowskas of Pelham, N.H., has matched up with Caydee Denney, who won last year’s crown with Jeremy Barrett. And dancer Madison Hubbell, who finished fourth with brother Keiffer at nationals, now will skate with Zach Donohue.

Hopes on Goucher Kara Goucher, who was fifth in Boston last month, will head the US women’s marathon team at this summer’s world championships in South Korea. Goucher, who was 10th at the last global meet in 2009, will be joined by Tera Moody, Colleen De Reuck, Kathy Newberry, and Alissa McKaig. Nick Arciniaga, Sergio Reyes, Jeffrey Eggleston, Mike Sayenko, and Mike Morgan comprise the men’s team. As usual, the odds of a medal are long. Mark Plaatjes, who won in 1993, and Marianne Dickerson, who was second in 1983, are the last Americans to make the podium . . . The Houston organizers have modified the marathon course for the Olympic trials in January to reduce the out-and-backs. The runners will proceed counterclockwise on a layout that begins with a 2.2-mile inner loop and proceeds to an 8-mile loop that will be covered three times.

Waiting game A nine-month wait for a 22-second swimoff? That’s what happened after Josh Schneider dead-heated with Cullen Jones in the 50-meter freestyle at last August’s US championships with a place on this summer’s world team on the line, then broke his hand the next day. Schneider, who’d originally been disqualified from the event after missing a race that he didn’t know he’d been entered in, had competed under protest, then won his appeal. The swimoff was held at this month’s Charlotte UltraSwim with Jones, an Olympic relay gold medalist in 2008, prevailing by four-hundredths of a second . . . Kentucky men’s basketball coach John Calipari will have pulled off the greatest coaching coup of his career if he can qualify the Dominican Republic for next year’s Olympics. Only the finalists from this summer’s Americas tournament in Argentina will earn berths and the Dominicans, who’ve never competed in the Games, will be up against both the hosts and Brazil. The US males already are in by virtue of winning last year’s world title.

Seeing spots Assuming they don’t opt to try for camp entries, the US small-boat competitors provisionally have been determined for this summer’s world rowing championships in Slovenia. Glenn Ochal and Will Miller of Duxbury earned the men’s double spot at the recent selection regatta in New Jersey, while Kate Bertko and Sarah Trowbridge claimed the women’s, with Brian de Regt and Jon Winter and Julie Nichols and Kristin Hedstrom of Concord taking the lightweight berths. Winning the pairs were Charlie Cole and Scott Gault and Meghan Musnicki and former world champion Susan Francia. All of them competed at last year’s event in New Zealand and all but Cole and Gault are entered in next weekend’s World Cup opener in Munich, as are scullers Gevvie Stone of Newton and Ken Jurkowski. If they finish in the top four there, they’ll lock down their spots on the team . . . Half a dozen Olympians will be among the 14 US competitors at this summer’s world diving championships in Shanghai. The men’s team includes Troy Dumais and David Boudia, who collected three silvers at the last meet in 2009, as well as Chris Colwill, while Mary Beth Dunnichay, who won a synchro silver, is joined by Kelci Bryant and Christina Loukas . . . Jennifer Nichols, who won a surprise bronze in 2007, and fellow Olympians Khatuna Lorig and Brady Ellison will form the core of the US archery team for this summer’s biennial world championships in Turin, where entries for next year’s Games will be at stake. They’ll be joined by rookies Jacob Wukie, Joseph Fanchin, and Miranda Leek. . . . The US women’s water polo team will be gunning for its third straight title and sixth in eight years at next month’s World League Super Final in China.

John Powers can be reached at jpowers@globe.com; material from Olympic committees, international and domestic sports federations, personal interviews, and wire services was used in this report.