American on IOC panel inspecting 2018 bid cities

LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- The IOC has appointed hockey player Angela Ruggiero of the United States to a panel that will inspect the three cities competing to host the 2018 Winter Olympics.

Ruggiero is a four-time Olympic medalist. She joins the 11-member evaluation commission after being elected to the IOC as an athlete representative.

Ruggiero graduated from Harvard in 2004 with a degree in government.

The panel will visit 2018 candidates Munich; Annecy, France; and Pyeongchang, South Korea. They will travel to the cities in February and March to assess their technical ability to host the games.

The reports will be published when city officials meet IOC members in May in Lausanne, Switzerland.

IOC members will elect the 2018 host on July 6 in Durban, South Africa.