PM Erdoğan Announces Istanbul’s Bid to Host 2020 Olympics

Turkish PM Tayyip Erdoğan has expressed unequivocal confidence that İstanbul will be successful in its fifth attempt to stage the Summer Olympic Games.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan formally announced on Saturday İstanbul’s bid to host the 2020 Olympics and expressed unequivocal confidence that the city would be successful in its fifth attempt to stage the Games. İstanbul had unsuccessfully bid four times for the Olympics in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012.

İstanbul unsuccessfully bid four times for the Olympics in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012, but this beautiful city has not been bogged down by the disappointments and is therefore in no mood to give up the struggle. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Turkey’s relative economic success and lessons learned from the previous failed bids have made the city a strong contender
Erdoğan said Turkey’s relative economic success and lessons learned from the previous failed bids have made the city a strong contender.

“We are excited because this time we sincerely believe that we will attain our goal,” Erdoğan said in a nationwide televised speech. “The world in the past year was shaken by a heavy economic crisis. We emerged successfully from the global crisis. Turkey is one of the fastest growing economies. … We have invested in sports and will continue to do so.”
No rest for the weary

Erdoğan said since its first bid, Turkey had built state of the art stadiums and sports centers in İstanbul and had taken steps to alleviate İstanbul’s traffic congestion — the city’s major problem.

“We had several deficiencies, but İstanbul is now a city that has overcome them,” Erdoğan noted, citing new light rail networks and other infrastructure in the city.

He continued: “I can say with all certainty that the Olympics suits İstanbul more than any other city. The natural beauty, wealth of history and its people and cultural richness make İstanbul deserve the opportunity [to host the Games] more than the others.”

The prime minister stated that many world class sports facilities have been completed and many more are still under construction.
İstanbul Mayor Kadir Topbaş said the city had missed out on hosting the Olympics several times but that “İstanbul is more ready than ever this time around.”

The other host candidates

İstanbul joins Rome, Madrid and Tokyo, who have already announced bids. Another potential candidate is Doha, Qatar.
South Africa announced it would not bid but has indicated it could still reverse its decision. Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, which has been hit by the global economic crisis, decided not to bid but has said it would consider bidding in 2024. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will select the 2020 host city in 2013.

Turkey is trying to raise the country’s profile through sports. Last month Turkey hosted the European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) in the Black Sea port city of Trabzon, an event that proved beyond reasonable doubt the country’s ability to host major international sporting events.

Other major international sports events held in Turkey recently include the Winter Universiade in the eastern city of Erzurum earlier this year and the 2010 FIBA World Basketball Championships, where the host took the silver medal.

İstanbul has hosted a Formula One Grand Prix since 2005, although it has been dropped from the 2012 calendar.
Turkey will also stage the Mediterranean Games in 2013, after neighboring Greece, suffering a deep economic crisis, decided not to host them.

14 August 2011
SOURCE: TODAYS ZAMAN