ARGENTINA: OLYMPIC GAMES - Erdogan says Turkey is ready and "there" to win 2020 Olympic bid

Record ID: 217681

  • Title: ARGENTINA: OLYMPIC GAMES - Erdogan says Turkey is ready and "there" to win 2020 Olympic bid
  • Date: 7th September 2013
  • Summary: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA, (SEPTEMBER 7, 2013) (REUTERS) PRESS IN THE MIXED ZONE AT THE ENTRANCE OF THE IOC SESSION ROOM TURKISH ATHLETES ENTERING THE SESSION ROOM TURKISH PRIME MINISTER RECEP TAYIP ERDOGAN AND ISTANBUL'S BID CHIEF, HASAN ARAT PASSING IN FRONT OF MEDIA CAMERAMAN (SOUNDBITE) (Turkish) TURKISH PRIME MINISTER RECEP TAYIP ERDOGAN SAYING: "The government and the
  • Embargoed: 22nd September 2013 13:00
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  • Topics: Sports
  • Reuters ID: LVA80614X8NMF7B33J6T71IPE7A
  • Story Text: After two years of intense lobbying and tens of millions of dollars spent, Istanbul, Madrid and Tokyo have just a few remaining hours on Saturday (September 7) to convince the International Olympic Committee to entrust them with the 2020 summer Games.
    With each city wrestling its own demons, the race has become a "least ugly" contest as they attempt to conceal their blemishes and win the right to host the world's biggest sporting extravaganza.
    Each city is rolling out the big guns, with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe due to represent his capital city, his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan backing Istanbul, and Prince Felipe of Spain part of Madrid's official presentation.
    With no clear favourite, the decision will likely hinge on the appeal of the bid presentations as each city attempts to gloss over troubles at home.
    Madrid continues to suffocate under a recession, Istanbul is saddled with the spectre of military strikes in neighbouring Syria and internal unrest, and Tokyo is back in the headlines after a series of damaging disclosures about the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant 230 km (140 miles) from the city.
    "The government and the Turkish nation and our legislation are behind this Olympic bid, our core infrastructure and everything is in place, so we are here to win the bid," Erdogan told reporters after their presentation.
    Istanbul launched its bid on the back of an Islamic card, of becoming the first Olympics in a predominantly Muslim country and the first staged across two continents simultaneously - Asia and Europe.
    "I hope that at 5 o'clock we will have the good news," said Istanbul's bid chairman Hasan Arat.
    Publicly, the membership of the International Olympic Committee is smiling through the crisis, but privately many concede that this is now an exercise in evaluating risk rather than celebrating sport.
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