OLYMPICS-2024/GERMANY-MORNING REAX Mixed reactions after Hamburg beats Berlin for Germany's 2024 Olympics bid

Record ID: 332377

  • Title: OLYMPICS-2024/GERMANY-MORNING REAX Mixed reactions after Hamburg beats Berlin for Germany's 2024 Olympics bid
  • Date: 17th March 2015
  • Summary: 'SO IT'S BOSTON!' HEADLINE WOMAN LOOKING AT PAPERS
  • Embargoed: 1st April 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Germany
  • Country: Germany
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVABEI34H2UMHJHT9QXBEWG8VQO0
  • Story Text: People on the streets of Berlin and Hamburg gave mixed reactions on Tuesday (March 17) after the northern port was chosen by Germany's Olympics officials over the capital to bid for the 2024 Olympic Games.
    Berlin papers did not hide their disappointment, some considering Boston in the USA a more likely winner of the Games.
    'So it's Boston!', Berlin's tabloid BZ splashed across its cover, reflecting a common belief among many Germans that neither Hamburg nor Berlin had much chance of hosting the Games.
    Passer-by Jacqueline Biederstedt told Reuters TV: "I really don't think it's tragic, with all the turmoil that comes with it. There are other, more pressing issues to take care of than the Olympics."
    A passing workman said he couldn't care less, while Philipp Schadrin commented: "I am very sorry for Berlin. I was of course a supporter. It would have done some good for our city, for its tourism, the hotel occupancy rate and the entire industry behind it. But I think Hamburg won't win either, the way things look. Oh well."
    There were mixed feelings in Hamburg, too, with one person commenting" "I think it's a good decision, a forward-looking decision from which Hamburg will profit as well as the region around it, while another said: "I don't care too much, I'm pretty neutral about it. I guess it has good and bad sides to it and after all, the final decision has not yet been made."
    Hamburg, which hopes to use centrally-located land near the port to build some of the venues in a compact inner-city concept, will now need to stage a local referendum on its bid by September.
    Germany's Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere, who is also responsible for sports, told a news conference in Berlin on Tuesday: "The bid needs to be serious, also as far as the cost estimates go. It is important to inspire the population, which is why I welcome the referendum this coming Autumn."
    De Maiziere said a 'no' in Hamburg's referendum would send a bad message.
    "A bad one. But now, we do not want to think about failure. Rather, we want to work towards a success, a convincing success. Even 50.1 (percent) would not be a convincing result," he said.
    The winner of the 2024 Olympics bid will be announced in 2017.
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