- Title: JAPAN: OLYMPICS - IOC delegates wrap up a week-long Tokyo evaluation tour
- Date: 20th April 2009
- Summary: TOKYO, JAPAN (APRIL 19, 2009) (REUTERS) NAWAL EL MOUTAWAKEL, INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE (IOC) EVALUATION COMMISSION PRESIDENT, WALKING INTO A NEWS CONFERENCE AND SITTING DOWN SIGN SAYING "TOKYO OLYMPIC BID 2016" MOUTAWAKEL AND IOC OLYMPIC GAMES EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR GILBERT FELLI SITTING DOWN REPORTERS LISTENING IN THE AUDIENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) NAWAL EL MOUTAWAKEL, INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE (IOC) EVALUATION COMMISSION PRESIDENT, SAYING: "We are, were impressed by the compactness of the concept, with the vision and with the high quality in terms of thinking to make the whole thing within an eight-kilometre radius; to make life easy for the athletes, for the spectators and for all the stake holders." REPORTERS LISTENING IN THE AUDIENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) NAWAL EL MOUTAWAKEL, INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE (IOC) EVALUATION COMMISSION PRESIDENT, SAYING: "All those sponsors and the business community is backing these games and I think at the moment, when you see so many cities bidding for the games, it is reassuring. Although the financial situation is a little bit difficult, but in seven times, in seven years time, I don't think this situation will last forever." MOUTAWAKEL AND FELLI SITTING DOWN
- Embargoed: 5th May 2009 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Japan
- Country: Japan
- Topics: Sports
- Reuters ID: LVA1CLU8UA21AXTXUZ0TVH38QB1U
- Story Text: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) team, evaluating the cities in the race for the 2016 Olympics, concludes its week-long assessment tour of Tokyo.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) delegates, evaluating the cities in the race for the 2016 Olympics, finalised their assessment tour of Tokyo on Sunday (April 19).
The 13-member IOC team, led by Moroccan Nawal El Moutawakel, took part in a tightly choreographed tours around the city and were greeted by many Japanese government officials including the Prime Minister.
Moutawakel said she and her fellow evaluation members were impressed with Tokyo's concept to hold most of the Olympic games in the vicinity of the main stadium.
"We were impressed by the compactness of the concept, with the vision and with the high quality in terms of thinking to make the whole thing within an eight-kilometre radius; to make life easy for the athletes, for the spectators and for all the stake holders," Moutawakel told a news conference at the end of the evaluation tour.
Tokyo, the first Asian city to host the Olympics in 1964, faces competition from Chicago, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro in the race to stage the 2016 Summer Games.
Moutawakel also touched on the global financial crisis saying that it would not be a problem in 2016.
"All those sponsors and the business community is backing this games and I think at the moment, when you see so many cities bidding for the games, it is reassuring," said Moutawakel. "Although the financial situation is a little bit difficult, but in seven times, in seven years time, I don't think this situation will last forever," she added.
Fresh from touring Chicago, the current favourite, the delegates heard speeches insisting the Japanese capital is best placed to emerge from the global financial crisis and host a debt-free Olympics in 2016.
Several analysts see Tokyo as the main threat to Chicago because the Beijing Olympics last summer proved TV ratings for events in Asia could be huge, despite the time difference.
But Barack Obama's landslide victory in the U.S. presidential election last November was seen as a boost to his home city of Chicago in the bidding race.
Tokyo's overall 2009 budget proposal is 6.6 trillion yen (around 73 billion U.S. dollars), which 2016 organisers called the largest fiscal budget of any metropolitan government in the world.
Japanese officials insist the city is best placed to emerge from the global financial crisis and host a debt-free Olympics in 2016.
"Other competing cities are currently doing a very strong campaign to hold the 2016 Olympics. However, Tokyo is a team of passion and has been working with a strong determination. We've succeeded in welcoming the IOC evaluation team and that has definitely given us an extra push to make the Olympics happen again in Tokyo," said Shintaro Ishihara, the governor of Tokyo.
The city's investment package coincides with a 10-year plan to give the city a major facelift.
And despite the global credit crisis, a dozen major Japanese corporate sponsors have signed up for Tokyo's 2016 bid, including Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airlines, Asics and Descente.
The city's waterfront bid topped the International Olympic Committee's overall technical evaluation last June. Madrid earned the second highest marks.
Tokyo plans to build just five new venues for the 2016 Olympics, while renovating iconic facilities used at the 1964 Games.
After Tokyo, the commission travels to Rio de Janeiro from April 29-May 2 and Madrid from May 5-8. They then report back to IOC members, who pick the 2016 host city on October 2 in Copenhagen. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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