Tuesday, August 11, 2009

In our opinion about four candidate cities Olympics in 2016


The IOC's 13-member evaluation team began its four-day inspection of Tokyo's bid Thursday and received a detailed outline of the city's plans from Tokyo 2016 organizers. "We will abide in full by every guarantee in the candidate file," Prime Minister Taro Aso, who competed in shooting at the 1976 Montreal Olympics, told the IOC delegates. "We will ensure whatever needs to be done will be done. Whatever needs to be built, will be built. Whatever needs to be financed, will be financed." The IOC's evaluation team will get a tour of the proposed venues Friday. Thursday's presentation was followed by a 30-minute question and answer session. Tokyo organizers did not say what the specific questions were, but said they were answered convincingly. Tokyo organizers say their bid offers the most compact games, with almost all venues located less than five miles from the main stadium. There are questions being raised about a major player in Tokyo's bid for the games -- a politician with a reputation as a loose cannon. Gov. Shintaro Ishihara greeted the chairwoman; he's the equivalent of Chicago's mayor, though he's only in his third term; Mayor Daley is in his sixth. The governor, a former sailboat racer, had a better quote: "I have never participated in a race where it is so difficult to read the direction of the wind." He sure knows now, after reacting Thursday to demands that the IOC reject Tokyo's bid because of his past comments about Japanese rule of China and Korea in the early 1900s as "gentle, fair, and equitable." Some historians call Japan's occupation "an Asian Holocaust." At this point, it's too early to tell whether the governor's comments constitute that big mistake you have to avoid at this stage of the game. But if it costs Tokyo even a handful of votes, it could be fatal to the city's Olympic hopes. Tokyo hosted the 1964 Olympics and plans to use many of the facilities from those games if awarded the 2016 Games. Tokyo says 23 of its proposed 34 venues already exist and that land has been secured for the 11 new facilities. Five of the new venues would be permanent, including the main Olympic stadium on the city's central waterfront that would hold 100,000 spectators for track and field events and the opening and closing ceremonies. Tokyo is also confident of its financial security amid the global economic downturn. The city has an annual budget of about $66 billion and has already secured a $4 billion special budget in cash for the Games. The IOC will vote on the host city at Copenhagen on Oct. 2. Besides Tokyo and Chicago, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro are also competing. During its visit, the evaluation team will also inspect Tokyo's infrastructure, transport system and hotels, with Aso saying he was convinced they would be impressed. "Tokyo has an excellent urban structure with the world's best transportation networks and accommodation," Aso said. "It is one of world's most advanced cities in terms of the sports, environment, and public safety."

By Wannipa Khaengkit
Roberto

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