Istanbul 2020 - Prime Minister To Attend London 2012 Olympics

left to right: Ugur Erdener, President of the NOC of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Turkey, Suat Kılıç, Turkey’s Minister of Youth and Sport, Hasan Arat, Istanbul 2020 Bid leader (Photo: Istanbul 2020)

The high level of support for Istanbul 2020 in London will include Turkey's Minister of Youth and Sport, Suat Kilic, and Mayor of Istanbul, Kadir Topbas.

Hasan Arat, head of Istanbul 2020 said, "we believe that having our Prime Minister in London as part of the team sends a powerful message to the Olympic family. Istanbul 2020 is a national priority supported by all levels of government and across the political spectrum. These Games will be an opportunity for the whole Istanbul 2020 team to watch, listen and learn about what it takes to host the world's greatest event".

He added, "we arrive in London as the proud bearers of the Olympic dreams of our nation - we will work hard to translate the lessons we learn from LOCOG and the IOC into our ambitious but achievable Olympic plans, hopefully turning those Olympic dreams into reality in 2020".

Istanbul 2020 will also participate in the official IOC Observer Programme during London 2012 giving the bid's technical experts the opportunity to study Olympic Games best practice at a micro and macro level.