Rols O'Bertilsson

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Baku also looked stunned by the decision with bid chief executive Konul Nurullayeva left in tears.

"We sincerely congratulate Istanbul, Madrid and Tokyo that made it to the Candidate City Phase," said a statement on their Facebook page.

"We are of course extremely disappointed, but we accept the decision of the IOC Executive Board."

The report left them with no chance to stage the event as it said: "The Working Group nevertheless feels that the city's infrastructure and Games' planning and experience are not sufficiently developed at this stage to deliver successful Olympic Games in 2020.

"Concern was also expressed whether the significant amount of construction required to host the Games was consistent with the size and legacy needs of the city.

"For these reasons, the Working Group recommends to the Executive Board that Baku should not advance to the second phase of the 2020 bid process."

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insidethegames

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Publically, at least, Doha accepted the decision.

"We respect the decision," said Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, the daughter of Qatar's Emir and a vice-president of Doha 2020.

"We provided the dates that we thought were most suitable.

"We believe we did everything in our capacity."

But she also hinted at the fury bubbling away under the surface.

"I think the two cuontries that were eliminated are emerging markets and I think it is a missed opportunity for the IOC,"

insidethegames

American TV executives sink Doha 2020 Olympic bid

Doha's bid to host the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics was ended after executives from American televison objected to the dates proposed.
NBC, who have the contract to cover the Games in the United States, claimed that if it was moved from its traditional July/August date to October as the Qatari capital planned then it would "become a weekend Olympics".
It was enough to scupper Doha's bid.

The IOC's working group report laid out the problem, warning that that would lead to "reduced demongraphic reach, broadcasters would have difficulties in attracting the same audience levels in terms of working people and youth", meaning it would hit NBC's advertising revenue.

The IOC report said: "In October, broadcasterss would face lower viewership/rating levels on a global level when having to compete with other major sports events or general entertainment/TV programming priorities for the autumn season.

"Significantly less Olympic broadcast would also result in lower exposure and impact commercial opportunities."
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More: insidethegames

IOC official says agreement close on revenue-sharing deal with U.S. Olympic Committee

QUEBEC CITY, QUE. International and U.S. Olympic leaders are close to finalizing a deal to settle the long-running financial dispute that has soured relations and undermined recent American bids for the games, a senior official said Tuesday.
The International Olympic Committee and U.S. Olympic Committee are nearing agreement on a new revenue-sharing deal that would clear the way for U.S. cities to bid again for future games, IOC executive board member Denis Oswald told The Associated Press.
The proposed deal, covering the distribution of billions of dollars in television and marketing revenues, could be announced this week during IOC executive board meetings in Quebec, Oswald said.
Oswald, who heads the association of summer Olympic sports, is not directly involved in the negotiations but said he was briefed on the progress by IOC president Jacques Rogge.
“I have been told by the IOC president that they were close to an agreement but that they still had to discuss the wording,” the Swiss official said. “Last time they were also close to an agreement but they had difficulty to put it on paper.
“That’s why he wasn’t sure whether they would be able to finalize it, but he looked quite hopeful.”
Negotiations have been dragging on for two years to secure a new deal that replaces a long-standing contract giving the USOC a 20 per cent share of global sponsorship revenue and a 12.75 per cent cut of U.S. broadcast rights deals. The IOC believes the U.S. share is excessive.
A new agreement, which would need to be ratified by the governing boards of both organizations, would take effect in 2020. Recent talks have centred on a 20-year deal through 2040 that would also include U.S. contribution toward the administrative costs of staging the games.
“It’s good if we have an agreement because this has created difficulties in the relations with USOC,” Oswald said. “If we could put that aside, it would help the relations. It’s a very important national Olympic committee with the best athletes. It would be very good if this question be resolved.”
USOC CEO Scott Blackmun has been leading the American side in the talks with the IOC.
“We’re endeavouring in good faith to bridge the gap,” he said last week. “I remain very hopeful that, within the not-too-distant future, we can put this behind us.”
Blackmun and USOC chairman Larry Probst are travelling to Quebec this week.
Lingering international resentment over the U.S. revenue share was a significant factor in New York’s defeat in the bidding for the 2012 Olympics and Chicago’s humiliating first-round elimination in the vote for the 2016 Games.
The USOC has said repeatedly it will not bid again until the revenue issue is resolved. The U.S. is sitting out the bidding for the 2020 Summer Games.
The next chance would be for the 2022 Winter Olympics. Among the U.S. cities that have expressed early interest in bidding for those games are 2002 host Salt Lake City; Denver; Reno-Lake Tahoe, Nev.; and Bozeman, Mont.
The Associated Press

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Records show that Councillor Roland Freeman proposed that the 1984 Olympics could be hosted in the run-down London docklands, when its most prominent competitor was thought to be Tehran, Iran.
A feasibility study was conducted in 1979 to look into the idea of constructing a national stadium on Royal Victoria Dock which could seat 70,000 people.
A new national lottery was another idea floated to assist with the financing of the event. But a note from Michael Heseltine to Mrs Thatcher implied the bid would make "no sense" economically.
Yet archive documents show that the unsuccessful Manchester bid for the 2000 Olympic games received strong government support. £53 million was provided to improve facilities before the nomination and an additional £2 million was allocated to support the bid.
Shots of the city taken on a clear day were taken to "scotch the myth of Manchester weather", but the Games were eventually awarded to Sydney.
Commenting on the material, Hugh Robertson, Minister for Sport and the Olympics, said that as London 2012 draws near, the documents "give us a chance to look back and appreciate how the Olympic movement has evolved over many years".

BBC: National Archives take visitors on Olympic journey