TorchbearerSydney

Having been across Kazakhstan and been to Almaty- I think it is actually a pretty safe choice, and Almaty is a fantastic city. My only concern would be hotels, because there only seemed to be 5-6 top hotels. I went to World Expo 2017 in Astana, and it was a great success with over 100 countries (including all the big ones)....the Government spends money like crazy on stuff like this, so that wouldn't be a problem! Human rights are not great, but they are slowly improving, and Kazakhstan created visa free travel following Expo- a big step for a former Soviet Republic.

Well I hope LA2028 is ready for China- and all its allies and newly found economic dependencies, to boycott 2028.... This is all very sad. Maybe they will use the boycott call to highlight the issue- but not carry through.

IOC now goes risk free - Japan, China, France, Italy, USA, Australia..... they dont mess around anymore.... Why would they go near Pyongyang????

Definitely the best of two (the other looks like it was created on MSDOS in 1984 by a ten year old)....adding colour brings it to life.

Well on thing is for sure- it will be disappointing (whichever one they pick)!

I've heard its a done deal already .....

Why didn't they Gamesbids run the comp??? Seriously, for a country renowned for design, the second one looks like it was created by a ten year old. A snowflake- again.....urgh. I went with the grey white 'embossed' design. But it aint great.

My only point earlier was aquatic centres are popular public facilities- of course a dramatically expanding city like Brisbane needs new Aquatic Centres .....

No one is suggesting a permanent 15000 seat pool....a modern aquatics centre with temporary seating. Like Sydney or London, but with an aquatic centre legacy.

I need to find the article, but I read a great analysis of Olympic City costs- and there have been 3 really çheap' Games - LA, Atlanta and Sydney. It is amazing how cheap Sydney was- but it was still the best. No hero architects or grand designs (but still the biggest venues), simple materials like corrugated steel, use if temporary stands etc. The state fair ground that hosted a lot of venues and the print media cost only $200 million- the print media were housed in the cattle pavilions, the broadcast media a Dept Store warehouse etc etc..I think Brisbane will be just as thrifty!

After having 2 'troublesome' games within 12 years (Athens and Rio), the IOC has gone SUPER safe- Japan, China, France, Italy, USA, Australia...I think that is a little sad, the occasional new territory helps connect the world and bring new excitement. Deserving countries like India, Indonesia, Turkey, all of Africa and even Hungary might be waiting a while..

The Aquatic Centre is a funny one- it is one legacy people actual want and use- will be financially successful, no need for a temporary fix!

One thing about Aquatic Centres in Australian cities they tend to be jammed full from opening day- they are a very successful legacy.

I am amazed if there will be 3000 marching- they are encouraging athletes to arrive late and leave early. Many wouldnt even be in Tokyo yet. If you trained for 4 years, why would you add to your risk at the last minute at the Opening?

So it looks like three of the next four Summer Olympics are on the Pacific Coast...(just an observation)

I think this process can be seen as their most corrupt yet (I am not implying Brisbane is corrupt)......but having a behind the scenes situation where you make a secret proposal ten plus years before the Games, it gets discussed and developed behind closed doors, then suddenly WHAM you are the preferred candidate before anyone knows....

Lots of chat about a 2036 German Games not being a good look (re 1936)

Cricket and Netball dont have the universality needed- they are only played in a dozen countries.. Squash would have a better chance, but again not widely played. So no idea!

One of Brisbane's great assets is the Gold and Sunshine Coasts (Australia's Florida/ Holiday Getaway) ...... gives an enormous amount of available rental accommodation in addition to Brisbane. The tram/ train network between Brisbane and Gold Coast will be completed and fully interconnected by 2032, and is already working well with the Comm Games extensions. They have facilities galore - 2 Aquatic Centres, about 4 stadiums (none of them 'great' though), a new velodrome, miles of ocean front for swimming/triathlon/ walks/ cycling and marathons etc...

And yes, Coates grubby behind the scenes manoeuvring is pretty plain for all to see.

I wouldnt call Brisbane a shithole...but its not a great city. It does have ambition though, and hosted a hugely successful World Expo in 1988..It would be very small by Olympic standards, at 2.3 million, the whole state just 5 million. Melbourne is the best equipped Australian city to host the Games- it really has a full range of facilities already built. But the timing would have been tricky so far South.

How the hell do you get around Tokyo without public transport...the mind boggles!

It has been crazy really to delay anything since the invention of the Internet- and that was 25 years ago!

Q: NBC will air the opening ceremony live in the morning Welcome to the rest of the world! ( I live in Adelaide, (basically) the same time zone as Tokyo!)

I thought the 2018 torch lighting was rather inelegant with that flaming big drill bit thing....and Kim Yuna looked terrified/miserable during the whole thing.