2020 - the First Poll

[afiqnadzir]

i want to see city with the best combination of culture and modern,which u all thinks better in these aspect?

[olympiaki-agones]

Anyway, without any South African in the race for 2020 Olympics, my favorite city to be awarded is Istanbul. Now the Turkish delegation should work seriously this time to get the games.

[deawebo]

i want to see city with the best combination of culture and modern,which u all thinks better in these aspect?

Doha or Istanbul perphaps... MaybeTokyo too

[emre]

Doha or Istanbul perphaps... MaybeTokyo too

doha ? neither modern nor a cultural background. suprsied me. having skyscrapers doesnt make a nation modern or a new museum is culture.

[DannyelBrazil]

Not big news on the race lately?

[emre]

nothing yet...

[Galandar]

i want to see city with the best combination of culture and modern,which u all thinks better in these aspect?

Baku has both cultural heritage of several epochs and modernism.

[Athan]

Actually, I think all of the applicant cities have a nice combination of ancient and modern history and culture. Naming one as the best is very subjective. It depends on what kind of history and culture you like the most.

[deawebo]

Yes!! I think all of them have a nice combination of modern and culture! More than other competitions...

[Olympic Fan Darcy]

Wish i could change my vote, dont think Rome will get it anymore

[emre]

the first days of the race i was thinking the same. rome was the clear favorite... but with the eu crises getting deeper. and greece already bankrupt, and todays news as italy is a risk ( no need to talk about spain if italy collapse) tokyo and istanbul getting 1 step forward. Germany and France wont be willingly give eu fonds for 2020 hosting while they have bussiness with saving Eu these years..

japanese finances is not so well too. IOC will risk even they choose a new frontier İstanbul, or Rome madrid and tokyo... noone in the race has a clear future.

lets wait and see.. it will be more clear in following weeks.

my heart says still istanbul, but i began to think tokyo will get it.

[deawebo]

I would love to see Istanbul, but I have the feeling that Madrid will be.

[emre]

I would love to see Istanbul, but I have the feeling that Madrid will be.

say me st charming about madrid has but not tokyo istanbul or rome

[Athan]

say me st charming about madrid has but not tokyo istanbul or rome

A Royal Palace, an ancient Egyptian temple brought from Egypt, the Golden Triangle of Art...

[emre]

A Royal Palace, an ancient Egyptian temple brought from Egypt, the Golden Triangle of Art...

ok interesting but i mean the candidature of madrid.. offering st different. the city the country..? every city got unique architectural background.. collesum forum hagia sophia topkapi palace japanese imperial palace... etc...

and i really wanna see tht temple and sure must be better condition than the original land :/

[Guardian]

The eurozone economic crisis could derail any chance Rome has to getting the nod to host another Olympic Games to me. That said, I could be saying the same thing with Madrid, too. Still, I think it would be a fight between Istanbul and Madrid for the nod.

[Athan]

ok interesting but i mean the candidature of madrid.. offering st different. the city the country..? every city got unique architectural background.. collesum forum hagia sophia topkapi palace japanese imperial palace... etc...

and i really wanna see tht temple and sure must be better condition than the original land :/

Then the question should be what do Rome and Tokyo offer that Madrid and Istanbul don't? Madrid and Istanbul at least are offering new venues that have never hosted the Games. Then, Metro of Madrid is the 8th largest in the world. Also, the airport is just 10/15 minutes away from the city center, as well as the Olympic park. It's a real compact project, difficult to beat in that aspect.

[alphamale86]

I posted this in another forum but thought it might be better used here

My Analysis

Rome

Pro - It has hosted the games before. It mostly needs to upgrade a few venues.

Con - The major financial crisis in Italy.

Analysis - if the Games were awarded now it would be in a horrible spot, however with 2 years till the vote Italy has a bit of time to fix it's economy and thus cement it's Status as the one to beat.

Madrid

Pro - It's the Summer Game eternal Bridesmaid. It would be the most looked at bid seeing it has been so close to winning in the past which is a great thing.

Con - Economy. Like Italy, Spain is facing some trying times. There issues may actually be worse than Italy's.

Analysis - Madrid is sitting pretty with the possibility that the IOC might award the games to them based on tenacity alone but for some reason they lack the sex appeal other cities have and they will need to fix that by the time 2013 come for the decision.

Istanbul

Pro - With 5 previous bid attempts it actually is more of a bridesmaid than Madrid, it's in a region unique enough to be known as a new frontier as well as being close to the tried and tested grounds of Europe and it seems to be economically stable for the time being.

Con - As of right now I can't see major Con besides the fact that it is a major player in the middle east and thus could be a target but then again every games is subject to regional politics.

Analysis - It wasn't until I started writing this that I realized how strong of a possibility Istanbul. It provides both the sexiness of a new frontier as well as the stability the IOC craves and throw in it's own persistence in bidding and you get a strong contender.

Tokyo

Pro - It hosted it before.

Con - Not the most intriguing candidate. Sad to say this but Tokyo seems to just be an after thought when you compare it to the other cities in this group.

Analysis - The WOW factor is missing here. To me Tokyo could only win if the other candidates were cities that were completely not ready to host the games and you want something that is just a safe bet in order to give those other cities time to improve but in a field like this Tokyo's safeness just won't cut it.

Doha

Pro - Money Money Money - Let's be honest we would love to se another grand spectacle like Beijing.

Con - Fifa corruption scandal, volatile Middle East, major lack of an international sporting tradition and even though the IOC said they would allow it, the time of the games will still be an issue.

Analysis - Money goes along way with the IOC but the Ioc would not blatantly walk into the scandalous fiasco that was the 2022 World Cup biding process. So though I do think it is a strong enough contender I think it will come down to if the IOC members will forget the scandal.

Baku

Pro - New Frontier

Con - Simple. The competition.

Analysis - Baku is simply going up against stronger candidates.

So I guess if I had to chose a winner Now I would go with ISTANBUL but we will have to see what the next 2 years shows us.

[Athensfan]

Interesting analysis. A few missing points:

Rome pro: IOC representation. Con: infamous corruption. Mediocre Torino 2006.

Madrid pro: dead Samaranch. Con: dead Samaranch and Barcelona 1992. I think Madrid's ok in the sex appeal department.

Istanbul con: lousy venue layout, inadequate infrastructure, lack of experience hosting major events.

Tokyo pro: very reliable. Con: major sex appeal problem. PC 2018.

I've written off Doha and Baku though one or both may be shortlisted.

[emre]

Interesting analysis. A few missing points:

Rome pro: IOC representation. Con: infamous corruption. Mediocre Torino 2006.

Madrid pro: dead Samaranch. Con: dead Samaranch and Barcelona 1992. I think Madrid's ok in the sex appeal department.

Istanbul con: lousy venue layout, inadequate infrastructure, lack of experience hosting major events.

Tokyo pro: very reliable. Con: major sex appeal problem. PC 2018.

I've written off Doha and Baku though one or both may be shortlisted.

i still cant get what u mean people about inadequate infrasturctre about istanbul:S tens of billions usd spending to improve the infrast. and transpportation and still improving.. better in many ways before beijing and athens get the games :/

[spectator12]

Go Istanbul!

[Athensfan]

From what I understand, the city is spread out and difficult to navigate. In particular Ataturk Olympic stadium is far outside the city and difficult to access.

Perhaps I'm mistaken. If so, I'd like to understand better.

[alphamale86]

Interesting analysis. A few missing points:

Rome pro: IOC representation. Con: infamous corruption. Mediocre Torino 2006.

Madrid pro: dead Samaranch. Con: dead Samaranch and Barcelona 1992. I think Madrid's ok in the sex appeal department.

Istanbul con: lousy venue layout, inadequate infrastructure, lack of experience hosting major events.

Tokyo pro: very reliable. Con: major sex appeal problem. PC 2018.

I've written off Doha and Baku though one or both may be shortlisted.

These points are valid but like another Poster had posed this will not be a typical voting year like in the past. Factors such as previously hosting the games and implied continental rotation will not affect the decision because of the enormity of the financial crisis. It really doesn't matter that Italy has major representation in the IOC. Hell I think some of it's own delegates might be pushing for another city to win so they won't have to spend more money that's if they don't pull out before. I wonder if they would even make the short list if the evaluation committee questions their financial commitment to the games. Spain is in the same boat.

Quite frankly this is going to turn into a race between Tokyo and Istanbul with Doha right behind. Safe and tested (TOK) vs Kind of Safe and New (IST) vs Money (DOH). In these economic times which will you choose?

[FYI]

^It's not like the IOC hasn't been in this boat before. In the 70's, when no one wanted the Games for the 80's, despite the global economy was in better shape, but yet the Games managed to continue. And right after WWII, war ravaged London staged the Games in 1948.

The Italian (& Spanish) economies might be going through rough seas right now, but they are offering a more sustainable & affordable venue plan than any of the other candidates. If previous hosting & what not, "won't matter", in this particular race then I think this would benefit Madrid & Rome. If the IOC is "serious" about scaling down the cost & size of the Games, then NOW is the time for them to put their money where their mouth is!

[Athensfan]

The IOC is not going to risk the Olympics becoming an economic black eye on the host. It would be a nightmare scenario for all concerned --especially the image of the IOC. I think Rome is in big trouble and Madrid isn't far behind. Tokyo stands to benefit the most.