Madrid Mayor Rules Out 2024 Olympic Games After 2020 Failure

The Mayor of Madrid has said there will be no bid from the Spanish capital for the 2024 Olympic Games after the city’s failure in the 2020 election last weekend.

Madrid was knocked out at the first round of votes at the 125^th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in Buenos Aires, with Mayor Ana Botella in particular coming under scrutiny for her role in their presentation.

Botella found herself the brunt of worldwide Twitter trends that mocked her confused comments in English at the Session.

Speaking at a breakfast forum, Botella said: “I think that for the moment the Olympic race has given us all the benefits we can expect from it in the next few years.

“I believe, therefore, that Madrid should not seek to host the 2024 Games.”

The 2020 Olympic Games were eventually awarded to Tokyo, with Istanbul finishing in second.

Madrid was knocked out in the first round after they lost a tiebreaker with Istanbul.

The poor state of the Spanish economy had meant that Madrid 2020 was considered the underdog for much of the campaigning process.

However, coming into the 125th Session, reports suggested that Madrid had become the favourite to win the IOC’s approval.

In the end, questions over Madrid’s supposed relaxed attitude to doping and a weak presentation meant that the Spanish capital was not successful.

Madrid’s 2020 bid was their third in a row, having lost to London for 2012 and Rio for 2016. Madrid also lost to Munich in the 1972 elections.

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