Istanbul Reveal 2020 Bid Application

March 1, 2012

Istanbul has submiited its bid application for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games, Suat Kilic, Minister of Youth and Sport for Turkey has announced.

Kilic said the Application File’s offer to the Olympic Movement comes with the full, unequivocal support of the people of Turkey and every level of government.

He said, “Istanbul 2020 is uniting the nation behind the bid. The Application File makes it clear to the whole world that the Olympic and Paralympic Games are a national priority. Already 87 per cent of people in Istanbul have said they want to host Turkey’s first ever Games in 2020. Their passion is echoed by a government dedicated to making the nation’s Olympic dream a reality – from the President and Prime Minister, across opposition parties, right through to the municipal authorities.”

According to the Master Plan there are four venue zones, each aligned with the city’s strategic development plan. Of the 36 venues, 11 are in place and another 10 are already planned to meet community and elite training requirements. There will be five temporary venues, with 10 additional state-of-the-art permanent venues.

Hasan Arat, a member of the bid and Vice President of the Turkish NOC said: “For the last seven years there has been an average spend of $1.2 billion on transport infrastructure upgrades in Istanbul. With economic growth of 8.3 per cent in 2011, this trend of rapid development is set to continue.”

Arat added, “Our bid team is integrated with the existing Istanbul Olympic Games Preparation Committee overseen by an empowered Olympic Council. That means budget is already assigned, top-level leadership is in place and the experienced human capital is ready to be activated. This alignment ensures that should we win the honour of hosting the Games, the IOC would be working with the people they have grown to know and trust during the application process.”

by Ismail Uddin