Special Report:‘Safe’ Tokyo Take on ‘one Games two continents’ Istanbul in Bid Presentation
April 19, 2013
Istanbul and Tokyo went head to head at AIPS Congress this week in presenting their bids to host the 2020 Olympic Games.
The annual meeting of the international sports journalists’ association heard all about the Turks’ plan for ‘one Games in two continents’ and Tokyo’s offer to the Olympic movement a ‘safe pair of hands.’
Starting for Istanbul, bid CEO Ali Kiremitcioglu painted a picture of a Games in a city where “east meets west, tradition meets innovation” and supported by the power of a fast-growing economy.
Esat Yilmaer, the AIPS first vice-president who is also a member of the Turkish national Olympic committee, described the transportation revolution including plans for a third airport.
Kenji Ogiwara, a double Olympic ski champion, said that Tokyo’s concept was based on a network of venues in the heart of the city which would “unite the power of the Games with the unique values of the Japanese people” in a safe city “which sets global trends.”
Nao Miyawaki, the bid’s head of international communications, mindful of the audience, said that Tokyo was promising the media a raft of assurances concerning top-class broadcast and media centres, stable power and telecommunications platforms plus affordable media accommodation served by an efficient and reliable transport system.
Both bids were reminded by AIPS president Gianni Merlo of the organisation’s long-running to persuade the Olympic movement to understand the self-promotional logic of ensuring that internet access should be fee-free for accredited media.
Clearance for the appearance of Olympic 2020 bid city representatives had been obtained from the International Olympic Committee which votes its choice in Buenos Aires on September 7.
Keir Radnedge has been covering football worldwide for more than 40 years, writing 33 books, from tournament guides to comprehensive encyclopedias, aimed at all ages.
His journalism career included The Daily Mail for 20 years as well as The Guardian and other national newspapers and magazines in the UK and around the world. He is a former editor, and remains a lead columnist, with World Soccer, generally recognised as the premier English language magazine on global football.
In addition to his writing, Keir has been a regular analyst for BBC radio and television, Sky Sports, Sky News, Aljazeera and CNN.
Keir Radnedge’s Twitter: @KeirRadnedge
Keir Radnedge’s 
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