Osaka, Istanbul struggle in race for 2008 Games

Adrian Warner

Japan's Osaka and Istanbul face a huge challenge to make any impact in the race for the 2008 Summer Olympics after a disappointing showing in a key report on their bids.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC)'s ruling executive board has the power to reduce the number of cities before the vote in July, senior members said.

The evaluation commission report which criticised Osaka and Istanbul's bids on Tuesday was due to be on the agenda of Wednesday's second day of a board meeting, although it is unlikely to force the issue then since all cities have 10 days in which to reply to any criticisms.

After visiting the five bidding cities, the evaluation commission said on Tuesday Beijing, regarded as favourites, and rivals Toronto and Paris were capable of staging "excellent Games".

Osaka and Istanbul were always regarded as outsiders by most IOC observers but the report appears to have sunk their chances completely, turning the race into a three-city affair with Beijing just ahead as China bids to host the Games for the first time.

The report said the IOC had concerns about the financial implications of hosting the Games in Osaka.

"Concerns exist about the financial implications for the city of the scale of the infrastructure and Games project, making delivery of the Games plans more difficult, " it said. "The commission is not confident that this issue could be satisfactorily addressed."

FINANCIAL ISSUES
The commission was also worried about financial issues with Istanbul. It said it could be difficult for the costs for the necessary transport infrastructure to be achieved.

"The Commission believes that there are uncertainties regarding the overall status and projections of Games finance, " it said. "The time lines and costs for all necessary transport infrastructure could be difficult to achieve and these would be essential for the conduct of a successful Games."

"Despite the presence of some major new facilities, the commission is not confident that the complex planning required for a Games has been fully addressed."

Reacting to the report, Osaka mayor Takafumi Isomura said: "I pledge that I will take it upon myself, as an Economics Professor, to clarify the non-OCOG (non organising committee) budget by Friday, May 25, in a manner that will satisfy the IOC scrutiny and restore confidence in us.

"We will continue to work hard in order to gain wider recognition as a capable organiser of international competitions at the East Asian Games and other major events taking place in Osaka."

BEIJING AHEAD
Beijing remained the favourite after one of the most explicit evaluation reports ever written by the IOC.

The commission's brief was to report on the technical aspects of the five bids -- key issues such as transportation, accommodation, environmental factors and marketing -- following visits to the cities in the last few months.

It has more significance than in the past since IOC members have been banned from visiting bidding cities after the Salt Lake City corruption scandal in 1998 and 1999. But the final vote will almost certainly be influenced by politics in and outside of the IOC.

Reports in the past have tended to be less clear about their conclusions. But the 2008 version was quite explicit.

"The Commission has rated three bids as excellent," the report said. "In these three bids, it has identified only minor deficiencies which, in its view, would be resolved before 2008 by an efficient Games organisation.

"In dealing with the bids from Paris, Toronto and Beijing, the commission is clear that none of the them presents any particular major risk."

But the most striking sentence in the report's conclusions provided a huge boost to the Chinese.

"It is the Commission's belief that a Beijing Games would leave a unique legacy to China and to sport," it said.

Beijing holds strong cards in the race despite the fact that it has not built many of the facilities for the Games yet.

EXPANDING MARKET
China is an attractive, expanding commercial market for the blue chip sponsors who back the Olympics. The IOC has an opportunity to make history by giving Beijing the Games.

But the ghost of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre helped to derail the Chinese capital's bid for the 2000 Games which were awarded to Sydney. Concerns over human rights have started to dog their campaign again in the last few months and anti-China demonstrators protested outside IOC headquarters on Tuesday.

The bid committee was clearly pleased by the report. But bid official Wang Wei was cautious about the vote on July 13 in Moscow.

"Over the last eight years we have worked hard and improved our bid," he said. "It was an excellent report but we realise it has no guarantees that we will host the Olympics Games.

"We understand there is a long way to go in the next 60 days."