The Hindu : Sport : IOA had voted to bid for Olympics too

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Tuesday, Aug 03, 2010
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IOA had voted to bid for Olympics too

NEW DELHI: Amidst news of corruption charges, poor quality work, leaking roofs and organizational hurdles connected with the hosting of the Commonwealth Games, comes the news that the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) had decided to bid for the 2020 Olympic Games also at its General Assembly meeting held in December last year.

The IOA never made an announcement regarding this, just as it kept the decision on the 2019 Asian Games bid a secret till the Union Sports Ministry sought details regarding the bid.

The IOA was reluctant to reveal any official move for the Olympic bid, even though it had been talking about it for quite some time, with its president, Suresh Kalmadi, losing little opportunity to mention it at appropriate forums.

The Union Sports Minister, M. S. Gill, had, however stated in no uncertain terms a few months ago that he was not in favour of bidding for the Olympics.

The 2019 Asian Games bid proposal is still with the Government. It has neither been rejected nor accepted. There had been news that the IOA had already submitted a bid, though without the requisite letter of support from the Government.

With the Commonwealth Games preparations already turning out to be a nightmare for everyone concerned, there is very little likelihood of the Asiad bid getting the approval. There is also little chance of IOA submitting a late Asiad bid, with Government support, after the expiry of the deadline. The less said about the Olympic bid the better. — Special Correspondent

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