01 cover sbi 152.indd - FIFA/CIES International University Network

EVENTS
SHORTSTOP
2020 OLYMPICS: Turkish city Istanbul
will bid to host the 2020 Summer
Olympics. Speaking at the Sports Event
Management conference in London,
Prime Ministerial sports adviser
Mehmet Atalay said: “We decided not to
bid for 2016 while we concentrated on
trying to make sure we had everything
in place to launch a serious attempt for
2020.” Istanbul hosted the 2005 UEFA
Champions League final.
WINTER OLYMPICS: Quebec City said it
is considering a bid for the 2022 or 2026
Winter Games. Quebec failed in bids to
host the 2002 and 2010 Winter Olympic
Games. Host cities for the 2022 and
2026 Winter Olympic Games will be
chosen in 2015 and 2019 respectively
FRENCH OPEN: The French tennis
federation (FFT) threatened to move
the French Open from Roland Garros
if plans for a new roofed centre court
are not approved by Paris City Council.
The FFT is facing ‘hostility’ from
the Council and local residents over
the development. The project was
announced last May, with an estimated
finish date of 2013 or 2014.
2014 WINTER OLYMPICS: International
Olympic Committee president Jacques
Rogge expressed his approval for
Russia’s preparations for the 2014
Winter Games in Sochi. Rogge said
he was encouraged by “the pace and
quality’’ of the work in the Black Sea
resort area where almost all of the
venues and infrastructure are being
built from scratch.
2014 YOUTH OLYMPICS: Poznan
announced its intention to bid for
the 2014 Youth Olympic Games. The
Polish city has hosted numerous
Olympic Sports events in the recent
years such as the 2009 Rowing World
Championships, the 2009 European
Championships in Basketball, and is
one of the key host cities for the 2012
UEFA EURO. The 2014 Youth Olympic
Games bid is a part of the city’s
commitment to sport and to promoting
a healthy life style among its citizens.
QATAR BID GETS SERIOUS
Matthew Glendinning, reports on the Middle East State of Qatar’s highprofile
bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
THE QATAR 2022 World Cup Bid team is
taking its Bid message of ‘unity, progress and
understanding’ to football industry conferences
and exhibitions worldwide in a high-profile
promotional push for the Middle Eastern state’s
hosting ambitions.
From the October’s ‘Leaders in Football’
Conference in London to a major exhibiting
presence at Soccerex in Johannesburg in
November, Chairman of the Qatar 2022 Bid,
HE Sheikh Mohammed Bin Hamad Bin Khalifa
Al-Thani is championing what would be the
first global sporting event ever to be hosted in
the Middle East - and confirms that Qatar is
“extremely serious” about its plans to host the
World Cup in 2022.
“We are not doing this just to give Qatar some
publicity,” said the Qatari Royal. “We really want
to host the World Cup and we are more than
capable of doing so. There is a huge interest and
passion across the Middle East for football and
we have a track record of hosting great events -
national, regional and multi-national.”
Sheikh Mohammed says that he feels people
do not yet know Qatar as well as he would like
them to. “We’re a small nation, but we have
made some huge leaps forward. We are blessed
by having a very strong economy - and this is
why we are able to invest in our future. Our
World Cup Bid is part of that investment.
“Why are we bidding Because we truly
believe in the FIFA slogan ‘For the Game. For
the World’. There are not enough global events
in the Middle East. We want to give people in
the Middle East the chance of experiencing this
wonderful tournament.”
In answer to those who question whether, given
its small size, Qatar could host the World Cup,
Sheikh Mohammed responds: “I guarantee we can
host it. It’s all going to be about the fan experience.
The compact size of our proposal will give fans
the opportunity to see every match, without the
need for travel and hotel changes. It will be highly
organised, so there will be hardly any need for
commuting between matches.”
Nor, says Sheikh Mohammed, would the
summer temperatures in Qatar be a problem for
players or fans. “It’s only 2009 and we already
have cooling technologies that create a very
comfortable atmosphere in our stadiums, while
outside temperatures are much higher.
“And just look at what we have achieved in
only the past few years in our country - and then
please believe that in 2022 we will certainly have
amazing cooling technologies for stadiums,
training grounds and fan zones.
“We want to do this by developing
environmentally-friendly technologies - and
these technologies will then be used to the
benefit of other countries around the world.”
Looking further ahead, Sheikh Mohammed
explains that the Bid meshes with Qatar’s
existing long-term infrastructure development
plan, the ‘Qatar Vision 2030’. “Hosting the
World Cup fits into that existing plan - and
would be an important chapter in that plan. We
want a Qatar World Cup to leave a long legacy,
not just in Qatar but much further afield,” says
Sheikh Mohammed.
“We would also like to put on a really familyfriendly
World Cup, where parents feel safe
bringing their children to watch the match. Their
young memories of a fantastic World Cup will
also be our legacy to FIFA.”
England lost to Brazil last month in Doha - Getty Images Sport
COMMONWEALTH GAMES: Cardiff
began forming a bid for the 2022
Commonwealth Games which will be
presented to the Welsh Assembly.
Cardiff has hosted a Rugby World Cup
final, FA Cup finals, rallying, Grand
Prix speedway and an Ashes Test in
recent years.
22 SportBusiness International • No. 152 • 12.09