Tokyo beats Istanbul and Madrid to host 2020 Olympic Games

[News_Editor]

BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA (BNO NEWS) -- The Japanese capital of Tokyo was chosen Saturday to host the 2020 Summer Olympics, the International Olympic Committee announced after a secret ballot, beating rival bids from the Turkish city of Istanbul and the Spanish capital of Madrid.

The secret ballot by members of the IOC took place in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, during the 125th IOC Session. It took a total of three rounds of voting to choose the winner, after Istanbul and Madrid both received the same number of votes during the first round of voting.

"Congratulations to the city of Tokyo on its election as host of the 2020 Olympic Games," said IOC President Jacques Rogge, whose 12-year term in office comes to an end next week. "Tokyo presented a very strong technical bid from the outset - and it needed to in competition with two such high-caliber bids from Istanbul and Madrid."

During a question-and-answer session earlier on Saturday, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was asked about the recent leaks and radiation problems at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant, which was damaged by the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that triggered the world's worst nuclear accident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

The question was in response to a serious incident last month in which highly contaminated water was found to be leaking from a tank, causing radiation levels near the bottom of a storage tank to reach 1,800 millisieverts per hour. But Abe assured the IOC members that the situation is under control, and that the nuclear plant "has never done and never will do any damage to Tokyo."

Tokyo previously hosted the 1964 Summer Olympics while the Japanese cities of Sapporo and Nagano hosted the Winter Olympics in 1972 and 1998, respectively. Tokyo was also chosen to host the Summer Olympics in 1940 but later notified the IOC that it would be unable to host the Games due to the Second Sino-Japanese War, and the event was eventually canceled due to the outbreak of World War II.

Neither Istanbul nor Madrid have had experience with hosting the Summer Olympics, although the Spanish city of Barcelona hosted the Summer Olympics in 1992. Istanbul lost four previous bids to host the event while Madrid lost three previous bids, the most recent one being for the 2016 Summer Olympics.

"All three cities were capable of staging excellent Games in 2020," Rogge said. "But in the end it was Tokyo's bid that resonated the most with the IOC membership, inviting us to 'discover tomorrow' by delivering a well-organised and safe Games that will reinforce the Olympic values while demonstrating the benefits of sport to a new generation."

Tokyo received 42 votes during the first round, with rivals Istanbul and Madrid both receiving 26 votes each, after which Madrid was eliminated after losing a tie-breaker 45 to 49. The Japanese capital, which previously lost its bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics, received 60 votes to Istanbul's 36 in the third and final round.

The bidding process for the 2020 event began in September 2011, when National Olympic Committees were required to notify the IOC if a city within their jurisdiction was interested in applying to host the Games. The cities that came forward were Baku in Azerbaijan, Doha in Qatar, Istanbul in Turkey, Madrid in Spain, Rome in Italy, and Tokyo in Japan.

The six cities then proceeded to Phase 1 during which the IOC conducted a technical review of cities to determine if they would be able to host the massive sports event. But just months before the IOC was due to select the cities that would become Candidate Cities and move on to Phase 2, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti announced in February 2012 that Rome would withdraw its bid, citing uncertain costs and unknown financial benefit.

The 2020 Olympics in Tokyo are scheduled to be held from July 25 to August 9, 2020, during which the average high in the capital is about 29 degrees Celsius (85 degrees Fahrenheit). If Doha had been chosen as the host city, it would have requested the event to be held at the end of October and the start of November.

(Copyright 2013 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: [email protected].)

[jackr]

The question was in response to a serious incident last month in which highly contaminated water was found to be leaking from a tank, causing radiation levels near the bottom of a storage tank to reach 1,800 millisieverts per hour. But Abe assured the IOC members that the situation is under control, and that the nuclear plant "has never done and never will do any damage to Tokyo."

It is not under control. Why do the suits over there keep peddling this line? Alright he's a poli (and all about face Japanese), but be humble for the sake of humanity and say something along the lines of 'yes, it is serious and has gotten worse, but we have a plan'. There is also a good chance the capital could end up in the exclusion zone if things progress.

Well done to Tokyo and all that, but I hope it doesn't come back to haunt them as the world will be watching more closely.

[geriatrickid]

At least the Games will be run properly. As an added bonus, the tap water is drinkable in Japan, unlike in Istanbul.

Madrid would have seen riots and protests had the games been awarded. Spain just isn't in a position to put on this sort of event considering its financial condition and social tensions. Japan is the best of the best for this kind of event. The transport and accommodation infrastructure is already in place.

[bangkokrick]

Great news for Japan securing the 2020 Olympic games. We will be able to watch the athletes glowing in the dark.

Edited September 8, 2013 by bangkokrick

[midas]

The question was in response to a serious incident last month in which highly contaminated water was found to be leaking from a tank, causing radiation levels near the bottom of a storage tank to reach 1,800 millisieverts per hour. But Abe assured the IOC members that the situation is under control, and that the nuclear plant "has never done and never will do any damage to Tokyo."

It is not under control. Why do the suits over there keep peddling this line? Alright he's a poli (and all about face Japanese), but be humble for the sake of humanity and say something along the lines of 'yes, it is serious and has gotten worse, but we have a plan'. There is also a good chance the capital could end up in the exclusion zone if things progress.

Well done to Tokyo and all that, but I hope it doesn't come back to haunt them as the world will be watching more closely.

This is such Alice in Wonderland stuff. someone makes a sweeping statement and the IOC believes it

And yet, simultaneously........................

Lies? Top Japan officials and Tepco all now claim Fukushima contamination is staying inside port and not reaching Pacific — Yet Tokyo scientist already revealed 44% of water in port flows out into ocean every day (VIDEOS)

http://enenews.com/top-japan-officials-and-tepco-all-now-claim-fukushima-contamination-is-staying-inside-port-and-not-reaching-pacific-yet-tokyo-scientist-already-revealed-44-of-water-in-port-flows-out-into-ocean-eve

[Chicog]

At least the Games will be run properly. As an added bonus, the tap water is drinkable in Japan, unlike in Istanbul.

I wouldn't put serious money on that!

[boomerangutang]

The last time Tokyo hosted the Olympics, they wound up embracing parts of American culture in a big way. Particularly R&R music, jitterbug dancing, cheerleaders, Elvis. What's in store for this time around?

[jamhar]

They are all "glowing" with excitement!

Edit:

Aww crap, bkk beat me to this punchline!

I needed some sleep anyways

Night all

Edited September 8, 2013 by jamhar

[Richard W]

So where do we think the 2020 games will actually be held?

[Mosha]

So where do we think the 2020 games will actually be held?

A nuclear bunker.

[Chicog]

The last time Tokyo hosted the Olympics, they wound up embracing parts of American culture in a big way. Particularly R&R music, jitterbug dancing, cheerleaders, Elvis. What's in store for this time around?

Hip hop, Twerking, Planking and Justin Bieber.

Poor sods.

[Scott]

They will probably be adding a new medal. Gold, Silver, Bronze and Uranium.

[midas]

Edited September 9, 2013 by midas

[midas]

TEPCO finds new spot of leaked toxic water

In Sunday's International Olympic Committee meeting held in Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, Abe assured to the world that the contaminated water leakage in Fukushima was under control, helping Tokyo win the right to host the 2020 summer Olympics.

Runner of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, the Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), said Monday it detected a new site with leaked toxic water in the complex, immediately after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the issue is under control.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2013-09/09/c_125354526.htm

[Steely Dan]

I see Erdogan has taken defeat like the whining crybaby that he is. Given a choice between Japan's toxic waste problems and Erdogan's toxic policies I think the IOC made the correct decision.

[midas]

Arnie Gundersen, Fairewinds Energy Education: Think of a fuel rack as a pack of cigarettes and you try to pull a cigarette out, you pull the cigarette out, it will come out just fine. But if the pack is distorted and you pull the cigarette out, it breaks. Well that’s the problem they’re going to encounter on Fukushima Daiichi Unit 4. The racks are distorted from the earthquake — oh, by the way, the roof has fallen in, which further distorted the racks.

It’s likely that that problem will exist on more than one bundle. So over the next year or two, it wouldn’t surprise me that either they don’t remove all the fuel because they don’t want to pull too hard, or if they do pull to hard, they’re likely to damage the fuel and cause a radiation leak inside the building. So that’s problem #2 in this process, getting the fuel out of Unit 4 is a top priority I have, but it’s not going to be easy. Tokyo Electric is portraying this as easy. In a normal nuclear reactor, all of this is done with computers. Everything gets pulled perfectly vertically. Well nothing is vertical anymore, the fuel racks are distorted, it’s all going to have to be done manually. The net effect is it’s a really difficult job. It wouldn’t surprise me if they snapped some of the fuel and they can’t remove it.

http://www.nuclearhotseat.com/nuclear-hotseat-117-gundersen-charge-fukushima-vision/

[midas]

Japan Times: Talk of Olympics being taken away from Tokyo if problems at Fukushima worsen over next couple of years

http://enenews.com/japan-times-talk-of-olympics-being-taken-away-from-tokyo-if-problems-at-fukushima-worsen-over-next-couple-of-years

Edited September 13, 2013 by midas

[midas]

Fukushima "not under control", says TEPCO official

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/fukushima-not-under/812662.html

Edited September 13, 2013 by midas

[Sing_Sling]

Excellent decision, Japan has had a bit of rough time recently.

A an aside, my grandmother was at the Tokyo Olympics.

Good luck to them

[midas]

Excellent decision, Japan has had a bit of rough time recently.

A an aside, my grandmother was at the Tokyo Olympics.

Good luck to them

Contamination in Tokyo suburb 3 times higher than area just 1 mile from Fukushima Daiichi — Nuclear Scientist: Significant contamination in Tokyo, a serious problem (AUDIO)

http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0057760#s4

Edited September 24, 2013 by midas

[midas]

Tokyo mayor claims Japan PM lied about Fukushima

The Mayor of Tokyo, Naoki Inose, has indicated that the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lied to the International Olympic Committee when he reassured them that contaminated water leaking from the Fukushima Nuclear Plant were “under control.”

http://fukushimaupdate.com/tokyo-mayor-claims-japan-pm-lied-about-fukushima/

Edited September 24, 2013 by midas

[JemJem]

I am from Istanbul; and I have been real glad that we didn't get it I have political, economical and enviromental reasons.

Political : The ruling Islamo-fascist government in Turkey would have used the win as propaganda; and politically they would have gained ground and increased their chances of winning the general elections again in 2015.

Economical : Cost of living would have increased by then.

Enviromental : There would have been considerable damage to the environment, for example green spaces (which are already too little here) would have decreased; stray dogs and cats, both of which I love dearly, would have been tried to get rid of.

Edited September 25, 2013 by JemJem

[Scott]

An off-topic post and reply have been deleted.

[midas]

[midas]

Yuki Karakawa’s presentation to InfraGard (“a partnership between U.S. businesses and the Federal Bureau of Investigation… dedicated to prevent hostile acts against the United States”), Published February 2013 (At 7:30 in): “300 kilometers should be evacuated, but we did not, Japan did not evacuate. […] In some areas, we can find very strange material like europium and so on. Now Self Defense Forces is collecting all materials. Also spent fuel flew because of a second explosion; it’s more like a bomb, exploded and flew like 30 kilometers. So government, or Self Defense, is now collecting all spent fuel pellets.”

Tokyo is within 300 kilometres...............................

[midas]

Report: Olympic athletes and tourists warned they will be in danger from Tokyo’s elevated radiation levels — Cesium found at almost every venue tested

A citizens' group in Tokyo has found elevated levels of radioactivity at sporting facilities that will be used in the 2020 Olympic Games and is warning that competitors and the hundreds of thousands of people expected to flock to the city for the event will be putting themselves in danger.

The Citizens' Group for Measuring Radioactive Environment at Facilities for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics claims wind-borne radiation from the four crippled reactors at the Fukushima nuclear plant has contaminated a number of future venues.

The tests were also carried out at the planned site of the Olympic Village and the media centre, with the highest radiation reading - 0.484 microsieverts per hour - detected in undergrowth close to Yumenoshima Stadium, where the equestrian events will be held

http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1329729/elevated-radiation-claimed-tokyo-2020-olympic-venues

Edited October 12, 2013 by midas