Istanbul is up against Baku, Doha, Madrid, Rome and Tokyo for the right to host the Games, with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) set to vote on the winning bid on September 7, 2013 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Despite falling short in four of the last five tenders for the Summer Games, Aksoy believes the city is far better prepared having decided against bidding for the 2016 Olympics, which were secured by Rio de Janeiro.
“I have never felt so confident except the first time when we bid for the 2000 Games,” Aksoy told Reuters. “We have learned how difficult it is to land the Games...Before we showed our dedication to the Olympic movement but did not expect to win. This time it is completely different.”
Aksoy added: “A lot has changed in Turkey in the past eight years, both in infrastructure and economics. Istanbul is the only city to build an Olympic stadium without winning the Games. We decided to go on constructing our projects...to keep on investing in sports infrastructure. Since 1994, 14 Olympic venues have been completed including the Olympic stadium and the Sinan Erdem indoor arena that hosted matches for the world basketball championship last year.”
Aksoy also underlined the support of the Turkish government following Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s announcement of the 2020 candidacy. “Which other city's application was announced by the government? This is very positive,” Aksoy added. “With the gigantism of the Games, the IOC is very interested in securing government guarantees.”
