2016 Olympic Candidate Cities get in Depth Analysis from IOC
Not all positive comments from the IOC. The analysis on all of the 2016 Candidate Cities shows concerns about Chicago's mass transit system, Tokyo's public support for bringing the Games to Japan, Madrid's organizational skills, and Rio de Janeiro's ability to accommodate the expected crowds. Chicago is trying to bring the Summer Olympics back to the United States for the first time since the 1996 Atlanta Games. "As the least well known of the four cities hopefully the full membership will have a better understanding of the type of games Chicago would offer after this report comes out," Ryan said.
Tokyo, which held the Olympics in 1964, will have a new prime minister behind the bid after Taro Aso's Liberal Democrats were voted out of office by the Democratic Party over the weekend. The likely next prime minister, Yukio Hatoyama, has voiced support for the bid. "We offer the safest, securest, most risk-free and most dependable bid," Tokyo bid leader Dr. Ichiro Kono said. "This is especially critical considering today's uncertain environment." Madrid, which is bidding for the second straight time after losing to London in the race for the 2012 Games, believes it is well placed. "We have worked extremely hard on every aspect of our bid and all the hard work have put us in a strong position for the final run to the finishing line," bid leader Mercedes Coghen said. Rio de Janeiro has made a strong case to take the Olympics to South America for the first time. "We await this report with a little bit of anxiety but confident as well," bid chief executive Carlos Roberto Osorio said. "We think we have a very strong technical project." The 98-page IOC report, compiled after springtime visits to each of the cities and released Wednesday morning, praises Chicago's compact and downtown-centric venue plan. Key event centers such as the Olympic Stadium in Washington Park and tennis complex in Lincoln Park would be temporary. However, the IOC evaluation team said in its judgment, "the emphasis on major temporary or scaled down venues increases the element of risk...in regard to the planning, costing and delivery of the venues." Chicago 2016 has long said its temporary venue plan will save money and decrease the likelihood of "white elephants" being left behind in local neighborhoods.The in-depth analysis on each of the 2016 Candidate Cities also reveals concerns about Chicago's mass transit system, Tokyo's public support for bringing the Games to Japan, Madrid's organization skills, and Rio de Janeiro's ability to accommodate millions of additional visitors.
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