It was meant to be too close to call, one of the tightest races the International Olympic Committee had ever voted on, but Tokyo last night delivered a crushing victory to win the right to stage the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics.
The Japanese capital vaporised Madrid and Istanbul in rain-swept Buenos Aires, the latter after it threatened to pull off a shock triumph following a dramatic tie with its Spanish rival in the first round of voting.
Tokyo’s final margin of victory over Istanbul was a massive 24 votes, 60 to 32, giving the hosts of the 1964 Olympic Games the honour of being the fifth city to stage them twice.
The announcement of the result sparked inevitable scenes of jubilation among its bid team, with Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe claiming he was more elated than after his own election: “I am overjoyed. I would like to share this jot together with the Japanese people back home.”
Its first-round success was almost as emphatic, Tokyo gaining 42 votes to Istanbul and Madrid’s 26 apiece, just six short of the outright majority required to eliminate the need for a second round of voting.
In the end, there were three rounds, with the tie between Madrid and Istanbul prompting a vote-off, which the latter won 49 to 45.
Source : Telegraph.co.uk
The Japanese capital vaporised Madrid and Istanbul in rain-swept Buenos Aires, the latter after it threatened to pull off a shock triumph following a dramatic tie with its Spanish rival in the first round of voting.
Tokyo’s final margin of victory over Istanbul was a massive 24 votes, 60 to 32, giving the hosts of the 1964 Olympic Games the honour of being the fifth city to stage them twice.
The announcement of the result sparked inevitable scenes of jubilation among its bid team, with Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe claiming he was more elated than after his own election: “I am overjoyed. I would like to share this jot together with the Japanese people back home.”
Its first-round success was almost as emphatic, Tokyo gaining 42 votes to Istanbul and Madrid’s 26 apiece, just six short of the outright majority required to eliminate the need for a second round of voting.
In the end, there were three rounds, with the tie between Madrid and Istanbul prompting a vote-off, which the latter won 49 to 45.
Source : Telegraph.co.uk
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