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| London was awarded the right to host the 2012 Olympic
Games |
After a hard-fought campaign, London has been awarded the
right to host the 2012 Olympic Games. The UK capital
saw off competition from four rival cities: Paris, Madrid,
Moscow and New York.
Londoners can now look forward to the transformation of
their city in the same way as their counterparts in Beijing.
Indeed, there are many similarities in the two cities’ approach to hosting the
games. Both cities need to invest in developing their
infrastructure in order to cope with the demands of the
event.
However, this kind of investment is far from
cheap - it is estimated that it will cost around $40 billion to prepare for the
2008 games, much of which will be spent on transport links.
Nevertheless , the benefits of becoming an Olympic city can be
enormous – Barcelona, which hosted the 1992 games, was completely regenerated
and has since become one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world.
Residents of Stratford, in London’s deprived East
End, are hoping that their neighbourhood will undergo a similar
transformation as it is one of the areas where many new sports
facilities will be built. One of the East End’s most famous sons, David Beckham,
has given the Olympics his blessing - “to have the Olympics in our
manor would be a special thing.”
David Beckham is not alone in supporting the successful bid;
Manchester United and England defender, Rio Ferdinand, says, “This will be a
great boost for the whole of the country. I’m looking forward
to being at the 100m final in 2012.”
One thing that will change in the 2012 games is the number of
sports. The International Olympic Committee has decided to axe
baseball and softball from the games. IOC president Jacques Rogge explained,
"Needless to say, these sports are very, very disappointed, but it does not
disqualify them forever as Olympic sports," he said.
However, one unlikely British sport is attempting to
gain Olympic status. “As the newest recognised sport,
darts …would be proud to be considered as the host nation's
'invitation sport' in 2012.” says British Darts Organisation chief, Olly
Croft.
