Twitter
Advertisement

Rio to host 2016 Olympic Games after landslide win

Rio de Janeiro will host the 2016 Olympics after winning a landslide victory over Madrid in the final round of voting.

Latest News
article-main
FacebookTwitterWhatsappLinkedin

Rio de Janeiro will host the 2016 Olympics after winning a landslide victory over Spain's capital Madrid in the final round of voting among International Olympic Committee members on Friday.

Carlos Osorio, general secretary of the Brazilian bid, told Reuters: "Overwhelming, spectacular, unbelievable."

The Brazilian delegation began singing their "Marvellous City" song, all waving flags and hugging each other.

The announcement, which was delayed by several nervous seconds as IOC president Jacques Rogge struggled to open the envelope, left Brazil's president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and much of the rest of the Brazil bid team in tears of joy.

"Like in every competition there can only be one winner," Rogge said. "Tonight I have the honour to announce that the Games of the 31st Olympiad are awarded to the city of Rio de Janeiro."

In the final round of voting, Rio polled 66 votes to 32 for Madrid.

Carlos Nuzman, Rio bid leader, hugged president Lula, both in tears, and said: "We did it, we did it."

Former tennis champion Gustavo Kuerten, a bid ambassador, said: "This is an amazing result. We are going to be working from tomorrow to make it happen. Brazil will do the best it can from this great opportunity."

Spain's prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said: "Rio was a great candidate. We put up a great fight."

Earlier, in an astonishing start to the voting, Chicago, the odds-on favourite, went out in the first round, despite receiving unprecedented support from United States president Barack Obama and the first lady.

Obama had become the first US president to address an IOC session, but he failed to sway the delegates. Tokyo followed Chicago out in the second round, leaving Madrid and Rio to slug it out in the final round.

Rio will be the first South American city to host the Olympic Games.

Gasps and tears greeted the announcement that Chicago had lost its bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics as the city went from favourite to also-ran in the multi-billion-dollar sweepstakes.

Chicago had been a favourite on several betting websites ahead of the IOC's decision in the Danish capital, Copenhagen. But the city of three million people did not make the cut in a contest with Rio de Janeiro, Madrid and Tokyo.

"Oh, how disappointing," said Judy Weniger, 63, a Chicago rooter visiting from Pennsylvania. "No one expected this to happen. It makes you want to cry."

Chicago sent a huge delegation of former Olympic athletes, business leaders and politicians to lobby for the games, capped by personal appeals by president Obama and first lady Michelle Obama on behalf of their hometown.

At a packed downtown plaza, where people sported orange-themed T-shirts and signs backing Chicago's bid, a dreary pall fell over the crowd. "Now our village elders can come back home and concentrate on solving the big problems we have here in Chicago," said Judy Brady, 64, a retired woman.

Find your daily dose of news & explainers in your WhatsApp. Stay updated, Stay informed-  Follow DNA on WhatsApp.
Advertisement

Live tv

Advertisement
Advertisement