Turkey’s Minister of Sport, Suat Kilic, reinforced the Government’s support for Istanbul’s bid by declaring that the country’s Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, had made the Olympic Games “a personal priority and a national imperative”. Kilic added: “Turkey’s bid to bring the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games to Istanbul is a mission that has the full support of the government; it is a mission that should also be embraced by all political parties and indeed by the entire nation.”
International Olympic Committee member and Turkish National Olympic Committee (NOC) president Professor Ugur Erdener has travelled to Innsbruck alongside NOC vice-president Hasan Arat and Ali Kiremitcioglu, a leading figure in the international marketing and communications industry. “After a decade of growth, and progress, and lessons learned, the time is now right for Istanbul 2020,” Hasan Arat said.
“Turkey is better placed than ever before to offer the IOC the chance to cross a new frontier,” he added. “Istanbul 2020 can connect the Olympic Movement to a new territory with unique cultural and economic potential where Asia and Europe meet. Turkey is in a period of remarkable economic, social and sporting development. Hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games is a critical opportunity for us to accelerate and sustain that development.”
With regard to Istanbul’s IOC Applicant City file preparations, he continued: “Working with the finest Turkish and international technical and Olympic experts, our focus over the last few months has been on preparing a really exciting and innovative concept that works for Istanbul and Turkey but one that also meets the needs and highest standards of the Olympic movement in the 21st Century. This will be reflected in our Applicant City file which we are on track to submit to the IOC on February 15.”
Erdener added: “I have been proud to represent Turkey in the Olympic movement for many years and I am convinced that this will be the most serious and credible bid Turkey has ever produced. With the wholehearted commitment from the government and the compelling concept that the bid committee is developing, I believe we have a really powerful story to share with the Olympic family.” The full details of the structure of the Istanbul 2020 Bid Committee are being finalised, but the bid will be supported by Olympic experts such as Craig McLatchey’s EKS, Jon Tibbs’ JTA and Scott Givens’ FiveCurrents.