December 03, 2006	Sunday	Ziqa'ad 11, 1427

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DOHA, Dec 2: Qatar's 2016 Olympics bid may have been dealt a fatal blow after torrential rain brought chaos for International Olympic Committee members at the Asian Games, an IOC insider told AFP on Saturday.

While he praised Friday's Asian Games opening ceremony, he also hit out at the embarrassing delay suffered by the IOC officials who were drenched by the heavy rain at the Khalifa Stadium while they waited for buses to take them back to their luxury hotel.“Watching them come back into the hotel afterwards soaked to the bone was bad,” he said.

Unflattering comments being made about the organisation of the transport - a crucial factor in any Olympic bid - could have a serious impact on the tiny Gulf state's bid to host the 2016 Games.

“It's a shame really because the opening ceremony was extraordinary and while the weather is not in their hands it only takes the slightest glitch, which is human error, to hole a bid,” added the official.

The IOC members, who decide on the right to host the Olympic Games, were not the only ones who suffered a soaking.

Hundreds of athletes were also were without transport with many cramming onto overloaded buses for cover as the rain came down.

A spokesman for the organisers apologised for the chaos.

“We are sorry about what happened,” said Ahmed Abdulla Al-Khulaifi.

“We faced showers that were out of the organising committee's control.

There were 220 buses to pick up the athletes.

“When the rain started the athletes tried to rush the buses and the buses became very crowded.”Sheikh Saoud bin Abdelrahman Al-Thani, Qatar's Olympic Committee (QOC) secretary-general, announced on November 1 that the Gulf state would launch its bid officially at the beginning of 2007.

Al-Thani revealed that the IOC had contacted him and the QOC in April to say they had noted that Qatar would like to host the 2016 Games.

“The QOC will present its bid request officially in the required time frame of between January and July next year,” said Al-Thani who insisted that Qatar, with a population of just 700,000 people, could organise the Games.—AFP