Last week was both sweet and sour for London. First the city turned jubilant after being voted as hosts of the 2012 Olympics at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) moot held at Singapore on July 6, but hard had the rejoicing calm down when the city was rocked by successive blasts which left several people dead and injured.
In the run up for hosting the world’s biggest sporting event, London defeated closest rival Paris by just four votes (54-50) in a nail-biting finish. Moscow, New York and Madrid, who were also in the running, made their exit one after the other. The above five cities were short-listed after the IOC evaluation committee cut the number of applicants dropping Leipzig (Germany), Istanbul (Turkey), Havana (Cuba) and Rio de Janeiro (Brazil).
The first round of voting ended as follows: London (22), Paris (21), Madrid (20), New York (19) and Moscow (15). Moscow being last was eliminated from the race. In the second round, Madrid mustered 32 votes, as against London’s 27, Paris 25 and New York 16. The latter made an exit for securing lowest votes.
Madrid, who led the second round, was outclassed in the next as London secured 39 votes, followed by Paris 33 and Madrid 31. Paris, who played host to the Games in 1900 and 1924, had bid unsuccessfully for the 1992 Barcelona and 2008 Beijing Olympics. London too, had staged the quadrennial Olympics twice in the past in 1908 and 1948, the last time being when Pakistan made its debut after getting independence a year before.
In a surprising move, the IOC curtailed the disciplines to be contested at the London Games from 28 to 26 and the axe fell on baseball and softball. No new games got the Olympic status in their place. The IOC took the extreme step of dropping the sports first time in 69 years, the last being polo which saw its exit in 1936.
The games were dropped on the basis of results of secret ballot held for the IOC members. It may be mentioned that baseball made its debut at the Olympics in 1992 and softball became Olympic medal sport in 1996. However, the two games will be part of Olympics at Beijing in 2008. This means there is no guarantee for any discipline whether it would be part of 2016 Olympics and beyond.
Squash and karate were initially nominated as their replacements but neither polled enough IOC members’ votes to win a place at the Games. Rugby union sevens, golf and roller skating were also in the running. The IOC members went through seven rounds of voting to decide which two of the five sports should be put up for a vote to give them Olympic status. Squash and karate were chosen, but it seems not many IOC members wanted them to be included. It means the earliest they can now be introduced into the Games is 2016.
Squash was certain to get the Olympic status but missed the bus closely. The sport amassed 63 votes, seven short of 70 required, in the final voting. The World Squash Federation president, Jahangir Khan had done a lot of spade work. The record ten-time former British Open champion led the squash’s Olympic campaign in Singapore. In a statement, he had conceded that an Olympic breakthrough would rank as his proudest achievement in the sport. Thus, disappointingly, the racket sport which has its origins in both Fleet Prison and Harrow School in London in the 1800s will not make the hoped-for triumphant return to the British capital two centuries later.
According to rough estimates, the decision to exclude baseball and softball should save London at least 50 million Pounds Sterling, and it also means that Regents Park will not be used as a venue. Commenting on the dropping of two sports the IOC president Jacques Rogge said: “baseball and softball could win back their place for future games. Needless to say, these sports lovers are very, very disappointed, but it does not disqualify them forever as Olympic sports,” he said.
Safety bias
Is London safe to hosts sporting events after the recent blasts? It seems that it is as no country has made any hue and cry particularly, Australia, currently touring England for a cricket series against their counterparts. Things would have come to a halt had it happened in this part of the world. The Kiwis had abandoned their tour following a blast near their five-star hotel in Karachi where the team was staying in the past.
The London blasts were preceded by a visit of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) sleuths to Pakistan and they had refused to play a Test in Karachi due to security fears. Is it justified to single out Karachi?
No country in the world can guarantee that it is safe after the 9/11 incidents, but what they can do is to provide extensive security to visiting teams. It is time that ECB should reconsider their decision of skipping Karachi as a Test venue in the aftermath of London incidents. — A.Z
Last week was both sweet and sour for London. First the city turned jubilant after being voted as hosts of the 2012 Olympics at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) moot held at Singapore on July 6, but hard had the rejoicing calm down when the city was rocked by successive blasts which left several people dead and injured.
