We haven’t heard the last of Baku, Azerbaijan. Now that Baku has been denied Candidate City status in its bid for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games, Konul Nurullayeva, CEO of Baku’s 2020 bid committee, told RIA Novosti Monday that Baku will continue fighting for the right to host the Olympic Games.
Nurullaeva said, “the decision of the IOC is unfortunate for us. But I can assure you that we will make conclusions and take into consideration the evaluations of IOC in our application for 2020 Games and the next time will be even more convincing”.
Nurullayeva said Baku is able to plunge resources into upgrades that will strengthen the bid next time around, adding, “our country is on the way to progress. We invest significant resources in services and infrastructure to improve the future of our nation and the region. We are very pleased that our efforts have been noted in the report to the IOC working group”.
Meanwhile Azerbaijan and Georgia have submitted a joint declaration of interest to host Euro 2020, the first step in the bidding process.
Rovnag Abdullayev, president of the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan (AFFA), said Baku’s Olympic bid was rejected at the preliminary stage and this now allowed Azerbaijan to work towards fulfilling its football ambitions.