Craig Reedie, head of the British Olympic Association (BOA), urged British Prime Minister Tony Blair to “be bold” and endorse a bid for the Olympics in 10 years’ time. He warned the government that 2012 will be the only chance to stage the Olympic Games for many years.
Reedie acknowledged the BOA had a battle on its hands after Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell said plans to host the Games, most likely if anywhere to be in East London, must not become a “dead anchor”.
And Gerald Kaufman, Labour chairman of the Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee, said it would be “madness” to bid for the Olympics.
Reedie said in an interview with ePolitix.com, “there are a unique set of circumstances at the moment. There is ground available in east London as part of the whole development project. “It would put sport as part of the regeneration of that part of the capital. It’s there now but it will not be there in 2016.
“The IOC (International Olympics Committee) are pretty keen to slightly downsize the Games – that will take a while to do – because they want to take the Games to more places in the world”, he said.
“If that happens and we do not bid for 2012 then the opportunity to bid again will be so far in the future that I am likely to be pushing up the daisies. The message to Tony Blair is simple – be bold”.
Reedie said he believed there was enthusiasm within the Government for a 2012 bid but added: “whether that means the Cabinet will sign up to it at the end of January or not I don’t know. That’s the battle”.
The BOA has until July 2003 to declare to the IOC its intentions to put forward a bid.
