Britain’s Prime Minister Gordon Brown made a last minute pitch for Glasgow to win the 2014 Commonwealth Games bid when he called Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) President Mike Fennel Friday saying that the government was 100 per cent behind Glasgow’s bid to beat Abuja Nigeria.
The Scottish newspaper Daily Record reports that the Prime Minister told Fennell how much it would mean to host the “prestigious” event in the city of his birth.
Fennell, as president, will have a casting vote if Glasgow and Abuja are tied.
Brown reportedly assured Fennel that everything would be done to make sure a Glasgow Games ran smoothly, including no immigration, customs or visa hold-ups for athletes or spectators, and added organizers would learn valuable lessons from the London 2012 Olympic Games.
The Daily Record reports Brown was optimistic about Glasgow’s chances. He said the UK School Games in the city last year “showed how well it can put on a major sporting event”, adding, “hopefully I’ll be back in Glasgow in 2014 to witness another superb sporting showcase in Scotland. Glasgow 2014 would boost the Scottish tourism industry and the economy as a whole.
“It would inspire a generation of young Scots to get involved in sport and would leave a legacy of world-class facilities and venues”.
The 2014 Commonwealth Games host city announcement will be made Friday in Colombo Sri Lanka.
