At a “topping out” ceremony to celebrate the new Wembley Stadium reaching its full height, Britain’s Prime Minister Tony Blair said he hoped the new stadium would help Britain’s bid to host the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.
Blair said, “this is the best that there can be, we’ve done it, here in Britain, we’ve made the best, and we can be hugely proud of what we have achieved.
“Let’s hope it is another thing that helps us on our way for a successful bid for the Olympics in 2012”.
He added the stadium would be “hugely important” in its own right, but it was also important for the Olympic bid.
“It shows we can build the biggest and the best, it’s going to be a wonderful venue”.
The stadium is due to be completed in time for the FA Cup final in 2006.
Meanwhile, Michael Payne, former director of marketing for the International Olympic Committee (IOC), told the London Telegraph that he believes the bid for the 2012 Games is an open race. “In some bid years there is one city that you know is going to win whatever the opposition, 2012 is a very open year and London has all to play for”.
But Payne added, “the biggest threat to the bid could be the British press. If it created the perception that the British people were against the bid, that would not help London”.
