According to a statement released Friday by the Gulf Arab emirate’s media office, Dubai won’t bid for the 2020 Summer Olympic Games but will focus on a possible candidacy for the 2024 Games instead.
A feasibility study found 70 per cent of the infrastructure was already in place, but the National Olympic Committee of the United Arab Emirates said “a bid would be better timed for 2024”.
Dubai’s hereditary ruler, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, said Dubai would one day bid for the Olympics. In a statement he said “hosting the Olympic Games in the Middle East would be a dream come true for the entire region and we fully intend to place a bid once I am totally satisfied that we are prepared to host the greatest sporting event in history in a way that would add value to the Olympic Movement itself, as well as the youth of the Arab world.
“Whilst I am satisfied that infrastructure and Dubai’s experience in hosting top class sports events would see us well placed to win a bid, I do believe that much more has to be done in order to leave the lasting human legacy that celebrates the Olympic Games”.
