London wins 2012 Olympics race

London, which last hosted sports biggest event in1948, will become the first city to host the games three times.

London, on Wednesday, won the race to host the 2012 Olympic Games, beating long-term favourite Paris at the finish line to secure one of sport’s greatest prizes. The result, broadcast live to television audiences around the world, was announced by International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge, in Singapore. Rogge opened the envelope containing the name of the winning bid at around 12:48 (BST) and told the hushed ballroom of the Raffles city complex: “The IOC has the honour of announcing the Games of the 30th Olympiad in 2012 are awarded to the city of London.”

London has crushed the dreams of Paris, winning the 2012 Olympics by just four votes in a tense final round against the city most thought would triumph.

Announcing the host city in Singapore last night, Jacques Rogge, the president of the International Olympic Committee, said: “Only one of you can be the winner … the Games of the 30th Olympiad in 2012 are awarded to the city of London.”

London’s delegates in Singapore cheered and the thousands who had gathered in Trafalgar Square to watch the result live exploded on hearing their city’s name.

London’s bid chairman, the Olympic gold medallist Sebastian Coe, promised the 2012 Olympics would be “special”, while England football captain David Beckham, a delegate in Singapore, was “totally stunned. I just really can’t believe what’s happened.” Alongside Beckham Australia’s Cathy Freeman, also part of the London bid, said: “I just threw myself at someone. I was very, very happy.”

The British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, called the win “a momentous day” for Britain. It will be the first time the Olympics have been held in Britain since 1948.

London, the underdog for much of the contest, won by 54-50 in the final vote after Moscow, New York and Madrid were eliminated in previous rounds. Votes for Madrid and New York swung behind London once they had been knocked out.

The contest was the most keenly fought in years, and it is thought the Paris bid soured in the closing stages. The city’s presentation earlier in the day was seen to lack the Olympic spirit, its romantic film focusing on white male officials rather than athletes. The London presentation put youth and sport first, and Lord Coe challenged the IOC to be brave and choose London. Joining him, via video, were the Queen, Mr Blair and a surprise guest, Nelson Mandela, who said he could not think of a better place to inspire the world. Mr Blair said London would galvanise the world’s youth.

Paris’s failure is its third in 20 years and the political roundabout of the Olympic movement being as it is may stop Europe from hosting another Games before 2024.

The fight between Paris and London had been particularly fierce in the run-up to the vote. Paris’s Olympic stadium came under fire at a London briefing and the French President, Jacques Chirac, had a dig at British cuisine.

Last night, Mr Chirac, who had fronted the Paris presentation personally but had to leave before the result, congratulated London and praised the “fair play” shown by the French team. But the failure deepens his struggle at home, where he is mired in record low popularity ratings, a sluggish economy and a bitter battle with Britain over the European Union.

In Paris, the crowds that had gathered outside the Hotel de Ville were visibly downcast, more so when it started to rain. The celebrations in Trafalgar Square were loud and raucous. Strangers beamed at one another, linked arms, yelled, and grabbed at the showers of Olympic coloured confetti. Above five fighter planes flew past trailing red, white and blue.

Earlier in the day, the five cities made their impassioned pleas to the IOC. Moscow produced old Olympic textbooks, New York rolled out Muhammad Ali.

The London Games will be held from July 27 to August 12 at a cost of £2.4 billion (USD 5.7 billion). Most events will be held at a new Olympic Park to be built in the city’s east, although some will feature more familiar landmarks, with Horse Guards Parade hosting beach volleyball. The Games should boost the city’s economy, rejuvenate a dilapidated part of the city and create 9000 new homes and thousands of jobs.

“This is an area with the poorest children, contaminated soil,” said London’s mayor, Ken Livingstone. “Go and see the area as it is now and judge it after it is transformed.”

Beckham and co

David Beckham and a host of sporting celebrities have been in Singapore pressing for a London games. London last hosted the Olympics in 1948 and will become the first city to host sport’s biggest event three times. An emotional Beckham was in the hall to hear the result. He said later that winning the games was an ‘incredible’ victory.

The result is also a huge victory for Lord Coe, who has transformed a bid which was originally seen as something of a joke. In an IOC evaluation report last year, London was ranked third in the race behind Paris and Madrid and its transport system was castigated as ‘obsolete’.

The London team improved its bid and assuaged concerns about transport to secure a much better write-up in a subsequent IOC evaluation report published earlier this year.

The Olympic Games in London could be worth more than £2 billion in tourism revenue for the country and the television rights are expected to also be worth more than £2 billion.