Thailand to bid to host 2008 Summer Olympic Games
BANGKOK, Jan. 25 Kyodo
The Thai government decided Tuesday to submit Bangkok’s candidacy to host the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, announcing a bid budget of 20 million dollars, a government spokesman said.
The Olympic Committee of Thailand was authorized by the cabinet to submit an official application to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) by next Tuesday’s deadline, the spokesman said. Bangkok will become the eighth city to submit its candidacy for 2008 after Osaka, Beijing, Paris, Toronto, Istanbul, Seville and Havana.
The Thai government, which faces budget constraints after the economic crisis which has plagued the country since 1997, said the cost of the bid should be shared by the central government and the Bangkok Metropolitan Authority, an independent administrative body of the city.
Thai Olympic officials told the cabinet Tuesday that they have spent 290,000 dollars to hire a consultant team from Australia to conduct a study to find out if Bangkok has the infrastructure to host the Olympic Games, the spokesman said.
The Thai authorities are confident that Bangkok is equipped to host the 2008 Olympics, pointing to the successful staging of four Asian Games competitions, the last in December 1998.
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