Tokyo will host Olympic Games in 2020

       Tokyo has been chosen by the International Olympic Committee to host the 2020 Summer Games. In voting Saturday in Buenos Aires, the committee picked Tokyo over the two other contenders, Madrid and Istanbul. The announcement came at 5:20 a.m. Tokyo time, but a large crowd watching on an outdoor video screen burst into cheers. Tokyo previously hosted the Summer Games in 1964. Japan's bid for 2020 billed the city as the safe choice despite radiation leaking from the Fukushima nuclear plant. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe personally made a presentation to the committee and promised an effective cleanup. Tokyo's bid came in at $5 billion to $6 billion, compared to $19 billion pledged by Istanbul, said Ed Hula, editor and founder of aroundtherings.com, which covers the business and politics of the Olympic movement. But Tokyo's government has already amassed a $4.9 billion Olympic fund to pay to prepare for the Games, Hula said. And a $1 billion national stadium that will be used for the athletic events and the Opening Ceremonies will already have been built for the rugby World Cup in 2017 and is not considered an Olympic expense. Turkey would have been the first Muslim country to host the Games, and with a median age of less than 30 years, one of the youngest. However, it missed out for the fifth time. Istanbul would have been "a more emotional choice," Hula said. But its huge bid would have been needed to fund infrastructure improvements, including modernization of its transportation system. Turkey's border with Syria also might have troubled some committee members, he said. And this summer, the image of Turkish sport took a hit when about three dozen athletes tested positive for drugs, he said. June's rioting in Istanbul's Taksim Square may also have tainted the city's hopes, though Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan tried to persuade IOC members ahead of Saturday's vote. "We live at a time when our region and the world crave for peace," Erdogan said as part of Istanbul's final presentation. "And at this critical moment, we would like to send a strong message of peace to the whole world from Istanbul, the city of friendship and brotherhood."

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