The membership of the IOC on Tuesday unanimously approved the proposal to award the hosting rights of both the 2024 and 2028 Games at the next IOC session in Lima in September.

The unprecedented decision means both cities currently bidding for the 2024 Games – Los Angeles and Paris – are set to become Olympic host cities, subject to agreement from the respective cities and national Olympic committees over which city will host which edition.

IOC President Thomas Bach described the IOC decision a "golden opportunity" for all involved.

"We are ready to work with them on this 'win-win-win' approach," said Emmanuel Macron, President of France who attended the IOC session in Lausanne.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said: "I am fully committed with the Paris team to putting all my energy, our creativity and my resolve into reaching an agreement for Paris to experience once again this Olympic adventure that it has been longing for for 100 years."

Prior to this decision, Paris has ruled out hosting the Games in 2028, while Los Angeles had not dismissed this possibility. The city that hosts the 2028 Games is expected to ask for concessions from the IOC.

"In Olympic history there's only been 37 times in which there has been a tie for a gold medal. Maybe today is the 38th," Los Angeles Mayor Garcetti said. "For Los Angeles, it's a golden opportunity, one that we don’t take lightly."

The IOC proposal approved by the IOC membership is as follows: "Recognising the exceptional circumstances and unique opportunities presented by the candidatures of Los Angeles and Paris for the Olympic Games 2024, the International Olympic Committee takes the following decision:

1. To authorise the IOC Executive Board to conclude a tripartite agreement with Los Angeles and Paris and their respective NOCs for the simultaneous election of the host cities of the Olympic Games 2024 and 2028 during the 131st IOC Session in Lima;

2. Should such tripartite agreement be concluded, the 131st IOC Session will ratify the tripartite agreement, thereby electing one city for the Olympic Games 2024 and the other city for the Olympic Games 2028. To that effect, the 130th IOC Session hereby waives the seven-year deadline set out in Rule 33.2 of the Olympic Charter; and

3. Should such tripartite agreement not be concluded, the 131st IOC Session will proceed with the election of the host city 2024 in accordance with the current election procedure."

Earlier in the day, the delegations of Los Angeles 2024, led by Mayor Garcetti, and Paris 2024, led by the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, made outstanding and emotional presentations at the 2024 Candidate City Briefing.

"Ensuring the stability of the Olympic Games for 11 years is something extraordinary," the IOC President said later at a press conference with the two mayors and leaders from the two candidatures.

"That is why we say this is a great day for the Olympic Games and the Olympic Movement, and it's a great day also for these two wonderful cities, these two great Olympic cities."

Susan Sawbridge has joined the New Zealand Major Events team at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment to head up a new unit focused on event prospecting.

The New Zealand government has established a new Major Event Prospecting Secretariat and independent panel, which will see the country’s government agencies working together to drive a proactive major event prospecting programme.

Led by Susan Sawbridge and housed within the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, the Major Events Prospecting Secretariat will work closely with central government agencies, local government and sector bodies to ensure New Zealand continues to attract and develop significant international events. 

Susan previously managed event prospecting and bidding for the city of Auckland.

 “This is a really exciting time for us and we are incredibly fortunate to have secured Susan’s talent to champion the government’s approach to prospecting,” said Devorah Blumberg, Manager of New Zealand Major Events.

Susan Sawbridge said, “New Zealand’s major events capability is now very well established, so it’s a perfect opportunity to move prospecting into an even more collaborative and strategic space – both from our perspective and also for events rights holders.”

New Zealand Major Events is a member of the International Association of Event Hosts and a participant in Host City 2017.

The IOC Executive Board on 9 June put forward a proposal to award the 2024 and 2028 Olympic Games to Los Angeles and Paris simultaneously and address challenges around the bidding process for future Games.

The dual awarding proposal will be put to IOC Members at a new Extraordinary Session in Lausanne on 11 and 12 July, when a “Candidate City Briefing” had already been scheduled.

IOC Members had been scheduled to choose between Los Angeles and Paris as the host city of the 2024 Games at the IOC Session in Lima on 13-17 September. With this public statement from the Executive Board, IOC Members are now set to approve in July the proposal to award the Games to both candidates and seize what President Thomas Bach described as a “golden opportunity” and engage in a process of “discussions and negotiation” with the cities to establish when, and not if, they will host the Games.

The IOC’s four Vice Presidents – John Coates, Uğur Erdener, Juan Antonio Samaranch and Yu Zaiqing – have been leading on internal discussions around this possibility in recent months. During SportAccord Convention in April, Samaranch told a small group of media including Host City “Internally we are thinking of how we can be more flexible to have a selection system that better suits our interests and the interests of the Olympic movement.”

Throughout the bid process Paris has said it would not wait until 2028 while Los Angeles has taken a more flexible stance. LA 2024 Candidature Committee Chairman Casey Wasserman said in a statement earlier in the week “LA 2024 has never been only about LA or 2024. Even when the issue of a dual award for the 2024 and 2028 Games was initially raised, we didn’t say it’s ‘LA first’ or it’s ‘now or never’ for LA: that sounds like an ultimatum.”

Wasserman and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti issued the following joint statement on Twitter: “We welcome the IOC Executive Board’s decision to recognise two excellent bids from two of the world’s greatest cities. With no new permanent venues to build and unwavering public support, Los Angeles is an eternal Olympic city an ideal partner for the IOC.

“We look forward to sharing our unique story with the IOC membership in July and working together to offer the best path forward for our city the Olympic Movement’s future.”

Speaking at the press conference on 9 June, Bach said: “The situation of these candidature for 2024, having two such great cities and such great countries, having two candidatures which are really enthusiastic and really promoting the Olympic Games and Olympic Spirit in a great way – this represents a golden opportunity for the Olympic Games and the IOC.”

“Both cities have really embraced Olympic Agenda 2020 in different ways but particularly in the way they are planning to use a record number of existing and temporary facilities. This is something we have not seen in this dimension before in the Olympic Games and this will lead to significant cost reductions in the organisation of the Olympic Games and will make the Games more sustainable and more feasible.”

“We want to make this change and we can make this change and we can do it without amending the Olympic Charter. The Charter is flexible enough in this respect.”

“First of all, it is the IOC Members who have to express themselves on this proposal and only after the Members have had this opportunity will we enter in to deeper discussions with the Candidate Cities. Conversations so far have been very open. No one has closed the door. Discussions and negotiation may start, but only after Members have given the green light to this.

“The signal we are sending is very clear – a golden opportunity and a fascinating race. It is hard to imagine something better. It is also a strong signal of stability for the Olympic Movement and the Olympic Games. It is an expression of mutual confidence. It is also offering a great potential for the two cities to cooperate. Transfer of knowledge could even start from day one – there could also be the joint development of some turnkey solutions.  There is a great potential in such a double allocation.”

2026 Olympic Games bids

The Executive Board also agreed on the direction of changes to the bidding procedure for future Olympic Games, including the 2026 Winter Olympic Games, which Stockholm pulled out of bidding for in April.

“There are two reasons why the Executive Board thinks a change is necessary: one external, one internal,” Bach said at the press conference.

“Firstly, the change in the decision-making procedure in many western countries. Today if the establishment is united behind one project, people now say there must be something wrong. We could complain about this change in attitude but we cannot ignore it. Even less so, because we are giving some arguments for this scepticism.

“To put it in a nutshell, the candidature procedure in this world we are living in has become too expensive and too onerous for potential candidate cities and in this way it is producing too many losers. The IOC will customize its approach to the needs of the cities in order to develop together the best value proposition for the cities and for the Games.  All this will lead to a lighter process for the cities with reduced costs.”

IOC Members will discuss the new approaches at the Extraordinary Session in July.

Ireland has submitted its formal bid document to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup, promising a “tournament like no other, full of Irish spirit, that will capture the imagination of the world and help to drive Rugby’s global momentum.”

Ireland, which has never hosted the tournament before, are joined by former hosts South Africa and France in the race to stage the major international event.

Ireland’s 990-page file set out the candidate’s attributes as a host for the Rugby World Cup in 2023 (RWC 2023), including all the key Government commitments required by World Rugby, promises of “unprecedented commercial success” and the ability to “unlock and engage new audiences for Rugby, including through the infrastructure of the worldwide Irish Diaspora.”

The bid includes a full commitment from the Government of Ireland and the Northern Ireland Executive to support RWC 2023 as required by Rugby World Cup Limited, including paying the GB£120m tournament fee.

The tournament is said to a priority for the island of Ireland, which comprises the Republic of Ireland and the UK nation of Northern Ireland, who compete as a united team in the sport internationally.

Projecting an overall positive economic impact on the island of Ireland of more than €1.5 billion, the bid highlights the event as Ireland’s “sole focus in terms of a major international sporting event” from the turn of the decade.

In contrast, the French capital of Paris is currently bidding for the 2024 Olympic Games and the 2025 World Expo. South Africa earlier this year withdrew from hosting 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Ireland’s candidature file was submitted to World Rugby headquarters in Dublin by a delegation led 11 year old “bid kid” Alex Place from Co. Antrim – one of 120 children carrying flags to represent every rugby playing nation of the world. He said “It is a great honour to present this bid document to World Rugby on behalf of all the people of Ireland.”

Dick Spring, Chairman, RWC 2023 Bid Oversight Board, said: “This bid represents the hopes and aspirations of the entire Island and is focussed very firmly on the future, as symbolised by the children who were front and centre of the bid submission today.

“It presents World Rugby with a compelling proposition that combines all the advantages of a traditional Rugby market with the many opportunities of a new one.

“Rugby is hugely popular in Ireland and growing, from this platform Irish sports fans will light up the tournament in the manner they have lit up so many international events around the world over the years, making it memorable for all.

“This bid is grounded in certainty through: unparalleled Government support; the availability and suitability of sold out, iconic stadiums set in the heart of cities and towns; and, of course Ireland’s unrivalled access, through our diaspora, to the North American market. When one adds to that our massive tourism infrastructure one is guaranteed  a tournament like no other for world rugby, visitors and home supporters alike.

The Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, said: “This Bid has the total support of the Irish Government. We can guarantee that Ireland has the capacity to deliver a wonderful Rugby World Cup in 2023 which will have the backing of people throughout the island. We will welcome the world to our shores and encourage interest in the game of rugby like never before.”

Sir Malcolm McKibbin, Head of the Northern Ireland Civil Service said: “This is a historic day. The Rugby World Cup is one of the largest sporting events on the planet. North and south we are passionate about this magnificent sport that brings people together. We are united across the island behind this bid to host the event in 2023 which would give us an unprecedented opportunity to showcase our sporting talent and world class tourism on a global stage.

“In Northern Ireland we have been punching well above our weight for many years when it comes to hosting events with a worldwide audience and I genuinely believe that this bid has what it takes to deliver a spectacular event. I want to pay tribute to everyone involved in putting together the bid which exemplifies the strength of partnership working throughout the island.”

 Shane Ross TD, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport said: “Today is the culmination of almost five years of work since the IRFU first explored the idea in the aftermath of the 2011 Rugby World Cup, work by the IRFU, the Government, our counterparts in the Northern Ireland Executive, and many unsung people working very hard behind the scenes.  I am fully confident we have put in a bid that best reflects Ireland’s strengths, attributes, and our capacity to host a tournament that would do Ireland and World Rugby proud.”

Stephen Hilditch, President, Irish Rugby Football Union: “Ireland has never hosted a Rugby World Cup and we believe choosing Ireland as a first-time host would be a forward-looking step for World Rugby and a signal that Rugby is a truly global game for all. We were inspired to mount this bid by New Zealand’s wonderful hosting of the 2011 tournament and believe that our ‘Global Stadium’ concept will bring a unique cultural dimension to the tournament, acting as a powerful catalyst to Rugby’s worldwide growth.”

“Our bid combines the operational benefits of a small, but dynamic and influential island with the exciting possibilities of an unprecedented international reach for World Rugby. It is a thrilling prospect for all.”

World Rugby will elect the host of the 2023 Rugby World Cup on 15 November 2017.

[Source: SportAccord Convention] SportAccord Convention is delighted to confirm the official signing ceremony took place today with Host City ‘Bangkok’ for the sixteenth edition of the Convention to be held from 15 – 20 April 2018.

The signing event was carried out at the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT) building with Nis Hatt, Managing Director of SportAccord Convention, H.E. General Tanasak Patimapragorn, Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand, and H.E. Mrs. Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, the Minister of Tourism and Sports of Thailand.

“Hosting the SportAccord Convention in Bangkok enables us to reach out to all the International Sport Federations and those organisations involved in the business of sport to share our sports tourism vision as well as enabling delegates to experience all that Thailand has to offer. The Tourism and Sports Ministry is a key driver in helping to promote Bangkok and Thailand as a sports dream destination and sports hub in Asean, and these are some of the reasons why the SportAccord Convention is an important event for us as the Host City.” said Mrs Kobkarn.

With state-of-the-art venues and a city brimming with opportunities and cultural gems, Bangkok is host to many world-class events, and in 2016 served as the gateway for over 30 million tourists who visited Thailand.

Commenting on Bangkok becoming the next Host City, Nis Hatt said, “SportAccord Convention is delighted for the Convention to come to Bangkok, Thailand, and our host should be commended for

their dedication and passion in bringing the Convention here, which in turn will support both the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT), and the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) in their future development goals. Hatt went on to say:

“We are already making good progress with preparations for next year’s Convention and I am confident we will be able to deliver a memorable event in Bangkok for our delegates.”

The overarching theme for the sixteenth edition of the SportAccord Convention will focus on marketing and sponsorship with further details being revealed once registration opens in June. The Convention will also see new initiatives including a 3-day sports festival where all International Federations along with their National Federations will be invited to take part. In addition, the event is being promoted as a ‘family affair’, thus making Thailand the vacation destination for delegates and their families in 2018.

Bangkok was announced as the next Host City during the spectacular SAC2017 Opening Ceremony in Aarhus, Denmark, this year’s European Capital of Culture.

Hosting the FIFA World Cup in China would bring benefits for football internationally and at home, even if the national team still has a long way to go to become strong team, according to Oceans Sports & Entertainment vice president Norman Liu.

“China has a big market in the world, in terms of the population of football fans,” he told Host City in Beijing. “So China could be the right destination for FIFA to promote the football sports worldwide.”

Liu has been in China’s sports industry for years, including working in the marketing department of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Organising Committee (BOCOG).

“Also in China we have so many companies that want to get involved in football and sports marketing. So commercially, China could be a great choice for world football.”

China hosted the Women’s World Cup in 1991 and 2007. The country also has experience of hosting the biggest events in the world, from the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing to the 2014 Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing and the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou.

At least 10 cities are required to host World Cup matches, with co-hosting within the scope of the bidding rules.

On 14 May, (South) Korean Football Association president Chung Mong-gyu told national press that he would support a joint bid for the 2030 World Cup with China and Japan. But at the FIFA Congress in Bahrain on 10 and 11 May, a rule was upheld that states continents must wait two editions before hosting the World Cup again. Asia has the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

So the soonest Asia could bid for the World Cup would be for 2034.

Earlier in the month Liu Xiaoming, China’s Ambassador to the UK, said hosting the World Cup is a “dream” for China beyond 2030.

Developing football in China

According to Norman Liu, hosting the FIFA World Cup would also help to develop the sport in China.

“Personally I saw there is a very big opportunity from the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Before the event few people went to stadiums to watch their home side games. After that, so many sports fans went to stadiums to watch their local club.

“You could not imagine before the Olympic Games so many fans going to the stadium to cheer for the home club. After 2008, people would go to the stadium on match days, on the weekend and on weekdays. So, I think the mega event changed people’s behaviour to consume sports.

“But I think if China hosts the World Cup that could be very good opportunity to be developed further in China.”

Increased participation is another potential benefit and China is working to improve the standard of play in the country. The Chinese Football Association’s recently published 2020 action plan includes targets for developing football in China, such as for the men’s team to be in top 70 by 2020 – up from their current FIFA ranking of 81st – and for China to finish in top eight of 2019 Women’s World Cup.

However, the qualification of the national team is not a criteria for hosting.

“Although our national team’s performance still has a big space to improve, the Chinese society have the desire and interest to host a worldwide tournament in China,” said Liu.

“Personally, I think hosting the World Cup will help China to develop football in China. Chinese fans never gave up hopes on their national team performing more and more in international tournaments and we hope our national team can be better than before, to be a qualified host.”

In the meantime, there is still a possibility China can qualify for Russia 2018. “It’s a small chance.”

After the film La La Land won six Oscars, seven Golden Globes and five BAFTAs you would have thought that Los Angeles is getting bored in 2017 celebrating the success of its city and famous residents.

Don’t believe that for one Hollywood minute. That’s because the US city is still in the running for perhaps the year’s biggest prize of all – the hosting rights to the 2024 Olympic Games.

The race to host the 2024 Games is down to two candidate cities and in September the International Olympic Committee (IOC) session in Lima, Peru, will decide whether it’s LA or Paris that gets the nomination.

With the 130^th IOC session fast approaching, the LA and Paris bid committees have been busy putting together the final touches of their showreel in order to garner votes for the 2024 election.

One major showcase for both bids was the 2017 SportAccord Convention (SAC) in Aarhus, Denmark in April.

Vive la difference

The French capital put forward its bid of being ‘the right city, with the right vision at the right moment’. It also promised international federations and the Olympic movement that it would host the “most spectacular Games ever”.

The Paris presentation revealed that 95% of venues were already existing or temporary and the city’s ultra-compact plan would ensure that 85% of venues will be within 30 minutes of the athletes’ village.

Strong stuff from the “City of Light”, which is hoping to mark 100 years since it last hosted the Olympics in 1924.

And during LA’s 15 minutes in the spotlight at SAC, Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti told delegates: “It’s important we draw a distinction in our vision, because although many believe the two bids in this race are quite similar… they are, in fact, very different.”

Privately-financed bid

With the heart of the film industry within its boundaries, it comes as no surprise that the Californians presented a strong narrative. When Host City asked LA 2024 Candidature Committee chairman Casey Wasserman if the entertainment industry could be drawn on for a potential LA 2024 Games, he replied: “We are very proud of our storytelling community, that’s what Hollywood is all about. When people want to speak to the world they come to LA. We think our ability of leverage that and bring that to the Olympic Games will be tremendous.”

While LA will bring some razzmatazz to the Olympic Games, the city’s bid has another very big USP regarding the bid’s funding.

“We are a privately-financed bid,” Angela Ruggiero, chief strategy officer for the LA 2024 Candidature Committee, former ice hockey star and IOC executive board member told Host City.

“That’s very different from a government-financed project where you are sort of at the whim of the government. We’ve made that one of our key focal points as a bid is to have the lowest-risk approach with the most sound budget.”

LA will require federal support for security matters, but the operations and management overlay is financed through the individual projects. “That’s a distinguishing factor between the two bids and we wanted to highlight that because we do things differently in regards to hosting events,” added Ruggiero.

“We don’t have sports ministers for example. The way that we promote sport is through the private sector. Budgets can’t be slashed, therefore it’s a different kind of model.”

For venues, LA has adopted a low-risk approach of utlising the city’s extensive existing sports assets. This tactic has helped grow public support in the Olympic bid to 88%.

One asset, for example, is the LA Memorial Coliseum, which is planned to host the medal ceremonies and track-and-field events in 2024. On May 3 it was announced that the University of Southern California had secured approval from the Coliseum Commission to proceed with its $270 million privately funded upgrade of the LA Memorial Coliseum.

The elephant in the room at SAC

With two very strong and well-supported bids, one major city is going to miss out when the IOC makes its big decision in September. Or will it?

The IOC Session in Lima could in fact name the host city for both 2024 and 2028 – meaning both Paris and LA win the right to host a summer games. A working group composed of the IOC’s four vice presidents is currently evaluating this possibility.

Juan Antonio Samaranch, IOC vice-president, told a select group of journalists at SAC: “Basically what we are doing is not talking about 2024, internally we are thinking of how we can be more flexible to have a selection system that better suits our interests and the interests of the Olympic movement. The ideas that we might have for 2024 and 2028 are serious ones, but there is a process and both cities know what the process is.”

Paris’ committee has said it only wants to host in 2024 while LA chairman Wasserman was also straight with his answer. He told Host City: “We are bidding for 2024. There should be no confusion about that. I applaud the IOC for their thinking because it’s strategic and timely, but it’s also hypothetical. We’re bidding for 2024. Hypotheticals are not interesting.”

Next on the agenda for the IOC and the LA and Paris committees is the 2024 candidate briefing for IOC members and Summer Olympic IFs in July.

Once that’s complete it will be back to the drawing board for both cities to put the finishing touches to their candidature bids.

Will LA’s bid script see that big Hollywood ending? We will wait and see in September.

The Commonwealth Games Federation has received expressions of interest in hosting the 2022 Commonwealth Games from Australia, Canada, Malaysia and the United Kingdom.

The bidding process for 2022 was reopened after Durban was unable to fulfil financial obligations. Durban had been awarded the Games when it became the sole bidder after Edmonton pulled out.

But with four countries having expressed interest by the 28 April deadline, the CGF is now set to have a strong pool of cities bidding for the major multi-sport event.

“We are delighted with the level of initial interest expressed by nations across the Commonwealth and look forward to working with all parties as plans develop for a Games to be proud of in 2022,” David Grevemberg CBE, CEO of the CGF said in a statement.

“This is the first step in a collaborative process that will see a clear and detailed set of criteria applied to any Games hosting ambitions. The process has been streamlined to be as agile as possible given the time available and to minimise costs for potential hosts, whilst maintaining the transformative ambitions of the Commonwealth Sports Movement.

“An expert CGF Review Team will work with each country in the evaluation of proposals of potential host cities. This will include a rigorous on-the-ground feasibility assessment and dialogue regarding hosting capacity and capability, resourcing and legacy ambitions, before a recommendation is made to the CGF Executive Board for final review and decision. Based on the number of interested parties it is not expected that the process will finally conclude until early Autumn.”

It has not been specified at this stage in the process which cities are proposed to host the Games. Cities connected with possible bids include Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham in England; Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide in Australia; and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and Victoria, Edmonton and Toronto.

The CGF has not ruled out the possibility of cities sharing hosting duties.

Ben Avison (BA): It has been said that cities are becoming less interested in hosting major multi-sports events than smaller championships. Do you think that’s true of your events? How keen do you think cities are on hosting your own events?

Jeongkang Seo (JS): Smarter cities carefully assess the return on investment and may find it not very attractive to host mega events which require huge investment if there is no matching benefit. Taekwondo is a relatively cost-effective sport which does not require any huge investment but is capable of bringing competitive values and leaving strong legacy, so we are finding more cities showing interests in hosting our events based on our measurable value proposition.

Shiny Fang (SF): In our case cities are quite keen – it’s all about the anticipation and expectation of the cities. Before they bid for competitions they want to know what would happen and what are the opportunities. We have many cities bidding for our competitions, but we try to divide different levels of competition. When we choose cities, the world championships go to bigger cities and smaller events go to some smaller cities which are more suitable hosts in terms of infrastructure and facilities.

BA: The World Taekwondo Championships this year is in Muju, the home of taekwondo. How important is it to take your sport to new regions as well?

JS: Hosting events is a very effective way of developing a sport in a country or a region. It creates new national heroes who inspire spectators and TV audiences to take up the sport. Five medals were taken by African nations at the Rio 2016 Games and taekwondo is now increasingly popular there. So, it is undeniable that it is stable to go to the region where taekwondo is already developed and popular, but equally it is critical to find the less-developed place for the purpose of sport development.

BA: People talk a lot about the importance of readiness for events – we hear examples of cities that are only just ready in time and in the worst case scenario it become apparent they are not going to be ready. How important is this for you and how does it impact your choice of host city?

SF: In our discussions, we always talk about the working relationship and how closely the city and federation can work together to host the event. Even though we are aspiring to the highest standards you still have to rely on local partnerships; sometimes they will wait until the last moment and they will say they are ready when actually they are still not ready. It’s a constant struggle but it’s not impossible to find solutions.

Good project planning is essential for anyone, including the IOC, the IFs and not only in sport but in industry. Therefore when we choose a working partner it’s important to examine how precise they can be and how confident you can be in your expectations of the plan together.

JS: If a city has clear objectives and has willingness to collaborate with the right holders as partner, I think it will be able to prepare events quickly and to a high standard. We are also providing the host cities with support program called STEP (Support taekwondo event program) to ensure the host cities clearly understand operational requirements for hosting our event in every stage in the lead up to actual organization. So, I would say that close collaboration and partnership are more important than readiness.

BA: You mentioned the importance of partnerships there – how important is the alignment between city and national governments?

SF: I think it’s super important. Especially when bigger sized competitions and the national federations have limited resources. It is a significant commitment from the federations, so they need to have the support of the local authority government or central government. It is very important. Our new bidding procedure enables us to award a competition to a city instead of a national federation – of course they will be involved in any case but mainly on the technical side. At the end of the day a competition is not only a competition, it’s an event, so you need effort and input from all sides.

JS: Strong and sustainable partnership among themselves will ensure smooth preparations and everlasting legacies. For example, the City of Manchester built such a strong relationship with the national taekwondo organization, matching their long-term strategies. The city helped build the national training center and the national federation is teaching self-respect and self-discipline to young kids in the city. Also partnering with UK sport, they presented three events in three years, a plan that perfectly matched our long term strategy as well. We are encouraging this know-how with other potential cities at our annual Partnership Workshop program.

BA: In an age where events are mainly experienced remotely via TV and digital, does it make a difference where an event is hosted?

SF: I would say yes, because you have a better atmosphere inside a competition than outside that can seriously affect the whole production. If you want to show the best images that sum up the drama and excitement of your competition, you have show how excited people are on site watching.

JS: These days, there are several different ways to consume sports, so it is of course important to produce high quality production and utilise social media to effectively deliver the footage to the audience at home but it is equally important to create great atmosphere onsite as it improves the experience for those watching from their homes. Spectators have a vital role to play in contributing to the success of the event, transmitting vivid impression of the sport from venue.

BA: Is it possible to evaluate all factors in a bidding procedure – for example the venues, broadcast infrastructure and local culture? How do you select your cities bearing all these things in mind?

JS: Hosting an event is a partnership between an IF and a city and it should be a collaborative process. Both parties have to benefit from the partnership and as an IF we must not be too prescriptive. We ask questions in the bid file where they need to answer: What’s the purpose of bidding? What’s the legacy you want to leave? What’s your capacity for producing all these requirements? By answering the questions the bidders already have in their mind if the event is suitable for them or not and at the same time we are able to evaluate the capacities and suitability of the cities who want to organize our events.

BA: Another approach might be to have a range of events that are suitable for different types of cities. In the case of the UIPM I know you have the Laser-Run that be held in different venues…

SF: Sure. In certain competitions you always have set criteria. Within those criteria you can always enlarge the number of spectators, so you can award the event based on the final bidders. The criteria are clear; you always have to have a basic host standard which you cannot compromise.

For IFs, to be very practical, we are looking for cities to have the ability to host the competition – that’s goal number one. Only when you have a place where you know things will happen according to your requirements are you safe. We are not in a bad situation for bidding cities but the commercial valuation of our sport is not simple. For sponsorship and partnerships it’s not easy for any sport.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach has admitted the Olympic Games bidding process is an issue that “cannot be ignored”, despite the strong support of broadcasters, sponsors and rights holders.

After the withdrawal of Budapest, Hamburg and Rome, just two candidate cities – Los Angeles and Paris – are left in the race to host the 2024 Summer Olympic Games. And now Stockholm has announced it will not bid for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games.

Bach said the Olympic Games are being used for political aims in some countries.

“What we have seen is a change in the decision-making procedures in different countries – particularly in Europe but also elsewhere,” he told delegates at the General Assembly of the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO) in Uruguay.

“I do not need to go into detail about how the Olympic Games is used for political purposes by groups in some countries.

"We have to understand that our candidature procedure is giving arguments for this as it is too expensive and too complicated. “

Budapest and Hamburg both withdrew from bidding for 2024 after holding referendums.

Similarly, the 2022 Winter Games bidding procedure was reduced to two contenders – Beijing and Almaty – after the withdrawal of the European cities of Stockholm, Lviv, Krakow and Oslo.

And shortly after Bach’s comments, it emerged that Stockholm is now withdrawing from bidding for the 2026 Games due to a lack of cross-party support and clarity around finances.

Stockholm Mayor Karin Wanngard said in a statement: "We Social Democrats have always thought that the Olympic Games are important for Stockholm's growth and development… Unfortunately, we are alone to have this position about the Olympic Games."

Speaking in Uruguay, Bach said “The good old times are over with regard to candidature procedure.

“Today hardly any Mayor or political authority can go to their population and say, ‘Let’s try again, and maybe we will win’ after spending millions on an unsuccessful bid.

“Maybe it will change back in five or 10 years, but it is not possible today.”

Bach stressed that, despite the apparent lack of enthusiasm from host cities for hosting the games, the Olympic Games remains commercially secure with long term agreements with sponsors and broadcasters in place.

"We have contracts on the TV side until 2032 and we have TOP sponsors on board until 2028 and there are more in the pipeline."

He also said relationships with rights holders was stronger than ever.

Such is the level of concern about the prospects for future Olympic bids that a working group comprising four IOC vice presidents is currently assessing the possibility of awarding the 2024 and 2028 Summer Olympic Games simultaneously to Los Angeles and Paris.

The host city election for 2024 – and potentially 2028 – takes place in Lima in September.