By Karolos Grohmann
LONDON Aug 8 (Reuters) – Kenya’s capital Nairobi is
planning to bid for the 2024 Olympics and become the first
African city to host the Games, the prime minister said on
Wednesday.
“Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga, speaking at the Kenya
National House today, announced that the Republic of Kenya will
be starting the process of pitching to host the Games of the
33rd Olympiad in 2024,” a Kenya House announcement said.
“If successful, these Games will be the first ever held in
Africa.”
The International Olympic Committee will elect the 2024 host
city in 2017, with official campaigning to start two years
earlier.
There have been African bids in the past, most recently with
Egypt’s Cairo unsuccessfully bidding for the 2008 Olympics that
were awarded to Beijing.
South Africa’s Cape Town had also bid for the 2004 Games,
staged by Athens. The country did, however, host the 2010 soccer
World Cup, the first to be held on the African continent.
The 2016 Olympics will be held in Rio de Janeiro – the first
in South America – while Tokyo, Madrid and Istanbul are bidding
for the 2020 Games, with a decision to be taken next year.
(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Alison Williams)
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