Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, spoke to London reporters questioning why no Muslim country has ever hosted the Olympic Games.
Erdoğan said, “This is the third time for London, Madrid was the host twice,” he said. “Tokyo has hosted three games. Istanbul has bided to host the Olympics five times but has never been handed the rights. This is not a fair approach.”
“People will ask ‘Why? What is missing [in these countries]?’” he said in London as he tries to promote Istanbul’s bid to host the 2020 Olympics.
Istanbul, Tokyo and Madrid are all shortlisted for the 2020 Games and the host of the 2020 Olympics and Paralympic Games will be announced on Sept. 7, 2013.
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