That Tokyo has won the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics is fact. How they won it, with competitors such as Istanbul and Madrid, is what makes it an intriguing story. Alan Abrahamson is at his best when he is writing about the politics within the Olympic movement. His understanding of the terrain, and his ability to help us understand is what what makes this piece so important.
It’s Tokyo for 2020
by Alan Abrahamson/3wiresports
BUENOS AIRES — Tokyo won the race for the 2020 Summer Games Saturday, capping one of the unusual, unnerving and indeed unsettling contests in International Olympic Committee history.
In the second round of voting, Tokyo prevailed over Istanbul, 60-36.
Istanbul had moved into the final round of voting only after surviving a tie-breaker with Madrid in the first round. The tally: Tokyo 42, Istanbul and Madrid 26-26.
In the run-off, Istanbul defeated Madrid, 49-45.
To read the rest of Alan Abrahamson’s feature on the 2020 vote and outcome, please click here: http://www.3wiresports.com/2013/09/07/its-tokyo-for-2020/