TO-Bid CEO John Bitove, whose group is preparing
Toronto's bid for the 2008 Olympics, showed his BOD figures
that "indicate less than" C$1M has been spent to date
"against revenues of more than" C$3.5M, according to James
Christie of the Toronto GLOBE & MAIL. The bidders "seem
poised to show they are capable of holding the line on
costs," but Bitove "cautioned" that expenses will
"inevitably rise dramatically" after February 24, when the
IOC lets the candidate cities "know the new ground rules for
promoting the city as a potential Olympic host." Bitove, on
the bid process: "We've been spending a lot of time at home
on domestic issues, making sure we have a strong bid."
However, social activist group, "Bread Not Circuses," has
distributed its "report card" on TO-Bid, "giving the group a
failing grade" on the issues of public participation,
financial guarantees, social and gender equity, environment
and employment. Bitove, countering that the bidders have
"gone out of their way" to consult with the public on civic
concerns: "We've been exhaustive in trying to be out in the
community" (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 1/25).
LUCKY NO. 7? Osaka, Japan, has officially submitted its
bid to host the 2008 Olympics, bringing the number of
competitors to seven. The other cities: Beijing, Paris,
Toronto, Istanbul, Seville and Havana (O. CITIZEN, 1/25).
DOT-COM-ING TO A COMPUTER NEAR YOU: NBC Quokka Ventures
-- a joint venture of NBC and Quokka Sports -- and MSNBC.com
announced a partnership to distribute nbcolympics.com
content to MSNBC.com users during the Olympic.
MSNBCSports.com will provide nbcolympics.com daily Olympic
sports news to supplement its content and live coverage
(Quokka Sports).
