NBA L.A. Lakers Pau Gasol "has also decided to join the Madrid 2020 bid in Buenos Aires, when the IOC is scheduled to announce the host of the 2020 Olympics," according to Masato Sugimori of BERNABEU DIGITAL. Gasol has canceled "countless agreements with sponsors that he previously had scheduled." Depending on "one final schedule change, Gasol will give a definitive yes" to Spanish Olympic Committee President Alejandro Blanco. Rafael Nadal "may not be able to attend" because he will be participating in the U.S. Open, with the semifinals and finals of that event scheduled for Sept. 6-8. It is "not a tournament to shoot down because Nadal has the opportunity to move to No. 1 in the world tennis rankings" (BERNABEAU DIGITAL, 8/21).
MADRID HASHTAG TRENDS WORLDWIDE: In Madrid, Alfredo Matilla reported the Madrid 2020 bid "set up a show of support for the candidacy on Twitter" at 8:20pm local time on Tuesday. The response from fans "exceeded all expectations, making Madrid 2020 a topic that trended worldwide on Twitter." Spanish singer Alejandro Sanz was one of many to express his support for Madrid, with the candidacy receiving backing on Twitter from top Spanish athletes including canoer Saúl Craviotto, basketball player José Manuel Calderón, tennis player Vivi Ruano, fencer José Luis Abajo Gómez, synchronized swimmer Ona Carbonell and hammer thrower Javier Cienfuegos. Former Spanish gymnast Almudena Cid tweeted, "Barcelona 92 me inspiró para luchar por mis sueños, tenía 12 años. Es el turno de Madrid y de los futuros jóvenes deportistas" ("Barcelona 92 inspired me to fight for my dreams when I was 12. Now is the turn for Madrid and for young future athletes") (AS, 8/21).
NOT ALL POSITIVE: LIBERTAD DIGITAL reported the "objective of becoming a 'Trending Topic' was achieved, however, the hashtag #QueremosJJOOenMadrid ("#WeWanttheOGinMadrid") was preceded in many cases by a 'no.'" One user tweeted, "enough already, this is drowning us." Another tweeted that "Spain wants the Games although it does not have enough money to host them" (LIBERTAD DIGITAL, 8/21).
