Madrid Mayor Ana Botella said that the Spanish city should not bid to host the 2024 Olympic Games, "after missing out on the 2020 edition last week," according to Alex Duff of BLOOMBERG. Spain's Education, Culture & Sports Minister Jose Ignacio Wert said that Botella's opinion was "correct and prudent" because bidding for the 2024 Games will be even more competitive. Wert said that "Paris and Berlin are almost certain to try for the 2024 games." Wert: "The competition will be very strong" (BLOOMBERG, 9/12). REUTERS' Raquel Castillo wrote the IOC members meeting in Buenos Aires eliminated Madrid, "bidding for the third time in a row, from the first round of voting and awarded the Games to Tokyo over Istanbul." Madrid's presentation to the IOC has been widely ridiculed, with Botella, the wife of former conservative PM Jose Maria Aznar, "bearing the brunt of the criticism after she mangled comments in English at a news conference." Botella: "I think that for the moment the Olympic race has given us all the benefits we can expect from it in the next few years. I believe, therefore, that Madrid should not seek to host the 2024 Games" (REUTERS, 9/12).
