Spanish Olympic Committee (COE) and Madrid 2020 President Alejandro Blanco "remains optimistic" that the third time will be "lucky for Madrid when the 2020 host city his announced" in Buenos Aires on Sept. 7, according to XINHUA. Blanco is not concerned that Tokyo "is favorite with the bookmakers." Blanco: "The betting doesn't have a lot to do with reality. If we take a look back at history, we can see that the favorite in the betting has never won and I like that. ... The Int'l Olympic Committee has valued us well and that is our strength." Spain will be represented in Buenos Aires by Prince Felipe, the heir to the Spanish throne. Blanco said, "He is a great ambassador, an Olympian, a diplomat and he has lived the experience and is able to explain the feeling. I can't thank him enough for his support and there will be nobody better than the Prince, no matter who Tokyo and Istanbul take" (XINHUA, 8/7). Blanco said, "We have to reinforce our messages, structure our presentation well and offer very profound messages. We hope there will be questions. If we have been the best-evaluated, we will have done well. We will explain this" (AS, 8/7).
