Qatar gets IOC green light to bid for 2020 Olympics

Doha: Olympic chiefs have given Qatar the green signal to bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Doha by allowing a shift in dates to avoid extreme desert heat.

Doha proposed to stage the Games between September 20 and October 20, well outside the IOC’s preferred window of July 15 to August 31. The IOC executive board provisionally approved the autumn dates at a meeting in Daegu, but told Doha it must provide further reassurances that its plans would not present health risks for athletes and spectators, according to reports. Doha’s candidacy is likely to raise a debate over FIFA’s decision to take the World Cup to the heat of a Gulf summer. The IOC’s rigorous approach contrasts with that of FIFA, that selected Qatar to host the 2022 World Cup despite warnings from its own technical inspectors, that playing in June and July with average temperatures over 40C, posed a health risk. Bureau Report