Bidding - San Diego Seeks Romney Advice; COC Targets Toronto 2024

San Diego Mayor Seeks Romney Bid Advice

San Diego Mayor Bob Filner says former U.S. presidential candidate Mitt Romney will advise him on plans for a bi-national bid with Tijuana for the 2024 Olympics

"He gives us instant credibility that we have someone who understands this process," Filner says of Romney, who ran the organizing committee for Salt Lake City 2004.

"He gave me a whole sense of reality...Both for the obstacles, but for the possibilities," adds the Mayor, interviewed Sunday by the CBS affiliate in San Diego.

Filner’s comments follow his May 6 meeting with Romney, now a resident of La Jolla, during which the recent Republican nominee apparently pledged his advice to San Diego-Tijuana 2024.

According to the CBS 8 report, a bi-national committee will soon be announced despite the IOC already ruling out such a bid.

"The Olympic Charter is clear on this," an IOC spokesman told Around the Rings late last month after the U.S. Olympic Committee announced interest from "about 10" cities for the 2024 bid cycle, San Diego among them.

Most of the dozen-plus comments posted to CBS8.com since the story went live late Sunday are none too kind to Tijuana, the Mexican city with which San Diego shares a border.

COC Targets Toronto 2024

President Marcel Aubut says the Canadian Olympic Committee would prefer a 2024 Summer Olympics in Toronto over a 2022 Winter Games in Quebec.

"There is no doubt, no doubt that what the country needs most is a Summer Olympic Games," he was quoted Friday by Reuters.

"Toronto is going to deliver a great 2015 Pan Am Games and it should be the first step in going higher for the Olympics like Brazil did."

Rio de Janeiro staged the 2007 Pan American Games, then won hosting rights to the 2016 Olympics.

"It is the perfect plan," the COC president said. "A Pan Am Games close to the Olympic level then you have chance to FIFA, the Olympics, you have a chance to get everything you want after that."

According to Aubut, a 2022 Olympics in Quebec would be quite the consolation prize.

"Quebec is a very good possibility," he told Reuters, "but the first goal is to convince people to go with Toronto in the Summer."

Malaysia, Sweden Square Off Over ITTF Champs

It’s a two-way race for hosting rights to the 2016 World Table Tennis Championships.

The choice between Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Halmstad Sweden is among the top items on the agenda Wednesday in Paris at the Annual General Meeting of the International Table Tennis Federation.

"Malaysia has the expertise and the state-of-the-art facilities for all sporting events," Kuala Lumpur’s bid team says in a statement provided to Around the Rings.

"With luxurious hotels at reasonable costs together with an efficient transport system, Malaysia, with its endless possibilities, is the best choice for the 2016 WTTC."

Malaysia last staged the World Table Tennis Championships in Kuala Lumpur in 2000. Sweden hosted in Gothenburg in 1985 and 1993.

"Swedish Table Tennis is a worldwide well-known brand," says a promotional email from the Swedish bid team.

"Therefore, it is with great pleasure The Swedish Table Tennis Association, the Municipality of Halmstad and the Halmstad Table Tennis Club are proud to present Sweden and Halmstad as a candidate city for hosting the World Team Table Tennis Championships in 2016."

Also at Wednesday’s AGM in Paris, members of the ITTF will decide between incumbent Adham Sharara of Canada and Stefano Bosi of Italy in elections for the IITF presidency.

Written by Matthew Grayson.

20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribers only.