Speaking at the inaugural Road to 2020 Forum on Thursday, Spanish Olympic Committee (COE) and Madrid 2020 Bid President Alejandro Blanco said that Barcelona 1992 was the benchmark that the Spanish capital’s Olympic and Paralympic Bid has to follow if it is to earn the right to stage the Games.
"The Madrid of 2020 aims to be the Barcelona of 1992," commented the Bid leader at the event, entitled "From Barcelona 92 to Madrid 20", the first of seven Road to 2020 forums organised by Spanish sports daily Marca and the COE in collaboration with the Madrid 2020 Bid and the Madrid Business Confederation.
Describing the Games held in the Catalan capital a little over 20 years ago as "unforgettable" and "a benchmark", Blanco said: "We have the utmost admiration for Barcelona and we want to pick up where they left off. The Barcelona Games were both a crowning moment and a turning point, and we continue to follow in the city’s wake. We remember them as if they were still going on today."
The COE President went on to say that in organising a "unique" Olympics, Barcelona became "the city of wonders": "They were the first transitional Games and marked the end of one era and the beginning of the next. In terms of sport they represented the start of the 21st century."
For her part, the Mayor of Madrid Ana Botella said the prospect of the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics being staged in Madrid was generating "widespread excitement" at a time of need for the country. She added that the priority now was to convince the members of the IOC to choose Madrid’s project when they assemble in Buenos Aires on 7 September.
Also speaking at the event, the Mayor of Barcelona Xavier Trias declared his "unconditional" support for the Madrid Bid and said that the staging of the Games would be a "tremendous driving force for growth" for the Spanish capital.
He also said he was in favour of football clubs such as FC Barcelona wearing the Madrid 2020 logo on their shirts should the Bid be successful, while Blanco revealed that the Barça president is firmly behind Madrid 2020: "I have spoken to Sandro Rosell and there can be no doubt about the support of FC Barcelona."
"Together we cannot be beaten. Civil society is leading the way," added Trias, identifying himself completely with the Bid before pointing to the indelible mark the Olympics can make: "The Barcelona Games changed the history of our city and exceeded all sporting and social expectations. They were like a blessing that fell on Barcelona."
For more information information contact:
Sandra Serrano
International Media Department
Madrid 2020
Tel: +34 91 1922020
Mobile: +34 648041227
aserrano@madrid2020.es
www.madrid2020.es
www.facebook.com/madrid2020
@Madrid2020ES
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