After Rome lost the Serie A Championship to a final goal from FC Internazionale in its game against Siena, other good news on the sports front will hopefully be some consolation to the city.
Rome has won Italy’s candidature choice for the 2020 Olympics, beating Venice who wanted to win the opportunity to bid.
The good news was made official yesterday afternoon and now the hard work starts as Rome prepares to bid.
The final decision on the winner to host the 2020 games will not be made until 2013 when the IOC meets in Buenos Aires.
Rome has a clear plan to win its bid: few new structures, a lot of green space, including the new Tiber national park, a new Olympic Village at Tor di Quinto, expansion of metro lines C and D and more trams, and the use of the Tor Vergata and Foro Italico stadiums in addition to Rome’s Olympic stadium.
If Rome were to win its bid for the Olympics, it would be the second time the city would host the games since 1960.
It had originally won the bid for the 1908 Olympics but the eruption of Vesuvius in 1906 meant the games moved to London.
It’s a big investment for the city, with 42 million euros set aside as a budget for bidding, with billions of euros in additional investments required if Rome were to win its bid.
The city of Venice is bitterly disappointed at its loss, but Rome should act on behalf of all Italy and it would be a proud day if the Olympics were to return to the Eternal City.