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Indonesia ready to bid for 2032 Olympics: Erick Thohir
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Logo of the International Olympic Committee (IOC/IOC)
Indonesian Asian Games Organizing Committee (INASGOC) chief Erick Thohir says the country is ready to host an Olympic Games.
Erick, the chairman of Indonesian Olympic Committee (KOI), echoed a plan that had been announced by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo that Indonesia was interested in bidding to host the 2032 Olympics.
Erick said the President had met with International Olympic Committee (IOC) chief Thomas Bach and Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) boss Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah at Bogor Palace in West Java on Saturday morning to discuss various issues, including the planned bid.
“The President asked Bach about the possibility of Indonesia hosting the 2032 Olympics and he said [the IOC was] open to the idea of Indonesia bidding to become a host candidate for the 2032 Games.
“Shortly after the Asian Games closing ceremony, we will send the official letter [to the IOC],” said Erick, a media mogul and owner of Italy’s Internazionale and United States’ D.C. United soccer clubs.
Indonesia is aware that the bidding process can take some time, but Erick said he was optimistic.
“After the Asian Games, I hope sports federations in Indonesia will be more aggressive in fighting to host international sporting events, so we can be more prepared for the Olympics bid.
“We already have world-class venues, such as the velodrome and the aquatic arena. These outstanding venues will be useless if we don’t host international events regularly,” he added. (nkn)
