Tokyo have won the right to host the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic
Games.
The Japanese capital saw off the challenges of Madrid and
Istanbul to win a tense vote in Buenos Aires.
The vote by the International Olympic Committee meeting
saw Tokyo win the first round of voting with the other two cities polling the
same number of votes.
A tie-break saw Madrid eliminated by four votes to set up
a final round between Istanbul and Tokyo - with the latter emerging triumphant
after polling 60 votes to Istanbul's 36.
IOC President Jacques Rogge said: "Congratulations
to the city of Tokyo on its election as host of the 2020 Olympic Games.
"Tokyo presented a very strong technical bid from the
outset - and it needed to in competition with two such high-calibre bids from
Istanbul and Madrid.
"All three cities were capable of staging excellent
Games in 2020, but in the end it was Tokyo's bid that resonated the most with
the IOC membership, inviting us to "discover tomorrow" by delivering
a well-organised and safe Games that will reinforce the Olympic values while
demonstrating the benefits of sport to a new generation."
Tsunekazu Takeda, the head of the Japanese Olympic
Committee, said: "Tokyo is honoured and humbled by the International
Olympic Committee's (IOC) decision to award us the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic
Games.
"It is with an incredible sense of excitement that
we express our thanks.
"The Olympic Family has put its faith in our great
city to deliver the memorable Games we have promised, and we will not let them
down."
It will be the second time Tokyo has hosted the Olympics
- the Games were held there in 1964 when Lynn Davies, Ann Packer and Mary Rand
famously won gold for Great Britain.
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