By Duncan Mackay
January 21 – Turkey is concentrating its efforts on successfully bidding for the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics, the country’s Sports Minister Suat Kılıç (pictured) has revealed following reports that they were also planning to launch a campaign to host football’s European Championships that year.
Reports had appeared in the Turkish press claiming that UEFA President Michel Platini had privately promised the country the Championships after they controversially lost out in May 2010 on hosting Euro 2016 by only one vote to France.
“All our energies are focussed on the Olympics,” said Kılıç.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan declared hosting the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics in Istanbul as a “national priority” as long ago as December 2010 following unsuccessful bids for the 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 Games.
UEFA have also dismissed the claims that Turkey have been promised Euro 2020.
“The bidding process for the selection of the hosts of UEFA Euro 2020 has not started yet and details of the process including dates have not been decided yet,” they said in a statement.
The Turkish Football Federation (TFF), meanwhile, has said it will consider bidding for Euro 2020 depending on whether Istanbul makes the shortlist for the Olympics, which most experts expect them too.
İlker Uğur, head of the TFF’s international events department, admitted that ”it is the TFF’s main goal to host the Euros” but that they would not bid if Istanbul were campaigning for the Olympics and Paralympics.
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