SA Olympic bid on the cards

Johannesburg -Gideon Sam, president of the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCO), confirmed on Monday the nation would consider putting in a bid for either the 2020 or 2024 Olympic Games.

A day after the first Soccer World Cup in Africa came to a close, Sam said the Olympic governing body would consult with the South African government and the national federations with the possibility of hosting the first quadrennial Games on the continent.

"It is the dream of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) that developing countries are given an opportunity to host the Olympics," Sam said after receiving a minibus vehicle on behalf of SASCOC from IOC president Jacques Rogge.

"It is now up to the government, the national Olympic committee and the sporting community whether or not this country takes the decision to bid for the Games.

"The IOC has certain policies by which we will be guided if our government supports a possible bid.

"I can't say that we will be going for 2020 or 2024, but we will be guided by the sporting movement in this country as to what we are going to do."

Rogge said the FIFA World Cup had been an "outstanding success" and that an Olympic bid from South Africa would be welcomed after the nation had organised yet another successful international sports tournament.

"From the start, when South Africa were named as World Cup hosts, we all knew the country would be able to organise the tournament," Rogge said.

"This country has hosted a very successful All Africa Games (in 1999), a Rugby World Cup (in 1995) and international cricket championships (including the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007).

"Now it is up to you as a nation to decide if you want to host this event."

Deputy sports minister Gert Oosthuizen said the goverment had already shown interest in bidding for a future Olympics and would be in discussions with Sascoc about the 2020 and 2024 Games.

"I think it's safe to say that we have expressed interest in hosting an event of this magnitude that will leave legacies," he said.