TOKYO (AP) — Public support for Tokyo’s bid to host the 2020 Olympics is on the rise according to a recent survey conducted by bid organizers.
Tokyo organizers said Wednesday that nearly 73 percent of those polled support the bid to host the games, up 26 points from a survey conducted by the International Olympic Committee in May 2012.
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Tokyo, which hosted the 1964 Olympics and finished third in the voting for 2016, is competing against Istanbul and Madrid. The IOC will select the host city in a secret ballot at Buenos Aires on Sept. 7.
Istanbul has an approval rating of 93 percent while Madrid stands at 80 percent. One of Tokyo’s weaknesses in its campaign to host the 2016 games was public support.
“We know public support was a challenge for us last time,” Tokyo 2020 president Tsunekazu Takeda said. ‘So we are delighted by this very strong result.”
Tokyo organizers say enthusiasm for the bid has been growing since Japan’s strong performance at the London Olympics.