Hungarian Olympic Committee backs 2024 Olympics bid

Hungary are emerging as one of the contenders for hosting the 2024 Olympic Games

Budapest, Sep 12 (IANS) The Hungarian Olympic Committee (HOC) has backed the idea of Budapest bidding to host the 2024 Summer Olympics, HOC President Zsolt Borkai said.

Borkai Thursday said he thought bidding for the Games was realistic. Since Hungary, and more specifically, his own hometown of Gyor, will be hosting the European Youth Olympic Festival in 2017.

"It (Gyor) will have the chance to prove its ability to manage a major multi-sport event, even if it isn't in the same category as the Olympics," he wrote on the HOC website.

"We've still got a great deal of work to do before actually preparing and submitting the bid, which includes clarifying any number of minor and not-so-minor details, but there is no doubt about our intent, which is that Budapest would like to host the world's best athletes," Borkai wrote.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will choose the venue for the 2024 Games in 2017. As of now, four cities in the US - Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington DC - as well as two German cities - Berlin and Hamburg - are vying for the hosting rights, while Rome and Istanbul are also expected to bid.

The 2016 Olympic Games will be in Rio de Janeiro and the 2020 edition in Tokyo.