India's bid for 2020 Olympics begins

New Delhi, Nov 19: After failing to bring the 2014 Asian Games to the country, IOA President Suresh Kalmadi has now sought the help of London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) for their support to India's bid for the 2020 Olympics.

Kalmadi, who is also the chairman of Delhi Commonwealth Games Organising Committee, made the appeal to the Mayor of London Ken Livingstone and LOCOG Chairman Sebastian Coe during a conference organised by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII).

''We look forward to London for their support for India's 2020 Olympic Games bid,'' he said today.

Kalmadi said that the Commonwealth Games will leave a ''lasting legacy'' of sports for the citizens of Delhi and country at large.

''We will be leaving a lasting legacy for the citizens of Delhi, which will inspire the next generations for decades to come.

''Nothing unites people more than sports. The Games will touch the lives of many,'' Kalmadi said.

The IOA President expressed the view staging the Games would help popularise Olympic sports in a cricket-crazy nation.

''India is a country of cricket, but Olympics is played around the world. We will not miss cricket in 2010 Commonwealth Games and also in London Olympics,'' he said.

Some of the civil society groups has been clamouring that the Commonwealth Games will burden the already crumbling infrastructure of the city.

Outrightly dismissing the charge, Kalmadi said, ''We have signed an MoU with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to make sure that the Games do not degrade the environment.''

UNI