‘Olympic dates in Qatar could be moved’
doha — Sebastian Coe said on Friday that Qatar could move the Summer Olympics to later in the calendar year if the Gulf country ever successfully bids to host the Games.
Speaking in Doha, where he met heads of the Asian Athletics Association (AAA), Coe said athletics had to prove flexible if it wanted new countries to host the showcase event.
Asked if the Summer Olympics could be moved if Qatar hosted, Coe said: “Yeah, we have to be realistic about this.
“We have to recognise that the world wants sport and it’s not always going to be bidding from areas where there aren’t going to be challenges.
“And those challenges are not just geographical or climatic, they are social, cultural, they are political.” Qatar is controversially hosting the World Cup in 2022 when, for the first time, games will be played in November and December, because of concerns over the country’s fierce summer temperatures.
Doha has publicly stated that it will bid for future Olympics, with 2028 being a likely contender. Coe added that it was “not unusual” to move the date of the Olympics.
He pointed out that the Sydney games in 2000 were held later in the year, in September and October, as were the Seoul Olympics in 1988.
Qatar will host the 2019 World Athletics Championships. These will be held in late September and early October, when temperatures can still approach 40 degrees Celsius, (104 Fahrenheit).
The 2017 edition of the championships will be held in London during August. —