Madrid, Tokyo fall short in race for 2016 Olympics, lose to Rio de Janeiro

Madrid, Tokyo fall short in race for 2016 Olympics

COPENHAGEN — When it came right down to it, Madrid and Tokyo could do nothing to sway IOC voters from the prospect of a South American Olympics.

The two bids made the second round Friday after pre-vote favorite Chicago was shockingly eliminated in the first round, but neither managed to pick up significant backers among the International Olympic Committee members as the process continued.

In the end, it was Rio de Janeiro that came out the big winner and host of the 2016 Games.

Madrid had not been expected to make the final, but former IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch, now 89, made a startling appeal to the members, asking them to remember his age when they cast their vote and telling then that he was “very near the end of my time.”

Maybe it worked.

Madrid ended up with the most votes in the first round, garnering 28 of the 94 that were cast. Rio was second with 26, followed by Tokyo with 22 and Chicago with 18.

“The talk was that Tokyo would go out first,” Australian IOC member Kevan Gosper said. “There must have been an Asian constituency that decided to keep Tokyo in through the first round.”

The surprising elimination of Chicago did little to help Madrid or Tokyo. Rio easily won the second round of voting with 46 votes, followed by Madrid with 29 and Tokyo with 20. Rio won the final vote 66-32.

In Madrid, thousands of supporters gathered in front of the Royal Palace hoping to celebrate with huge multicolored hands — the city’s bid symbol — but instead left dejected.

“We lost because the others are in London, and they needed to make a change,” 19-year-old Lara Perez said, referring the 2012 London Games.

Public support had been one of Madrid’s strongest points, and organizers had been confident that Madrid’s readiness, experience and reputation would help it overcome the geographical liability of following London in 2012 and Sochi in 2014 as European hosts of the Olympics.

Spanish prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said Madrid left with “dignity” and didn’t rule out a 2020 run.

“We were nearly there, but Rio won,” Zapatero told Spanish reporters. “Now is not the moment to talk about 2020. Madrid is always a strong candidate, but it depends on the city, not me.”

Tokyo also did better than many expected, but its bid lacked much flair and instead offered reassurances of financial security, with $4 billion already banked for the games, and compactness.

Geography again might have played a factor with the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

“I’m so disappointed,” said Yuko Arimori, a 1992 Olympic silver medalist and 1996 bronze medal winner in the women’s marathon who was at an event at Tokyo government offices. “It was an important experience for everyone in Tokyo. Let’s use this experience to bid again.”

AP Sports Writers Stephen Wilson in London, Paul Logothetis in Madrid and Jim Armstrong in Tokyo contributed to this report.