Traitour De France

[Tex]

It seems that Lance isn't too popular in New York these days.

http://www.nypost.com/news/worldnews/22383.htm

[bigwheel]

It seems that Lance isn't too popular in New York these days.

http://www.nypost.com/news/worldnews/22383.htm

With a 10% unemployment rate (almost double that of the US), France needs all the help they can get. Besides, didn't we just host the 2002 winter olympics?

[Crash]

I realize he wants the French doping police off his case, but man that was cheezy of him :mad::mad::mad:

[grizzly adam]

I read somewhere that the IOC visited New York was somewhat impressed with our proposal. Then they ran a poll with New Yorkers and came up with something like a 70 odd per cent support for the games to be there. I'm sure the IOC was looking for something closer to what we advertised, which I think was around 80 per cent.

....Could I be any more vague??.....

**updated**

Here's the article. The numbers were even worse than I originally thought.

Secret poll could sink Oly bid

Study shows only 59 percent of NYers back games

Posted: Wednesday March 2, 2005 4:09PM; Updated: Wednesday March 2, 2005 4:09PM

LONDON, March 2 (Reuters) -- A secret independent poll commissioned by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has dented New York's hopes of staging the 2012 Games.

Leaked results from the private poll of local support for the five cities in the race to stage the Olympics show just 59 percent of New Yorkers backing their city's bid.

In its candidature file presented to the IOC last year, New York put public support at 73 percent compared to the much lower figure now returned by the IOC's independent research.

"That figure (59 percent) is well short of what the IOC would be looking for in terms of support for the bid," an Olympic source familiar with the process told Reuters on Wednesday. "It will not be viewed very positively by the IOC."

New York bid chief and city deputy mayor Dan Doctoroff learned of the disappointing figures during the IOC's evaluation commission visit to New York last week.

But on Wednesday he played down the findings and disputed the low figure.

"We are not worried by this," Doctoroff told Reuters. "The most recent poll carried out last week by the New York Times showed 67 percent support."

Doctoroff also said the evaluation commission had "felt the energy and excitement of New Yorkers at the thought of hosting the world's most glittering sporting prize during their visit to the 'Big Apple' -- they said so at the end of their visit."

POLITICAL WRANGLING

In isolation, the IOC poll results would be unlikely to cause much damage to New York's chances.

However, the bid is already troubled by grave doubts over plans to build a $1.4 billion Olympic Stadium on the West Side of Manhattan to later be used by the NFL's New York Jets.

Political wrangling and new bids to buy the property for other uses have cast doubts locally about the plan, although New York mayor Michael Bloomberg told the evaluation commission last week he was confident of agreeing the stadium deal.

It is this political wrangling that caused the low figure in the IOC poll, Doctoroff said. "The controversy over the stadium has depressed the figures."

The IOC would not comment on the leaked report on Wednesday apart from confirming that a poll had been taken, as is normal, and that the figures are communicated to the bid cities at the time of their visit from the evaluation commission.

The figures will be made public in the commission's official report, no later than one month before the July 6 vote for the host city.

While the poll comes as a blow to New York, the U.S. city was not the only candidate found to have overestimated its local support.

London has been claiming a figure of 73 percent support in the capital but the poll figures are said to show 68 percent.

Moscow, who will host the evaluation commission at the end of March, had claimed 90 percent support within the city but the IOC put the figure at 77 percent according to sources.

Madrid, however, received a boost. The Spanish capital was told support for its bid was running at 91 percent in the city, two points higher than its own estimates.

Paris is still to be told the results of the IOC poll -- the French capital host the evaluation commission next week -- but sources say it will also be given a pleasant surprise.

Paris is the favourite to win the 2012 race with London, New York and Madrid close behind. Moscow is considered an outsider.

Copyright 2004 Reuters Limited (http:///interactive_legal.html#Reuters). All rights reserved.

[berrywise]

New York should have bribed the officials. That seems to work pretty well.

[grizzly adam]

They really DO love him! (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/more/03/15/armstrong.ap/index.html)

I wonder if he'll call up Michael Schumacher and they'll swap stories of all their victories. :crazy: