BUDAPEST, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- Budapest has strong credentials to host the 2036 Summer Olympics, thanks to its experience staging major international sporting events, existing infrastructure and sporting culture, senior Paris 2024 officials said Thursday.
Sophie Lorant, international director of the Paris 2024 organizing committee, made the remarks to Hungarian public broadcaster M4 Sport during a visit to Budapest with the committee's CEO, Etienne Thobois.
The two officials were invited by the Hungarian Olympic Committee to share their experience of organizing the Paris Games.
"Budapest has many strengths. It has organized numerous top sporting competitions, Hungarians love sport, and much of its sports infrastructure sits along the Danube, similar to Paris," Lorant said.
Budapest has staged several major international events, including the 2017 and 2022 World Aquatics Championships and the 2023 World Athletics Championships, but has never hosted the Olympics.
A survey released last week by Hungarian pollster Median found that nearly two-thirds of Hungarians supported a potential Budapest bid for the 2036 Games.
The visiting officials emphasized that hosting the Olympics should deliver lasting benefits for local communities rather than simply provide a showcase for elite sport.
"The Olympics cannot fix all urban problems, but properly defined goals can greatly boost a city's long-term development," Thobois said.
He pointed to Paris 2024's sustainability initiatives, including efforts to halve the Games' carbon footprint, convert the Olympic Village into housing and improve public and sporting facilities.
Thobois also stressed the importance of securing support from stakeholders and maintaining public enthusiasm throughout preparations that can stretch over a decade.
Hungary is among seven countries to have expressed interest in hosting the 2036 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, alongside India, Qatar, South Africa, South Korea, Germany and Türkiye.
The International Olympic Committee is expected to select the 2036 host at its Session in 2029. ■
