Is Paris a lock? Will London steal some votes? Can Madrid follow up Barcelona? Will New York pull it out? How does it feel to be Moscow right about now?
When the International Olympic Committee votes Wednesday to decide on the site of the 2012 Summer Games, one city will throw a party, and four others will go home.
While Paris has been the strong favorite and London has been the main challenger, reports say that many IOC members see the race as wide open with many of the voting members undecided. Every city has dialed up their campaigns in Singapore, where Wednesday’s announcement will be made. Here’s a look at how the cities stack up:
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PARIS
Population: 2.15 million; 9.64 million in greater Paris.
Previous Olympics: 1900 and 1924.
Projected cost: $5.3 billion.
Big-name campaigners: French President Jacques Chirac and San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker.
Sizzle factor of big-name campaigners: Sizzling. Did you know one of them is dating Eva Longoria?
Upside: If it bombs, we’ll never have to hear about EuroDisney again.
Downside: Ever experience a Paris summer train strike? It’s unofficially a Ring of Hell.
British bookmaker Ladbrokes’ odds: 1-4.
LONDON
Population: 7.3 million
Previous Olympics: 1908 and 1948
Projected cost: $2.46 billion.
Big-name campaigners: British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Princess Anne, David Beckham and wife and former Spice Girl, Victoria.
Sizzle factor of big-name campaigners: Not too hot, not too cold. And Victoria will be a “former Spice Girl” forever.
Upside: Fish and chips.
Downside: Warm beer.
British bookmaker Ladbrokes’ odds: 3-1.
MADRID
Population: 3 million; 5.5 million in greater area.
Previous Olympics: None.
Projected cost: $2 billion.
Big-name campaigners: Madrid Mayor Alberto Ruiz-Gallardon and soccer star Raul Gonzalez, Memphis Grizzlies’ Pau Gasol and Spain’s Queen Sofia.
Sizzle factor of big-name campaigners: Hot. Remember: Memphis made the playoffs.
Upside: Spain is a beautiful country, home to a beautiful people.
Downside: Didn’t Spain just have one in Barcelona? Slow down, you hogs.
British bookmaker Ladbrokes’ odds: 12-1.
NEW YORK
Population: 8 million
Previous Olympics: None.
Projected cost: More than $3 billion (and more than $6 billion for long-term projects.)
Big-name campaigners: U.S. track and field star Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Muhammad Ali.
Sizzle factor of big-name campaigners: Lukewarm, not to mention a tad dated.
Upside: Our kind of time zone. Translation: No more live basketball at 2 a.m.
Downside: See the projected costs? Everything’s more expensive in New York.
British bookmaker Ladbrokes’ odds: 20-1.
MOSCOW
Population: 10 million.
Previous Olympics: 1980 Summer Games
Projected cost: $10 billion.
Big-name campaigners: Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov.
Sizzle factor of big-name campaigners: Arctic cold.
Upside: We put the 1980 U.S. boycott behind us. Remember that? Anybody?
Downside: It’ll be even harder to get a table at the Moscow Hard Rock Cafe.
British bookmaker Ladbrokes’ odds: 50-1.
–THE ASSOCIATED PRESS CONTRIBUTED.
