MUNICH, Germany: Munich will bid to host the World Athletics Championships in 2029 or 2031, the city council has announced.
The council decided with a big majority to submit bid documents, including financial guarantees, for one of the biggest sports events in the world.
The competition is set to take place at the Olympic Stadium from the 1972 Games, which is currently undergoing renovation and previously hosted the European Championships in 2002 and 2022.
“An exciting World Cup in our iconic Olympic Park would be a boon for sport, for our city’s community, for Munich’s international reputation and, of course, for our ultimate goal of bringing the Olympic and Paralympic Games back to Munich,” said the mayor responsible for sport, Verena Dietl (SPD).
The city named the vote “a strong signal regarding Munich’s approach to sport and underlines its ambition to be an international sporting hub”.
Munich expects to spend €107 million (approx. RM490 million) for a 2029 event and €110 million (approx. RM514 million) for 2031, to be split evenly between the city, the state of Bavaria and federal funds.
The athletics worlds run over nine days and bring together more than 2,000 athletes from close to 200 countries.
Road events marathon and race walk will take place in the Olympic Park and the city.
The ruling body World Athletics plans to decide on the 2029 and 2031 athletics worlds by September.
Interested cities must bid for both but Munich would prefer 2031 because in 2029, it hosts the German gymnastics festival and matches of the women’s European football championships.
The 2027 worlds are in Beijing, China. Germany hosted the 1993 event in Stuttgart and 2009 in Berlin.
Munich is also aiming to become Germany’s bidder for Olympic Games in 2036, 2040 or 2044. A decision will be made in September, with Hamburg, Berlin and the Rhine-Ruhr area also interested. – BERNAMA-dpa
