The Olympic rings are pictured in front of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Lausanne, Switzerland, March 24, 2020. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo
CAPE TOWN (Reuters) -South Africa plans to bid to stage the 2036 or 2040 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the government said on Thursday, and become the first host of the global event on the African continent.
Cape Town previously bid to host the 2004 Games that were staged in Athens, finishing third in the voting behind Rome, and is likely to be the city South Africa will put forward again.
The coastal city of Durban won the bid to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games, but pulled out in 2017 due to financial constraints, and Cape Town’s status as a global tourist destination appears to make it more viable.
Ahmedabad in India, Doha in Qatar, Istanbul in Turkey and Santiago in Chile have also previously confirmed their intentions to bid for the 2036 Olympics.
South Africa's Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told a media briefing on Thursday that the government had already engaged with the International Olympic Committee, headed by Zimbabwean Kirsty Coventry, on the viability of hosting the Games and that there was a "continuous dialogue".
South Africa successfully hosted the Rugby World Cup in 1995, Cricket World Cup in 2003 and Soccer World Cup in 2010, the only country aside from England to stage all three.
It will host the cricket tournament again in 2027 along with Namibia and Zimbabwe.
There have also been moves to host a Formula 1 Grand Prix in the country from 2027 onwards, which would also be a first for the African continent.
(Reporting by Nick Said; Editing by Ken Ferris)
