The International Olympic Committee (IOC) executive board has approved the timeline for the 2020 Summer Olympic bid process, which ends with the host city vote in Buenos Aires, Argentina on September 7, 2013.
The IOC will send letters inviting Olympic bodies to submit bids by May 16.
The National Olympic committees have until Sept. 1 to submit the names of cities interested in hosting the 2020 Summer Games.
Prospective candidates must, for the first time, comply with the rules of the World Anti-Doping Agency and accept the jurisdiction of the Court of Arbitration for Sport before being allowed to bid.
National committees must also notify the IOC by July 29 whether they propose to hold the Games outside the usual July 15-August 31 period.
Once the names of the applicant cities have been submitted, the initial bid files must be delivered to the IOC by February 15, 2012. In May, 2012, the IOC executive board will decide which to approve as official candidate cities.
During the second phase, official bid books must be submitted in January 2013. An IOC evaluation commission will visit the cities in March and April of that year and issue a report assessing the bids in June – three months before the secret vote at the IOC assembly in Buenos Aires.
Rome, host of the 1960 Olympics, is the only city nominated by its national Olympic committee to bid for 2020. Durban is also expected to enter the race.
Other potential bidders include Doha, Dubai, Tokyo, Madrid, and Istanbul.
