**Bidding Process for the 2008 Summer Olympics**:
– Governed by the Olympic Charter
– Two-phase process introduced in 2008
– First phase: Questionnaire on hosting capacities
– Second phase: Detailed candidature file submission
– Evaluation Commission inspects candidate cities before final selection
**Applicant Cities for the 2008 Summer Olympics**:
– Cities like Rio de Janeiro, Cape Town, Buenos Aires, and Monterrey considered but did not bid
– Mentioned possible bidders included Lisbon, Krasnaya Polyana, joint Israel/Palestinian bid, New York City, Prague, Busan, Vancouver, and Moscow
**Evaluation and Selection of Host City**:
– Ten cities applied for the 2008 Olympics
– Cities evaluated based on 11 criteria
– Working Group recommended four cities
– Executive Committee chose five candidate cities
– Host city elected by active IOC members through voting rounds until an absolute majority achieved
**Criticism and Concerns Surrounding the 2008 Olympics**:
– Concerns about Beijing bid and human rights record
– Air pollution and heat concerns addressed in Beijing bid
– Beijing faced criticism but won the bid with an absolute majority after two rounds
– European Parliament issued a resolution regarding Beijing’s bid
– Beijing pledged improvements in human rights, press freedoms, and the environment
**Evaluation and Selection of Candidate Cities**:
– IOC Evaluation Commission evaluated five candidate cities for the 2008 Summer Olympics
– Beijing, Paris, and Toronto identified as excellent candidates
– Istanbul and Osaka had concerns about financing and infrastructure
– Final report refrained from ranking cities or identifying a favorite
– Beijing emerged as the host city after voting by IOC members in Moscow, Russia on July 13, 2001
Ten cities submitted bids to host the 2008 Summer Olympics and Paralympics that were recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), five of which made the IOC Executive Committee's shortlist. The games were awarded to Beijing, China on July 13, 2001. The other shortlisted cities were Toronto, Paris, Istanbul and Osaka. Beijing won an absolute majority of votes after two rounds of voting, eliminating the need for subsequent rounds of voting. IOC delegates and the media identified a number of factors in its favor, including the size of the country, improvements in Chinese anti-doping enforcement, and its close loss to Sydney, Australia eight years earlier. In that bidding process, which chose the host city for the 2000 Summer Olympics, Beijing led every round of voting but lost in the final round to Sydney by two votes.
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Games of the XXIX Olympiad XIII Paralympic Games | |
 | |
| Winner: Beijing Runner-up: Toronto Shortlist: Paris · Istanbul · Osaka | |
| Details | |
| Committee | IOC |
| Election venue | Moscow 112th IOC Session |
| Map | |
  Location of the bidding cities | |
| Important dates | |
| First Bid | February 1, 2000 |
| Second bid | June 20, 2000 |
| Shortlist | August 28, 2000 |
| Decision | July 13, 2001 |
| Decision | |
| Winner | Beijing (56 votes) |
| Runner-up | Toronto (22 votes) |
A number of politicians and non-governmental organizations criticized the Beijing bid and its selection due to concerns about China's human rights record. In response, supporters of the Beijing bid suggested that hosting the games might lead to "progress" on human rights and other issues. Some IOC delegates also expressed concerns about air pollution and heat in Beijing during the summer, and its effects on athletes participating in the games. In order to address such concerns, the Beijing bid included plans to reduce both air and water pollution in the city in advance of the games.