Madrid first stop on IOC evaluation tour

Olympic officials will visit New York City Feb. 21-24

updated 12:38 p.m. ET Sept. 27, 2004

LAUSANNE, Switzerland - Madrid will be the first stop on an IOC tour to assess the five cities bidding for the 2012 Olympics.

The International Olympic Committee said Monday its evaluation commission will visit the Spanish capital on Feb. 3-6, followed by London (Feb. 16-19), New York (Feb. 21-24), Paris (March 9-12) and Moscow (March 14-17).

The 11-member panel, led by Morocco’s Nawal El Moutawakel, will meet bid leaders and city and government officials. The commission will evaluate venues, security, transportation, hotels and financing. It will release a report at least one month before the full IOC selects the host July 6 in Singapore.

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IOC members have been barred from visiting bid cities since the Salt Lake City scandal in 1998 and 1999. The evaluation report can serve as an important guide for the 100-plus members, who vote by secret ballot.

In May, the IOC selected the five cities as finalists from an initial list of nine. Complete bid files must be submitted to the IOC by Nov. 15.

El Moutawakel, the 400-meter hurdles champion at the 1984 Olympics, has been an IOC member since 1998. She was the first woman from a Muslim nation to win an Olympic medal and the first Moroccan to win gold.