Olímpicos: la apuesta de Moscú

Officials of the International Olympic Committee begin their visit to Moscow today to assess the city's potential for staging the Games in 2012. The Russian capital is the last stop on their tour. They have already visited Madrid, London, New York and Paris.

This report from Harry Peart:

Moscow is widely regarded as having only an outside chance of staging the Games. Although the city is thriving, it suffers from a lack of hotel accommodation, transport problems, including an ageing airport and questions of security. But the city and the Russian government are prepared to make major investments to secure the Olympics. Ten billion dollars would be available to transform the city's infrastructure, including a new metro system.

Many of the sports facilities are already in place and the city can boast one of the most compact proposals running alongside the Moscow river. IOC officials will meet President Putin and have a private tour of the Kremlin. Moscow is anxious to dispel memories of the 1980 Games when sixty-five countries boycotted the event over the Soviet Union's intervention in Afghanistan. The American-led boycott and the subsequent retaliation by most Eastern bloc countries four years later in Los Angeles threatened the future of the Olympic movement.

The IOC inspection team's four-day visit to Moscow will result in a detailed report on all the candidate cities. The vote by all the IOC members will be taken in Singapore on July the sixth.

Harry Peart, BBC sports correspondent

widely regarded as
considerada por muchos

an outside chance
que no tiene mucha chance

staging
ser la sede

thriving
floreciente, próspera

infrastructure
infraestructura

are already in place
ya existen

boast
mostrarse orgullosa

anxious to dispel memories of
ansiosa por que la gente se olvide de

boycotted
boicotearon

retaliation
venganza