South Africa names Durban as preferred city for 2036 or 2040 Olympic bid
Durban would lead South Africa’s attempt to bring the Olympics to Africa for the first time, though officials have yet to estimate hosting costs or settle which cities would stage events.
South Africa named Durban on Thursday, October 29, as its preferred city for a bid to host the 2036 or 2040 Olympic Games, Reuters reported. The choice puts the coastal city at the centre of an effort to bring the Olympics to Africa for the first time, while leaving the scale and cost of the proposed Games unsettled.
Lwandile Simelane, acting president of the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee, announced the choice. The government has backed the bid following Cabinet approval, Reuters reported. Durban is the proposed main host city, but Simelane said some events would likely be held elsewhere in a multi-city bid, according to the Associated Press.
Which cities could join Durban?
Johannesburg and Cape Town were also considered as the main candidate city, AP reported. Officials have not confirmed which other cities, if any, would stage Olympic events. They could not yet provide an estimate of what hosting the Games would cost if South Africa’s bid succeeded. Both the venue plan and the financial case therefore remain central questions as the proposal advances.
South Africa is one of seven countries pursuing the 2036 Games, alongside India, Qatar, South Korea, Germany, Hungary and Turkey, according to AP. The International Olympic Committee set October 31 as the deadline for national Olympic committees to formally declare their interest in bidding for those Games. South Africa is also considering 2040, leaving the eventual target year open.
Durban’s hosting history and the bid timetable
Durban previously won the right to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games, but the Commonwealth Games Federation stripped the city of those rights in 2017, citing a failure to meet key obligations, Reuters reported. That history makes the feasibility and financing of a new major-event bid especially consequential for Durban and for South Africa’s Olympic committee.
Durban had also been discussed as a possible Olympic host after South Africa staged the 2010 football World Cup, the first held in Africa. An official Olympic bid did not emerge then, largely because of cost concerns, AP reported. The current announcement marks a more definite choice of lead city, though it is still a bid rather than a hosting award.
The South African committee plans to present its proposal to the IOC’s Future Host Commission in November, Reuters reported. Feasibility reviews are expected to conclude in March 2027, with a host selection expected in 2029. Those steps will test whether Durban and any partner cities can turn the preferred-city decision into a workable proposal.
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Sources and context
- South Africa unveils Durban as bid city for 2036 or 2040 OlympicsReuters, republished by CNA
- South Africa chooses Durban as its preferred city to host 2036 or 2040 OlympicsAssociated Press, republished by Yahoo Sports
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.