London World Cup Triathlon Unlikely before Olympic Ballot

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"Organisers of London’s bid to stage the Olympic Games look likely to be frustrated in their attempts to bring a World Cup triathlon race to the city before the International Olympic Committee decides on the host for the 2012 event.

Les McDonald, the International Triathlon Union's president, was keen to have a World Cup meeting in the British capital and had met London bid leader Barbara Cassani to discuss the idea.

However, the IOC’s ethics commission has written to McDonald informing him that such an event needs to be submitted to them for approval. Copies of this letter were also sent to the nine cities bidding for the 2012 Olympics.

The London 2012 team is still considering whether a World Cup race can be held in the capital, but submitting the plan to the ethics commission would take time and there are few gaps available in the calendar before the IOC vote takes place in Singapore in July 2005.

If it wins the Olympic contest, London plans to hold the triathlon in the city centre's Hyde Park and a successful World Cup race would be seen as an opportunity to showcase the city's ability to organise major sporting events.

The other eight cities bidding for the 2012 Olympics are Paris, New York, Madrid, Leipzig, Moscow, Istanbul, Rio de Janeiro and Havana.

Steve Parry, the former sports editor of Reuters, has quit as head of media on the London 2012 bid team.

Parry said he could not commit to the long daily commute from his Hertfordshire home to the bid’s headquarters in Canary Wharf, east London. He will continue as a part-time adviser to Barbara Cassani.

Sportcal.com