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Last Updated: Tuesday, 28 June, 2005, 13:38 GMT 14:38 UK
Coe upbeat for final 2012 mission
London bid leaders Keith Mills and Lord Coe fly the flag
Bid leader Lord Coe has arrived in Singapore still confident that London can win the vote to decide which city will host the Olympics in 2012.

Coe will spend the rest of the week rehearsing the presentation he will give to International Olympic Committee members before they vote on 6 July.

He will be joined in Singapore by a team of ambassadors, including England football coach Sven-Goran Eriksson.

"We're going with confidence, but certainly not arrogance," said Coe.

"We're taking absolutely nothing for granted. This is probably the most crucial week and a half this bid has had."

Coe and bid chief executive Keith Mills flew out to Singapore on separate planes as a precaution - just in case one of them crashed.

London will be up against Paris, Madrid, New York and Moscow in the vote at Singapore's Raffles City Convention Centre.

"It's going to be tough. This is a very competitive process - those cities would not be at the table if it was anything other than that," said Coe.

SPORTING AMBASSADORS
Football: Sven-Goran Eriksson, Sir Bobby Charlton, David Beckham
Athletics: Jonathan Edwards, Cathy Freeman, Dalton Grant, David Hemery, Colin Jackson, Denise Lewis, Daley Thompson
Rowing: Sir Steve Redgrave, Sir Matthew Pinsent
Sailing: Shirley Robertson
Paralympics: Ade Adepitan, Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson
"But through hard work, effort and government support, I think this bid is as strong as any city has made for a very long time."

Prime Minister Tony Blair, who will spend two days in Singapore lobbying for London, sent out a message of support as Coe and number two Keith Mills prepared for departure.

At his monthly media briefing on Monday, Blair was wearing a special red and blue-tinged Olympic tie.

"We should remain very confident of the strength of our bid," said Blair, who will miss the final vote as he must return to the UK to host the G8 summit of world leaders.

"The bid team have done fantastically well and we've just got to go and make our case."

London's bid delegates will wear a special uniform in Singapore, created by fashion designer Jeff Banks.

Eriksson will be joined by England football captain David Beckham, Olympic heptathlon gold medallist Denise Lewis and rowing greats Sir Steve Redgrave and Sir Matthew Pinsent.

Decathlon legend Daley Thompson, Australia's 400m gold medallist Cathy Freeman and Sir Bobby Charlton will also be in the delegation, along with representatives of all three political parties.

Sir Steve Redgrave, Denise Lewis and Sir Bobby Charlton model their London 2012 outfits
Redgrave, Lewis and Sir Bobby Charlton model London's uniform
In the days leading up to the vote, the rival cities will get the chance to promote their bids in front of 1,200 members of the world's media.

They will also have a rare chance to talk directly to IOC members, as strict new rules prevent much contact during the bidding process.

"When an IOC session like this is taking place, it is quite normal around the coffee areas and lunch and breakfast rooms that people do meet and greet," London 2012 head of communications Mike Lee told BBC Five Live.

"That's perfectly allowed and acceptable and it's an opportunity to say hello to IOC members and to remind them of how strong London's case is."

In the past, the hours before a vote were seen as a time when bid teams bargained with IOC members in an attempt to secure their support.

But Lee said: "We've got no deals to be done. We are in the business of selling this bid on the right terms.

"That is very much about the strength of the bid, about what it would offer the Olympic movement, the future of Olympic sport and what a fantastic Games we could stage in London and across the country."


WATCH AND LISTEN
Interview: Lord Coe



SEE ALSO
Blair commits to Olympic mission
25 May 05 |  Olympics 2012


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