OSAKA — The city of Osaka on Thursday released the details of its 2008 Olympic plans, three days after submitting them to the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne, Switzerland.
The plans were submitted in response to a series of questions the IOC asked of 10 cities bidding for the 2008 Games in February.
Over the next two months, IOC officials will review responses to questions covering 22 different areas from bid motivation to sports infrastructure.
"The advantage of holding the Olympics in Osaka is that we already have the infrastructure. Our plans call for a compact Olympics that will be centered on Maishima Island in Osaka Bay," Osaka Mayor Takafumi Isomura told a news conference.
The city plans to use 40 facilities in Osaka and surrounding areas, including an 80,000 seat main stadium on Maishima Island, which has yet to be built.
Osaka hopes to host the Olympics at the end of July or the beginning of August, after the rainy season.
Some of the sporting events, including baseball, will take place in Kobe, while the canoeing events are scheduled for Lake Biwa. The triathlon will take place in the town of Rinku, near Kansai International Airport.
Under new guidelines, IOC voting members are not allowed to visit bid cities after they submit their plans. However, Isomura said it was probable that the Osaka Olympic Committee and the Japan Olympic Committee would be asked followup questions.
The finalists will be chosen at an IOC meeting in late August, and the host city will be chosen by the IOC general assembly in July, 2001.
The 10 cities bidding for the 2008 Games are Osaka, Beijing, Toronto, Paris, Havana, Cairo, Istanbul, Bangkok, Seville and Kuala Lumpur. Beijing is widely seen as the favorite in the race.