| Date | Event/action
| Comment |
| Sept 1993 | Sydney awarded the 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Manchester fails for a second time, having bid also for the 1996 Games. Third loss for a British bid (Birmingham beaten by Barcelona for 1992).
| The Olympics have been held in the UK in London in 1908 and 1948 (when the Stoke Mandeville Games began which grew into the Paralympics).
|
| 1995 | National Olympic Committee of the BOA (representing 35 sports governing bodies) decided that the next bid would be from London.
| A review of IOC members in 1994 indicated London as the only British city able to attract enough votes to win a bid.
|
| 1997 | Manifesto commitment by the Labour Party to bring the Olympics to the UK. The BOA decided to focus on 2012 as the next possible date for a bid.
| BOA felt that a European host for 2004 and a strong Beijing candidacy did not augur well for the UK in 2008.
|
| 1997 - 2000 | Feasibility study of a London Olympic bid conducted by the BOA and London International Sport: village, transport, facilities and sustainability examined.
| Report delayed by withdrawal of athletics in 1999 from proposals for a new Wembley national stadium.
|
| | Largely in parallel, proposals for a new national stadium at Wembley emerge and develop. Progress of the design and financial arrangements, including a £120 million Lottery grant, was and remains the subject of controversy.
| Originally designed for dual use (field sports and athletics). The Funding Agreement includes obligations for the stadium to be available for major athletics events including the Olympics.
|
| 1999 | The IOC responded to allegations of corruption with an inquiry by a special IOC Commission. The Commission recommended reform and punishment of offenders: there were four resignations, six expulsions and ten official warnings. Reform centred on the bid process, transparency of financial matters and changes to the constitution of the IOC: 115 members (under the age of 70)—15 active Olympic athletes elected by their peers, 15 from the national Olympic committees, 15 from international sports federations and 70 individual members.
| Other particular measures included:
abolition of visits by IOC members to Candidate Cities;
a reduced term of office for IOC president;
establishment of an IOC Ethics Commission;
publication of reports on sources and use of the Olympic Movement's income;
IOC Session opened to the media for the first time.
|
| 15 Dec 2000 | Confidential report submitted to the Government by the BOA on options for a London Olympics.
| East and West London options were assessed (but not an East/West village/stadium mix).
|
| Feb - May 2001 | Presentations of the BOA report to a range of stakeholders and other parties.
| These include, in March, one to the new Mayor of London.
|
| Nov 2001 | Confidential report by surveyors Insignia Richard Ellis to a "Stakeholders Group" (Government, GLA/LDA and BOA) on land availability for a London Olympics.
| The report identified 4 main sites all in East London (on the basis of IOC criteria and study of previous Olympic bids).
|
| Jan 2002 | Arup commissioned by the Stakeholders Group to estimate the costs and benefits of a London Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012. The Government began its analysis.
| Arup was asked to assess the implications of a Games staged in the Lower Lee Valley, East London.
|
| May 2002 | Submission of Arup's conclusions to the Stakeholders Group
| — |
| May 2002 - Jan 2003 | Government seeks to clarify its position, assessing:
- the costs and revenues identified by Arup as a basis for long-term public expenditure planning (involving a critical appraisal of risks and contingencies, a probability analysis, and benchmarking against the Sydney 2000 Games);
- the possible diversion of funds from other schemes and projects;
- the most effective delivery vehicle for the Games (including the role for Government);
- transport arrangements based on existing infrastructure and traffic management (and costings where possible);
- the potential for a football club to take on the new main stadium;
- legacies in former Olympic host cities;
- potential legacies in the UK for élite and grassroots sport;
- the impact of the Games on the current Thames Gateway Regeneration plan for the Stratford area;
- the economic impact for the UK of staging the Games;
- the likelihood of London winning the bid; and
- public opinion
|
| Sept 2002 | Submission of "winnability" study by UK Sport to Government.
| Government's other key tests are: cost, delivery and legacy.
|
| 26 Sept 2002 | Wembley National Stadium project achieved financial close and work commenced to clear the site for construction.
| Original multi-sport design, and contractual obligations regarding athletics, remain in place.
|
| 1 Nov 2002 | Publication of Arup study summary
| Limited detailed information. |
| 28 Nov 2002 | Interim report to IOC Session from its Olympic Games Study Commission (remit: the means by which the costs, complexity and size of the Games can be controlled).
| The report recommended amending the Olympic Charter to emphasise the importance of the Games legacy in host cities.
|
