Dinner hosted in honor of International Olympic Committee members

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan hosted a dinner in honor of members of International Olympic Committee (IOC) Evaluation Commission in Istanbul on Tuesday evening. According to information received that Erdogan spoke at the dinner which was closed to media news. Referring to Istanbul's candidacy to host the 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan stated, "When we say Istanbul is a bridge between continents, civilizations and cultures we mean that it is not just a bridge you pass and go away. We say, Istanbul affects its residents and visitors deeply, give them much more and it is a treasure which becomes more glamorous." With the reforms which they fulfilled in the past decade, Erdogan said, Turkey's economy peaked globally and up till 2020, their works would continue. Erdogan noted, they were very ambitious for the year of 2023 as Turkey would be celebrating its 100th anniversary of the its foundation and said, they set up giant yet achievable targets for the 100th year anniversary and that they started off their attempts to achieve them already. "Nobody should have doubts on us hosting Olympics flawlessly. The date of 2020 Olympics is close to Turkey achieving its 2023 targets. So 2020 Olympics will be held in a country which is more developed, stronger than today and more prosperous. As Istanbul 2020 will be a bridge between sports and sportsmen, believe, it will be a bridge between hearts, cultures, peace and solidarity too," said Erdogan. Lastly, Erdogan wished good luck to the members of the Committee for their workshops.