PARIS, Nov. 18 (UPI) -- Olympic boosters in Paris mixed international politics into their bid to host the 2012 Summer Games, the International Herald Tribune said Thursday.
"The position of the French government on the international scene -- especially after the re-election of George Bush -- is going to allow us to have more unity around the French candidacy," said Jean-Paul Huchon, the vice president of the Paris Olympic bidding committee in unveiling the bid Wednesday.
Paris is considered the front-runner in the bid to host the Games and is competing against New York, London, Madrid and Moscow.
On a more domestic level, Paris Mayor Bertrand Delanoe promised Parisians a refurbished city and the creation of 42,000 jobs, saying, "It's a fantastic accelerator for urban renewal."
Officials said they had achieved political unity on the issue of hosting the Games as well as the backing of 79 percent of the French population in a recent French newspaper poll.
The International Olympic Committee will conduct its secret vote in July in Singapore.
