RPT-Olympics-Prague gears up for 2016, 2020 Olympics bids

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By Jan Lopatka

PRAGUE, March 13 (Reuters) - The Czech capital Prague will bid to host the Olympics in 2016 or 2020, mayor Pavel Bem said on Tuesday.

The city's executive voted to go ahead with the bids, aiming to bring the Summer Games to eastern Europe for the first time since the fall of Communism across the region nearly two decades ago.

"We will not be favoured to win the Games in 2016, but despite that we will shoot for it to raise our chances for a candidacy in 2020," Bem told a news conference.

The plan still needs further approval in the city assembly, which is expected next week.

Prague officials have said they will aim for a smaller Games than those next year in Beijing or London in 2012 and try to respect the character of the ancient city.

Bem added he would like to bring the Games to the entire country of 10 million people, a plan which would require hundreds of billions of crowns in investment.

"This must not be Prague's Games, but a Games for the entire Czech Republic," said Bem, himself a sportsman who is taking a break later this year to climb Mount Everest.

The city commissioned a study which concluded the Games would cost 136 billion crowns ($6.35 billion), though the overall investment required would be 623 billion crowns including various infrastructure projects needed by the country anyway.

Chicago and Los Angeles are vying for the U.S. nomination to host the 2016 Games. Qatar, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, Madrid, Rome and New Delhi have also expressed an interest.

St. Petersburg is mulling the 2016 Olympics in case Russian city Sochi fails to win the 2014 Winter Games.

The International Olympic Committee will announce the venue for the 2016 Games in 2009. ($1=21.41 Czech Crown)

Keywords: OLYMPICS/PRAGUE