Speechless. We all expected Paris to win, but London was picked to host the 2012 Olympics today. I'm reminded of the boy with a smug look on his face standing next to a placard saying 'we win' at the start of Cheers! We Win!
The announcement came at 12:46 UK time from Singapore. London will host the 2012 Olympic Games after beating Paris in a final ballot by just four votes.
Amid dramatic and nervous scenes, London triumphed after polling 54 votes to Paris's 50. Moscow, New York and Madrid had been eliminated in earlier rounds of a secret ballot.
It will be the first time the Olympics have been held in Britain since 1948. Then it cost £750,000, but the 2012 games will cost at least £3.6bn, probably more. Some of this will be funded by a lottery, some by central government, and some will come from Londoners.
Now we have 7 years of building work to look forward to. But this is great, great news. See you here in 2012!
Book a london hotel