LONDON: Glasgow’s bid to host the Youth Olympics in 2018 will be enhanced by a successful London summer Games, according to LOCOG chairman Lord Sebastian Coe.

The city formally launched its Youth Olympic Games bid this week with an event at Kelvingrove Art Gallery ahead of facing competition from .Buenos Aires (Argentina), Guadalajara (Mexico), Poznan (Poland), Medellin (Colombia) and Rotterdam (Holland).

The International Olympic Committee will produce a shortlist in February next year before naming the winning city in June.

Coe has said he believes in Glasgow’s prospects because of the legacy of the 2012 Games in bringing more major sporting events to Britain. He said part of the reason he wanted to get involved in the Olympic and Paralympic bid was to see more major events come to Britain.

He also praised the Glasgow Commonwealth Games team and its strong links with the London Games.

Coe, who led the London 2012 bid team to victory in 2005, said: “I want see, in all four corners of the United Kingdom, people bidding for things. That is what we said in Singapore in 2005 when we won the bid. We wanted that winning bid to be a catalyst for bringing more sporting events to Britain.

“If you successfully show that you can bid and then deliver a major sporting event, that often helps pave the way for a lot of other bids and a lot of successful sport, so I’m behind the Glasgow bid for the 2018 Youth Olympics.”

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