It followed a tie between Madrid and Istanbul which meant there had to be another round of voting by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) members to decide who would face the Japanese capital in the second round.

The announcement by IOC President Jacques Rogge that Istanbul had beaten Madrid in the run-off to reach the next round sparked wild scenes among Turkish supporters here who mistakenly thought he was declaring them the overall winners.

But there followed a second round of voting where a winner was chosen.

The decision of that vote is due to be announced at a special ceremony due to start at 5pm local time.

As this was Madrid's third consecutive bid they had started the day as many people's favourites but a generally disappointing presentation plus some tough questions on Spain's poor doping record may have cost it.

A disappointed spectator in the centre of Madrid reacts to the news that the Spanish capital had been knocked out in the first round of voting to host the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics

"We, at Madrid 2020 had a very strong and robust bid that we have been working on for many years," said Alejandro Blanco, President of Madrid 2020 and the Spanish Olympic Committee.

"Having listened and learned over three previous bid processes, we have presented our best offer and are sad that we will not be able deliver our plans.

"Our bid was not a bid of dreams, but winning the Games would have been a long awaited dream for the people of Madrid."

Crown Prince Felipe tried to look on the positives.

"With a significant proportion of the sporting infrastructure already built and in place, there is, still, a huge positive impact to be acknowledged," he said.

"Our efforts over the past 12 years will not be wasted, in that the people and youth of Madrid will still continue to benefit and enjoy an Olympic legacy from established venues to transport systems, so whilst the race for 2020 is lost, the future of sport in Spain will continue positively".

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


Related stories
September 2013: Presentations went as well as possible, Istanbul, Tokyo and Madrid all insist afterwards
September 2013: Spanish economic crisis means "Madrid offers safe, solid and reliable bid" claims Prime Minister
September 2013: Maximum of 95 votes expected in first round of 2020 Olympics host-cities election
September 2013: We hope it will be third time lucky for Madrid, says Gasol
September 2013: Messi does support Madrid 2020, even though he endorses sponsor of rival and plays for Barcelona