Tokyo to host 2020 Olympics

It will be the second time the Japanese capital has hosted the Games having previously done so in 1964.

The vote by the International Olympic Committee meeting in Buenos Aires saw Tokyo win the first round of voting with Istanbul and Madrid polling the same number of votes.

A tie-break saw Madrid eliminated by four votes to set up a final round between Istanbul and Tokyo with the Japanese city emerging triumphant.

Tokyo won by 60 votes to 36 in the final round of voting - a comprehensive victory which came despite some IOC members expressing concern over leaks at the Fukushima nuclear plant, which is 150 miles from the capital.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe tackled the issue head-on in Tokyo's final presentation, promising the IOC: "I shall take the responsibility to implement programmes to render this situation completely problem-free and I say that most emphatically and unequivocally."

Tokyo's cause was helped in no small way by the presence of Cambridge-educated Princess Hisako of Takamado, and a bravura performance in its final presentation by Paralympic athlete Mima Sato.

Hisako, the first member of the Japanese Imperial family to have ever addressed the IOC, delivered Tokyo's opening speech of the presentation and pushed all the right buttons.

Sato, who lost a leg following bone cancer and competed in the long jump at the London 2012 Paralympics, said: "What we have seen is the impact of the Olympic values as never before in Japan. And what the country has witnessed is that those precious values - excellence, friendship and respect - can be so much more than just words."

For Istanbul, bidding for the fifth time, there was bitter disappointment yet again.

The Turkish city had been the frontrunner for so long but suffered a series of damaging blows later in the campaign: the protests in Taksim Square in June - a proposed Games venue - a major doping scandal, the jailing of political opponents and journalists last month and the rising threat of war in next-door Syria.

Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Erdogan tried to address the issue, telling IOC members: "We live at a time when our region and the world crave for peace.

"And at this critical moment, we would like to send a strong message of peace to the whole world from Istanbul, the city of friendship and brotherhood."

Madrid had had high hopes for their royal trump card in the form of Crown Prince Felipe, a former Olympic sailor, but even his contribution could not convince enough IOC voters.

The Spanish city's main message had been staging a low-cost Games in a country which is struggling with its economy, and Felipe told members: "Some people around the world have questioned hosting the Games in a time of economic uncertainty.

"But I don't see this as a threat to the Olympics, I see it as an opportunity. The benefits of sport are measured in generations, not in dollars."

Tsunekazu Takeda, the former Olympic showjumper who is now head of the Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC), rejoiced in the outcome.

He said: "Tokyo is honoured and humbled by the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) decision to award us the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. It is with an incredible sense of excitement that we express our thanks.

"The Olympic Family has put its faith in our great city to deliver the memorable Games we have promised, and we will not let them down."

There was bitter disappointment in Spain however, with a number of sports stars expressing their anger.

Tennis player Feliciano Lopez, who represented Spain at London 2012, told AS.com: "What a disgraceful decision from the IOC, which has shown once again to have no regard for fair play and values all other interests above sport.

"I would like to believe that corruption, the economic situation and Operation Puerto were all key to us losing out, but I still don't understand it.

"What about the 30 Turkish athletes who were implicated in doping? This doesn't add up. And what about the nuclear crisis of Fukushima? Every candidate had its problems."

Guti, the former Real Madrid footballer, added: "This is terribly sad, a huge blow, not just for Madrid, but for Spain as a whole."