Britain will support India’s bid for the 2020 Olympic Games, London mayor Ken Livingstone told a press conference here today.

Livingstone, Sebastian Coe, head of 2012 London Olympic Games body, and Chelsea football club chief executive Peter Kenyon are part of a high-powered delegation in New Delhi aimed at developing cultural, business and sporting links between London and New Delhi.

Indian Olympic Association president Suresh Kalmadi announced in April his intention to start work on the bid for the 2020 Olympics after the completion of 2010 Commonwealth Games. The host will be named in 2013.

“I think Delhi has a good chance of getting the Olympics. It has staged major sporting events in the past and there would be a lot of coherence in their claim. A successful Commonwealth Games will definitely be helpful,” Coe said at a media interaction at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in the Capital, which also saw a large number of children assemble to receive valuable tips from the athletics legend.

“The Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune next year is also an important step in this direction,” he said.

Getting the Olympics would be a big task, but hosting rights for India would also signify that many more developing countries could aspire to host the biggest sporting extravaganza in the world.

“It will send out a strong message that the Olympics are not a franchise of half-a-dozen countries,” Coe, the 1500m gold medallist from the 1980 Moscow and 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, said.

“Hosting the Olympics come at a big price, as it involves more than just delivering an unbelievable sporting experience for a fortnight. A lot of other things need to be done but I am sure Delhi is on the right track,” he said.

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